How to Make Laundry Day Faster

Nobody wants to spend their whole day on laundry. Whether you're doing laundry at home or at a laundromat, here's how to cut your time in half.

The Time Breakdown

Most people don't realize where their time actually goes during laundry day. Here's a typical breakdown:

• Sorting: 10-20 minutes
• Washing: 30-45 minutes per load
• Drying: 45-60 minutes per load
• Folding: 15-30 minutes
• Putting away: 10-15 minutes
• Waiting/idle time: variable

The key to faster laundry isn't rushing through tasks—it's eliminating idle time and doing tasks in parallel.

Before You Start

Sort as you go, not all at once

Instead of a single laundry basket, use a divided hamper or multiple baskets for darks, lights, and towels. Sort clothes as you undress throughout the week. When laundry day arrives, your loads are pre-sorted and ready.

Pre-treat stains the night before

Identify stained items and apply pre-treatment the evening before. This gives products time to work and means you won't be hunting for stains at the machine.

Check all pockets

Do this at home, not at the machine. Nothing slows down a laundry session like discovering a tissue-filled pocket mid-wash or fishing out coins from the drum.

At the Laundromat: The Parallel Approach

The laundromat's biggest advantage is parallelism—the ability to run multiple loads simultaneously.

The math

At home: 4 loads means 4 sequential wash cycles and 4 sequential dry cycles. That's roughly 6-8 hours of elapsed time.

At the laundromat: 4 loads in 4 machines wash in 35 minutes. Transfer to 4 dryers, dry in 45 minutes. Total: under 90 minutes.

Timing your visit

Go during off-peak hours to ensure machine availability:

• Best times: Weekday mornings (8-10 AM), Tuesday-Thursday evenings
• Busy times: Saturday morning through early afternoon, Sunday afternoon

At The Wash House, weekday mornings before 10 AM are typically the quietest across all locations.

Bring everything you need

Running home for forgotten detergent or quarters kills efficiency. Create a laundry kit:

• Detergent (pre-measured or pods)
• Payment method (quarters, card, or app balance)
• Dryer sheets or balls
• Stain remover
• Clean bags for finished laundry

Washing Faster

Use the right size machine

Larger machines aren't always better. Match the load to the machine:

• Small loads: Use a standard washer. You'll pay less and the cycle will be more efficient.
• Medium loads: Fill to 2/3 capacity for optimal cleaning.
• Large/bulky items: Use commercial-size machines with room to spare.

Don't over-complicate cycles

For most everyday laundry, a normal cycle with cold or warm water works fine. Save specialty cycles (delicate, sanitize, heavy-duty) for items that genuinely need them.

Use the right amount of detergent

More soap doesn't mean cleaner clothes. Excess detergent leaves residue and can trigger extra rinse cycles on modern machines.

Drying Faster

Don't overload dryers

Clothes need room to tumble. Overstuffed dryers take longer and leave items damp. Two medium loads dry faster than one overstuffed load.

Use the right heat setting

Higher heat dries faster—but only for appropriate fabrics. Cotton and towels can handle high heat. Synthetics and delicates should use low or medium to prevent damage.

Shake items out before loading

Balled-up clothes dry unevenly and slowly. Shake each item as you transfer it from washer to dryer.

Add dryer balls

Wool or rubber dryer balls separate clothes during tumbling, improving air circulation and reducing drying time by 10-15%.

Folding Faster

Fold as you remove from the dryer

Waiting until everything is out means double-handling. Fold each item as you remove it. Stack like items together.

Use a folding surface

If your laundromat has folding tables (all The Wash House locations do), use them. Folding in your lap or from a basket is slower and results in messier folds.

Simplify your folding

You don't need boutique-perfect folds for everyday clothes. Simple, functional folds that stack neatly are faster and work just as well.

Hang what you can

Dress shirts, pants, and dresses take longer to fold than they do to hang. Bring hangers and hang appropriate items right at the laundromat.

The Efficient Laundry Session

Here's an optimized 90-minute laundromat session for a family-sized load:

1. Arrive with pre-sorted loads (0:00)
2. Load 4 washers simultaneously (0:05)
3. Start all wash cycles (0:07)
4. Use wait time productively - read, answer emails, or step out briefly (0:07-0:40)
5. Transfer to 4 dryers (0:40-0:45)
6. Start dryers (0:47)
7. Second productive break (0:47-1:20)
8. Fold as you unload (1:20-1:30)
9. Done (1:30)

Compare this to the 6-8 hours it would take at home with a single washer and dryer.

Frequently Asked Questions