8 Laundry Tips and Tricks to Get Laundry Done Fast

How to do laundry faster

How to Do Laundry Faster and More Efficiently

Before we get into any laundry time-saving tips, you might want to take the time to clean your washing machine and dryer so they will work better and more efficiently for you!

Also, take measures to keep your laundry space organized and clean – shelves, cabinets, containers, whatever. It will be a lot easier and faster to get things done when everything is nice and organized, easy-to-find, and peaceful (as peaceful as a laundry room can be anyway).

Ok, ready for the laundry tips and tricks now? Let’s get started…

1. Faster Pre-Sorting

I love having laundry pre-sorted in the baskets and ready to go. One basket or bin for light colors, one for dark colors, and one for towels.

This works wonderfully for us and cuts down on the time spent sorting. Dirty clothes go straight into the appropriate place. I can basically just dump the bin into the washer and start the load.

Laundry sorter for faster laundry

I have a laundry sorter like this one.

My young kids basically only have dark colored clothing, so I don’t even bother sorting their laundry. They just bring their laundry basket to the laundry room when I’m ready for it.

Of course, as they get a bit older, they will get to do their own laundry. Someday having them do their own laundry should save me some time too, right? 😉

2. Laundry Routine and Frequency

Here’s a method that might just work wonders for you…Do laundry by the person. Assign one day of the week for each person’s laundry!

It is faster and easier to get the clean clothes to the right person and place when you only have one person’s laundry washing each day. Each person’s laundry will still get done every week, the loads will probably still be full enough, and you might be able to avoid accumulating a huge mountain of clothing to sort and fold.

For some people, it works well to do all of their laundry on one day. For others, it works to do one load of laundry each day, or as needed. I say, try out both types of methods and then stick to what works best for you!

3. Easy Stain Removal

Rub white chalk on grease stains – the chalk powder will absorb the grease and the stain should come right out in the wash.

If you don’t have chalk, you can try sprinkling baby powder on the stain (see more uses for baby powder). I also love this homemade stain remover for grease, yellow pit stains, and more.

Crayola Chalk, White, 12-Pack

Tip: Add a few drops of lavender oil to the rinse cycle while your bed linens are washing. It will give the linens a fresh scent, which also promotes better sleep.

If you want to learn more about the lavender essential oil we use and recommend read this essential oils blog post, email us at seekingwellness at fabulesslyfrugal dot com or text us at 208-907-OILS we can answer questions for you and tell you how to get pure essential oils for less.

4. Faster Wash Time

For average everyday laundry, skip the normal cycle setting and use the quick wash cycle on your washing machine.

Maybe this is old news to you, but I had been using the normal cycle all the time until I heard this tip. It will cut the wash time down a lot, maybe even by half, depending on your machine. The clothes still come out clean and fresh!

Note that you will want to use a longer cycle for the more heavily soiled clothing.

Tip: Add 1 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle to soften clothing. One cup of vinegar in the wash also prevents bleeding color, fading, and kills bacteria.

5. Set Reminders

I have had sour stinky laundry so many times. These laundry tips keep me from making the mistake of leaving my wet laundry for too long.

When you start a load of laundry, set a timer on your phone, or whatever you will keep with you. You will then have a reminder for when you need to go rotate the load.

Consider committing to a rule of not letting the laundry sit in the washing machine or dryer. When the timer goes off, keep things moving along! I know I’m not the only one that has had to run the load through the wash again because it sat in there too long. 😉

Tip: Use a dry erase marker to write on the washer or dryer reminding yourself of the items that you don’t want to put in the dryer.

6. Faster Dry Time

Add a dry bath towel to a damp load in the dryer. It’ll absorb extra moisture and speed up drying time.

Dryer Balls with text

We also love using these high-quality Smart Sheep wool dryer balls instead of disposable dryer sheets. The dryer balls help the clothing dry faster, among other benefits!

7. Skip Ironing

You can often avoid wrinkles if you hang the item up once the dryer is finished. Sometimes that just doesn’t happen though. Here are a couple of ways to get rid of the wrinkles without ironing…

  • Dampen a clean washcloth with water, throw it in the dryer with the wrinkled item and let the machine do the work for 10-15 minutes. It will steam and remove most of the wrinkles!
  • Try spraying your clothing, before putting it on, with a solution of lavender oil and water. The lavender relaxes the fibers of the fabric, making the wrinkles disappear!

8. Fold and Sort Faster

The pre-sorting and/or assigned days mentioned above can really help speed up this process, but here are a few more tips on the matter…

Keep a clean laundry basket for each person in the laundry room. Once the drying is done, put their clean clothes directly into the designated basket.

Fold any short-sleeve shirt perfectly in just 2 seconds. This is pretty cool!

Tip: To keep socks from getting lost and for faster sorting, you can try using sock clips, or something similar, to keep pairs together throughout the washing and drying. Use a different color clip for each person.

Or, if you don’t have many socks to wash at once, you can wash and dry the socks in a mesh laundry bag.

You might also like these posts:

I found some of these great laundry tips here: BHG, Thrifty Little Mom, The House of Smiths, Kids Activities, All You, and Kidspot.

I’d love to hear your best laundry tips! Leave a comment!

laundry tips and tricks for faster laundry

Comments

  • I have a laundry sorter like that one. I love that you can grab the handles, pick the bag up, and go. Much easier than the mesh bag type I used to have.

  • I ❤️❤️❤️ your tips

  • I had a “folding party” at the beach with my family this summer(they helped me fold the mountain of clothes for 8 people). We all had different ways of folding t-shirts. Mine are folded a certain way so they fit in the dresser drawers. This 2-second trick is PERFECT!! They come out the way I used to fold, but in about 1/10 the time. Times 8 people, I am going to save a lot of time folding. Thank you!

  • I am always on the search for time saving tips. Ran across this post and am looking forward to giving these a shot. I can see the “Fold and Sort Faster” tip alone saving me a huge chunk of time. Thanks for sharing this wonderful resource!

  • I had on idea that a wool ball can help dry your clothes faster. I wonder if things like hotels and hospitals use them to help get their laundry done faster. It seems like it might be a good idea to have a professional help with do massive amounts of laundry.

  • I like how you mentioned that in order to cut down on time you should have pre-sorted baskets ready to go. I’m thinking of taking my dirty laundry to DIY cleaning services because my washer and dryer broke down last week. It might be a good idea to consider sorting my clothes and take them to a reputable establishment with high-quality equipment to clean my clothes as best as possible.

  • I like how you explained that in order to cut down on time you should have pre- sorted baskets ready to go. I can see the “Faster Dry Time” tip alone saving me a huge chunk of time. Thanks for posting such informative blogs.

  • I really like your idea to do laundry by the person so that everyone has one day a week to get it done. My brother is thinking about renovating his laundry room so that it can accommodate his family better. He needs to make sure that he is using the right materials and appliances to get this done properly.

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