My Super Simple Laundry System

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Are on the search for an easy laundry system? I’ve tried them all, and this is the best system that worked for our growing family. Maybe it will work for you too?

We are currently a family of four soon to be six with twin girls arriving sometime in June. My daughter and son-in-law take two showers and use two sets of clothing every day. They create a lot of clothes. Add to that Lucas and the spills, poopy pants and soon to be baby stuff along with sheets, blankets, towels, bath mats and the endless supply of swimming towels during the summer, and we could be drowning in laundry if it were not for the system we utilize in our family.

My easy laundry system is perfect for our tribe. It employs an “all hands on deck” approach including my 2-year-old grandson so that it’s completely manageable and no one is overwhelmed by another daily to-do chore.

So if you find yourself drowning in laundry, maybe this simple system for how to do laundry for a large family will help.

This system might not work for every family, but I’ve tried them all, and I’m confident you’ll find this system user-friendly. Plus even if you don’t like it that much, I’m sharing all my other laundry tips anyone can use.

My easy laundry system is pretty simple. We do a minimum of one load of laundry every day which includes washing, drying and putting away.

Read Related Article: How to Organize Clothes Without a Dresser

Table of Contents

My Super Simple Laundry System That Works

Step 1: Washing

The key to managing the laundry is to have a system in place that you use over and over again. In our home, we have several people who come into the house to care for Lucas. Everyone that is here to help is expected to do laundry – no exceptions.

We don’t mix adult and children’s clothing together. Adult clothing is washed a couple of times a week as is kids, towels, sheets and the rest of the stuff that needs laundering. Here’s how the schedule breaks down:

Monday – Sheets and Towels

Tuesday – Adults

Wednesday – Kids

Thursday – Adults

Friday – Bath Mats, Area Rugs, Towels, etc

Saturday – Kids

Sunday – Adults

Here are some additional tips we utilize to make laundering easy.

Use One Type of Laundry Detergent

We use one laundry detergent for everything that gets washed. This way we don’t have to teach everyone who handles the laundry a different system depending on what is being laundered.

We do use Seventh Generation from Grove Collaborative mostly because we don’t want to deal with the chemicals.

We also pre-treat with some OxiClean Max Force and add some OxiClean to the wash cycle when doing the kids clothing and towels and sheets.

Related: The Secrets of Getting Your Laundry from Hamper to Hanger

Separate Whites and Colors

Laundry 101 tells us to separate our light clothes from your dark clothes because dark clothes tend to ‘bleed’ out their dyes onto your pretty whites, sometimes permanently changing them from bright white to something rather dull and dank looking.

We make this task super easy by having two laundry baskets in the main bedrooms, one for whites and one for colors. We all pitch in and separate the kid’s clothes, but this is a task smaller children in your household could easily help with.

I know plenty of people who hate to separate their clothes and instead throw a Shout Color Catcher in for good measure.

If It Can Go Directly Into The Laundry Room Put It There

We strip Lucas after supper before tubby time, and so instead of lugging up the dirty laundry, I have two baskets on top of the washer and dryer one for white and one for colors. This way when it’s time to do a load we just throw it in with the other kids clothing or household items and run the machine.

Wash Adult Clothes and Kid Clothes Separately

As I stated previously we don’t wash adult and kids clothes together. It’s far easier to sort, fold and organize when I’m dealing with a particular load of clothing. Also, kids clothing is typically far dirtier than anything we all wear, and so we like to wash the kids clothing separately.

Shake It Out

When removing clothes from the dryer shake them out. This allows you to see if all stains have been removed before they get ‘set’ in the dryer. If I find a stain, I can pretreat and set aside until the next appropriate laundry day.

Before I started employing this tactic, I had to throw out a lot of t-shirts and replace them because stains had not been removed completely. Despite the fact it takes a bit longer to get the clothing in the dryer, it saves money because you’re not out buying new clothing to replace what was ruined.

The second reason to try this method is it helps to reduce wrinkles and speed up drying time. If you throw it all and it’s a tangled up ball of clothing, inevitably something will come out still wet.

I also take the time to zip, button and turn right side out any clothing before it goes into the dryer. This makes folding easier.

Step 2: Folding

Step two of our easy laundry system is all about folding and organizing all the clothes so they can find their way to their proper home.

Here’s how to make this job easier.

Hanging It? Then Don’t Fold It

No need to waste time or the energy. If it’s getting hung up, we don’t bother to fold it. Instead, we lay it out in piles, one for each member of the house.

Match Socks Last

Socks have a way of getting stuck inside of other clothes. Just keep them all in a pile and save them for last, so you don’t have to backtrack when you find that stray one later.

Enlist Help From Everyone

My grandson is only two, but he still helps with the laundry. Typically he takes items out and hands them to me, but eventually, he’ll be matching socks and folding towels.

Everyone helps. Hired help, grandparents, anyone who has a set of hands isn’t exempt.

Practice Smart Loading

Stack the laundry with folded items first. Start with the largest first like sheets and blankets, or pants before other items. Lastly, place all items that will be hung on top of the pile. Now the laundry is ready to be put away.

Step 3: Hang and Put Away Clothes

Step 3 of our easy laundry system is about getting the clothes back into drawers and closets.

Hang the Shirts On The Bed

The reason we piled on the clothes onto the basket and didn’t bother folding was to make hanging them simple. Just place the shirts on the bed. Grab you hangers and put them on the bed at the top of the shirts. Slip a hanger onto the collar one at a time, flipping the hung shirt and hanger so you can access the next shirt and repeat until all the shirts have hangers on them. Viola!

Have Kids Help

If your child is old enough, they can help hang clothes and put clothes in drawers. My grandson, who is only two helps put his clothes away all the time. If your kids are at school when laundry is done, just leave it on their bed with the expectation they’ll put them away when they get home.

Make sure this is done completely and that your clothes basket is empty. If not, more than likely clothes won’t be put away or will end up piled on top of bureaus.

This way everyone’s bedrooms look neat and tidy all week long.

This three step, easy, laundry system utilizes a team approach to getting laundry done and a method to ensure laundry is never overwhelming. We always have clean clothes, and we’re not drowning in dirty clothes. Our system has us winning the laundry battle!

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