Good morning to those of you who caught me on Sunday’s WTHR Weekend Sunrise! We talked all about my Dirty Laundry {I always seem to have plenty}. Here are some of my favorite laundry Royal Money Saving Tips. Steps just like these helped us cut costs during our journey of paying off over $127K in debt over the past 4 years.
Laundry. I’ve got to do it, you’ve got to do it. We’ve all got to do it unless we wanna be the smelly kid in class. I’m sure we’ve all pulled the “pick it up off the floor and wear it one more time” trick. Wait, what? You don’t do that? Um, me neither. And while doing laundry is a fairly predictable expense, there are still ways to save {even if you don’t enjoy the task}.
1) Make your own laundry detergent. There are scads of recipes out there but we use a very basic powdered one and have successfully for over a year. It’s 1 cup of Borax, 1 cup of Washing Soda {found near the Borax at the store}, and 1 cup of Ivory Soap grated {yep, I use my cheese grater}. I mix it together in an old ice cream bucket and kind of break down the soap into the mix with my hands. The best part is when I swing the bucket around in circles to further mix it together {with the lid on of course}. I use ~ 1 T for a “regular” load of laundry or 2 T for dirtier loads like towels or whites. Here are the answers to your questions {I read minds as a 2nd job}: Yes, you can use it in HE machines {although I’ve been told that it works better if you put it in with the clothes rather than in the dispenser}. Yes, I occasionally see flakes of the soap after the load is done washing, however, it’s never done any harm to our clothes. Our washing machine is located in a non-climate controlled area so I tend to use the warm or hot setting, especially during the winter months or our clothes freeze and the soap doesn’t break down as well. I’ve been told you can use other soaps with more scent; however, allergies in our house prevent us from having much of a fragrance. Yes, the clothes still smell clean.
2) Swap Vinegar for Fabric Softener. Ok, I admit initially I was skeptical. However, about a year ago Downey changed their formula and it set the sensitive noses in our house a sneezin’. So I decided to try using vinegar in our Downey Ball in lieu of fabric softener and we loved it. No, we do not smell like Easter eggs or Salad. Yes, it works just as well. Yes, we also have a set of the spike-y dryer balls to help cut down on static.
3) Hang ‘Em High. This is kind of funny but last summer on a beautiful afternoon, I decided to hang jeans on the curtain rod in our living room and let them dry in the lovely breeze blowing through our windows. And since then, we’ve rarely dried a pair of jeans in the dryer. I tend to toss them in the dryer for 5-10 minutes to knock the wrinkles out and then hang them upside down on pant hangers in our laundry room {although our red neck living room clothes line suits me just fine, too}. I also dry sweaters or sweatshirts on hangers in the laundry room, too. Some I lay flat, some I hang up. Not only will it cut down on your electric bill but I’ve noticed the fabrics hold up much longer and don’t shrink, either. Because of the aforementioned allergies and Indiana’s pollen count, I doubt we’ll ever be poster children for an outdoor clothes line, but the indoor version suits us just fine.
4) Full Loads with Cold Water. If you want to save, washing full loads of laundry instead of small batch loads will help cut down on your water and electric bills. Also, using cold water is a money saver. It’s not always an option for us because it’s like ice coming out of the washing machine during the winter months, but maybe it will work for you. Sometimes, small batch loads are unavoidable {in particular, the King of Free’s dress shirts really need to be laundered in smaller loads or the they get mangled and wrinkly} but if you can, fill that sucker up. But maybe not too full or you might end up with a repairmen at your house. That’s never happened to you? Um, me either.
What about you? How do you save cash while doing the washin’?
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