Creating a laundry schedule is a great way to stay on top of the never-ending task of clothes washing.
The Laundry Trap
Man, oh, man, do I remember the days of the never-ending laundry pile.
While I’m currently in a different stage of life than I was 10 years ago, I remember all too often when playing catch-up on my laundry pile was a regular occurrence.
Nowadays, I have a much lighter load (pun intended), and it’s much easier to stay on track.
I currently only do my laundry, my daughter’s laundry, the linens, rugs, and animal bedding.
My husband is mainly in charge of his laundry, and my grown boys are in charge of theirs (with the occasional me swapping from washer to dryer, of course).
So, needless to say, my current laundry schedule is likely much less hectic than yours!
All that said, I can easily recall the days of needing to wash everyone’s laundry, including those pesky soccer uniforms and school clothes, and I can tell you that, especially then, utilizing a laundry schedule was always a must in my book!
So, if you’re ready to leave the overwhelming laundry trap of never having what you need clean behind, keep on reading, my friend!
The Need for a Laundry Schedule
I have learned, especially in recent years, that living by a schedule isn’t the only way of doing things.
That said, not living by a schedule when it comes to daily cleaning causes unnecessary stress and chaos in my life, which I’m simply not a fan of.
So cleaning and doing laundry by schedule is how I do it.
When we lived in our old house, I cleaned by schedule.
When we moved into the RV, I created a cleaning schedule for that, too.
Now that we are back in a home, I’ve created a new cleaning routine for our current space and stage of life.
All that said, the laundry pile is its own beast.
Creating a laundry schedule not only helps keep the pile at bay, but it can also make the unexpected mishaps and busy days a little easier to manage.
For example, if you wash by schedule and something catastrophic happens, causing you to take a few days off, you don’t have to worry about not having clean underwear, no towels to use, or sleeping in filth because you don’t remember the last time you cleaned your sheets.
Just sayin’.
All that said, the unexpected does happen from time to time, and if you are doing laundry for a larger family, you may find yourself getting behind and in need of a simple laundry catch-up plan.
My Laundry Schedule
Ok, guys, before I dive into my personal laundry schedule, you need to know that there was a time in my life when I was washing at least 1-2 loads of laundry every single day just to keep the pile at a manageable level.
Now is not that time.
My laundry schedule has simplified over the years and goes something like this:
Monday: Mixed Loads
This day is set aside for 1 load of regular wash (typically a mix of darks and colors) for my daughter and me, and occasionally a load of jeans.
I put this load(s) on my Monday afternoon schedule because my daughter takes an out-of-the-home, homeschool class on Tuesday, and this allows us both have clean laundry come Tuesday morning.
My middle kid also does a load of laundry on this day. His load is typically done first, and since he works in manufacturing (and occasionally with heavy metals), I tend to run a washing machine cleaner right after, followed by my load.
Tuesday: Skip (or catch up) Day
Since this is our day for out-of-the-house errands and homeschool classes, I tend to skip laundry on this day unless we are behind or somehow ran out of towels early.
Wednesday/Thursday: Blankets & Linens
This day is set aside for pet bedding, throw blankets, throw rugs, or other random linens from around the house.
I typically wash all of these items “as needed”.
For example, each piece of dog bedding and every throw blanket (we have a lot) might not get washed every single week, but I at least check to see if anything needs a good refresh and can usually end up with a good load’s worth.
I will have at least 1-2 loads to wash in this category each week; it really just depends on how messy of a week we’ve had.
Checking everything in this category just helps me stay caught up and keeps pesky smells at bay.
Friday: Towels
This is my bathroom cleaning day, so naturally, washing towels on Friday became a no-brainer.
That said, I do sometimes do an impromptu earlier load of towels during the week if we, for some reason, happen to use more than the regular amount (hello, summer lake days!).
On weeks I have extra towel loads to wash, I may not have enough dirty towels for an entire load on Friday.
For those times, I simply toss in bigger items such as a shower curtain or window curtains to get myself up to a full load.
Not only does this get some of the extras washed, but it also allows me to make sure all of our towels are clean for the upcoming week — thus keeping me on schedule and most likely not running out of towels early the following week.
Saturday/Sunday: Bedding
I put bedding on the weekends simply because it’s a huge job and I can likely get additional help.
Between washing, drying, and remaking the beds, this task can take all day (or sometimes all weekend).
My husband also washes his laundry over the weekend.
All that said, my oldest son lives by no schedule and does his laundry whenever his hamper gets full.
This typically happens at night, so it doesn’t mess with my schedule too much, since I do most of my washing during the day.
Creating a Laundry Schedule
I wish I could say there is a one-size-fits-all cleaning schedule that will work for everyone, but that’s a total lie.
We all lead different lives and have different needs.
For example, when my kids were young, and my husband worked outside of the home, I took on the responsibility of all the washing, drying, and folding.
During certain stages of my life, that meant doing laundry every single day, sometimes as many as 2-3 loads a day.
Now my life is simpler, and my needs are simpler.
I set aside Mondays and weekends as my heavy chore days, leaving Tuesdays through Fridays to focus more heavily on work and daily maintenance tasks.
My grown boys do their own laundry, my husband takes care of his, and my daughter and I do ours together.
Most weeks, I can get away with doing laundry 4-5 days a week, rarely having the need to do 2-3 in a day (unless it’s bedding washing day, of course).
All that said, I can’t help you create a laundry schedule that’s exactly right for you.
Unfortunately, you will have to do the dirty work on that one, you guys!
First, take a step back and assess your personal needs before diving into a set laundry schedule.
Then, as your needs change, be prepared to adjust your schedule accordingly.
Utilizing Your Laundry Schedule
Using a laundry schedule to stay caught up is great, but it’s important to make sure the schedule you create fits your family’s unique needs.
For example, my husband and I both work from home, and since my work is mainly blog-related, I can create my own flexible schedule.
This allows me to set aside Mondays for larger home tasks, and if need be, lots of laundry.
So naturally, I will put my more tedious laundry tasks (like lots of folding) on this day.
However, since we are out of the house for part of Tuesday, our schedule is already disrupted; I try not to put any laundry on this day if I can help it!
So, it’s important to not only look at the amount and types of loads you need to complete in a given week but also to look at your entire family’s schedule and plan accordingly.
If you work from home, this will be easier to tackle.
If you are often away from home, however, this may be more of a challenge.
While it’s easy for me to do my laundry during the day, I know many families don’t have that option.
So if you have a busy schedule or a tendency to forget, you might try leaning on smart washers and dryers or a washer/dryer combo.
For example, our washer and dryer are both considered smart devices.
While I didn’t necessarily care about this feature while purchasing, I have grown to love the reminders that pop up on my phone to let me know when a load has finished.
That said, smart washers and dryers also typically have a delay start feature that makes doing laundry a breeze.
We actually use this feature quite a bit more than I ever thought we would, simply because our electric company has prime time hours where usage costs us more.
So, by utilizing the delay feature, we can start our washer or dryer after prime time has ended, even though we may have loaded it hours beforehand!
This feature can be great for those who work outside of the home.
You can easily load up your washer the night before and set it to wash shortly before you return home, so that all you have to do is dry and fold in the evening hours.
All that said, we also became very aware of washer/dryer combos while full-time RVing with our kiddos.
Many larger RV families relied on these types of machines, and while not necessarily super popular for sticks-and-bricks homes, they might prove beneficial for some!
Whether you are new to creating a laundry schedule or you simply need some new ideas for your current routine, I hope you found everything you were looking for in this post!
Happy washing, you guys!
