Minimizing Your Wash Will Maximize Your Savings

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

24 Jun 2008 06:52 AM

Let's face it, no one really wants to do endless piles of wash every week, right? Minimizing your wash, besides making laundry easier, has the added benefit of increasing the amount of money that stays in your pocket. Less laundry can mean less time that you can spend earning or saving money through frugal practices. It can also mean less laundry detergent, less electricity or gas cost and less wear and tear on your clothes.

So other than living in dirty clothes all of the time, how can you minimize your wash? Check out the following suggestions.

Use an extra large or super capacity washer if possible. If it is time to replace your washer, invest a bit in a larger size. Today's washers are very efficient. This means that an extra large load of wash will use the same amount of energy to run as will a small load of wash. And, if you have an older machine, upgrading to a new more efficient one, no matter the size, will save you money in the long run. The fewer number of times that you run the washer, the more savings, so make sure you do the fullest loads possible as recommended by your machine.

In order to wash large loads, you'll need to have enough clothes to put in them. You can go out and spend some money on clothes to fill the loads, or you can balance the loads more efficiently. Do you really need to separate out jeans from the rest of your wash? Don't have enough whites? Consider throwing in light colored towels or sheets that also need hot water and skip the bleach that week.

Check back later today and join me as I discuss how to combine loads and other laundry techniques to minimize this chore.

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. Starting June 1st, don't miss her articles in the Baby Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

Related Articles:

Frugal Laundry: Make Your Own "Detergent"

The Frugal Washing Machine

Dry Your Clothes Twice as Fast

Alternatives to Hanging Laundry Outside

Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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