I have been on 23 full two-hour college tours. In every single one, a parent asks when the laundry rooms are open. The answer is…. it doesn’t matter because you won’t be there, and they will do their laundry when they run out of things to wear.
When they do tackle this emergency task, here are a few things that can make it easier.
Both my kids have a standing laundry hamper under their beds. This is so they can throw things in it directly like they sort of do at home. I have three of these particular baskets, and they are great. They have held up incredibly well with constant use at home and school.
They don’t drag that down to the laundry room, though. We have a transport bag where the detergent, dryer sheets, and stain sticks live. This is also how they bring home lots and lots of dirty laundry on each break because we live within driving distance from their schools.
When I got these bags, they seemed like something they may not need, but both get regular use.
Since the detergent, dryer sheets, and stain sticks live in these bags, I get smaller sizes than we use at home. Buying in bulk doesn’t really pay off here. You can read forever about the washing machines at your kids’ school. Are detergent sheets a good idea? Do the pods break down, or do they stick to the clothes and ruin them? Really, you could spend a day reading about this. I send a small liquid detergent with my daughter and a small container of pods with my son because that it what works best for each of them.
Also, send a Tide pen because (see above) they do the laundry when they run out of clothes.
I have friends who swear by a drying rack, so I am including it for you, but we have never had the space in any room to use one. It does help when only one dryer in the whole dorm works, though.
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