Laundry system: hamper, basket, or just a big pile?

[Want2retire]

Several have mentioned laundry chutes. When I was little I lived in a 19th century three story house with a laundry chute, and the washer was in the basement.

One of the jobs we kids had every week was to lug a million heavy bushel baskets of laundry from the basement up to the second floor. Consequently, as an adult laundry chutes have zero appeal to me! They only work in one direction - - down.

Nothing ever got stuck in our laundry chute, and in fact the diameter was so large that my mother was concerned that possibly one of us kids would climb into it and fall to the basement. I guess it was probably 16"-18" in diameter.

[UncleHoney]

We have a laundry chute in the second floor bathroom that leads directly to a phone booth sized storage closet in the basement laundry room. Laundry gets sorted into piles on the floor awaiting the washing machine.

Out of the washer and into the dryer and then they get either folded or hung up. We have a nice walk-in clothes closet in the laundry room where things end up till they make it back upstairs. Don't go up empty handed.

Things do get stuck in the laundry chute once in a while. There's a nice long stick downstairs that always gets things moving again.

Since I got the laundry room all fixed up a few years ago it really stays nice and tidy. DW likes to show it off, it's nicer than a lot of kitchens.

[Frugality_of_Apathy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Want2retire Consequently, as an adult laundry chutes have zero appeal to me! They only work in one direction - - down.

Maybe in the days before electricity. I don't see any reason you couldn't have an electric dumbwaiter with an open top at the bottom of the chute. when the laundry is done fold it and put it in the dumbwaiter. hit floor 3 and it'll be up there before you are.

[Khan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frugality_of_Apathy Maybe in the days before electricity. I don't see any reason you couldn't have an electric dumbwaiter with an open top at the bottom of the chute. when the laundry is done fold it and put it in the dumbwaiter. hit floor 3 and it'll be up there before you are.

I could so see a dwelling with a dumbwaiter (mechanical or electric).

[Leonidas]

Quote:

Originally Posted by saluki9 I just take mine to our main floor and throw it down the basement stairs. Through some miraculous process that I've yet been unable to explain it shows up cleaned, dried, and folded in my dresser. I've never asked my wife if the same thing happens to her dirty clothes, but so far I wouldn't want her to feel bad if the same isn't happening to her.

I'm no longer allowed to touch the laundry in my house. Not since the great blue jean disaster of '06. Apparently finding size 1 blue jeans in stores is a major pain, and then finding the right size 1 blue jeans that fit a certain blond chick's little butt in the right manner is a monumental task. I'm still not sure why it was my fault - it was our son who left a pen in his jeans - all I did was neglect to check the pockets.

Back to the OP - ours is a weird hybrid system of dirty clothes in hampers and on the floor. Since I'm not allowed to do laundry I have elected to not complain and just roll with the system. If the hampers are in my closet I know which one is for dirty laundry and which is for dry cleaning. When they have been removed for some reason I just toss the clothes in a pile on the floor - because the 8 hampers in the laundry room comprise a totally different system that is way too complicated for me to use. I bought the hampers years ago with the idea that everyone could do their own laundry. I know, what the hell was I thinking. The blond chick is a control freak when it comes to the laundry so I think I'm actually the only one who even has hampers in his closet anymore. I'm not sure what she does with her clothing when it's dirty, and she has something worked out with the boys that I know better than to get involved in.

[hankster]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIRE'd@51 The last two homes I've owned have had laundry chutes. I just throw my dirty clothes into the chute and they go down to a closet in the laundry room, where they stay (out of view) until I separate them to do the wash. Wonderful invention - the laundry chute.

Yes they are! Ours is in the bathroom so it's really handy. At bath time, strip off the dirty clothes and toss 'em down the chute where they drop into a hamper on wheels where they're ready to be moved about 15 feet to the washing machine.

[freebird5825]

hamper in bedroom.
dh2b carries it down for me when just full.
piles sorted on laundry room floor, until a pile is big enough for a wash load.
i line dry, then do a short de-wrinkle run in dryer.
i fold loads and leave on bed for him to put away.
i do all laundry except his w*rk dress clothes - done together.

[Moemg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by UncleHoney Since I got the laundry room all fixed up a few years ago it really stays nice and tidy. DW likes to show it off, it's nicer than a lot of kitchens.

Very nice laundry room ! Great Job !

[Notmuchlonger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by free4now Living alone, I'm finding that the most convenient place to put my clothes waiting to be laundered is in a pile on the floor next to the clothes washer. I finally ended up getting a fancy bamboo hamper so my apartment doesn't look like a college dorm, but I must admit that I only use it when guests are coming over. Most of the time, the pile on the floor works best for me: - Putting sweaty workout clothes out in the open lets them dry quicker and prevents them from getting moldy inside a hamper. - I can see what's out on the floor, making it easy to pick and wear a pair of jeans a second day if I choose. - It's simply less hassle not to put things into and take them out of the hamper than to do so. But there's something about having a pile of clothes on the floor that just doesn't seem right, so I'd like to find a system that looked more "proper". I'm about to try making more closet floor space available and storing them there, but wondered if anyone has better ideas. What do you do with your clothes that are waiting to be washed.

Similar. I have to hang up my work out clothes. Otherwise phew. My biggest gripe with staying fit is the laundry load.

[KB]

Uncle Honey, that's a great laundry room.

[UncleHoney]

Quote:

Very nice laundry room ! Great Job !

Quote:

Uncle Honey, that's a great laundry room.

Thanks.

It also serves as a wet bar when the parties get going. Got a little fridge and a small microwave too.

[harley]

When we moved to the beach we no longer had our laundry chute. It's the only thing I really miss. I also usd it to run an ethernet cable up to the top level where my wireless connection was spotty.

OT - when I was a college kid I worked in a large Department store in the DC area. Whenever anybody bought something and wanted it shipped we had to take it to a corner of the store and end it down a big curved chute for the wrapping and mailing dept. to take care of. This was before the days of the water park and similar things. I got fired 3 different times for riding down that thing. It was great! They kept hiring me back after a couple days though.

As far as the dumbwaiter, when we moved into our new place at the shore our only major storage area is the attic above the garage. But since the ceiling is 11' high, the angle on the pull down stairs is so steep that you can't go up it carrying any box bigger than a file folder box. So while I was busy designing a hand cranked dumbwaiter, DW found this https://www.bpghome.com/products/ver...torage-system/. It's been well worth the cost. Every time somebody visits I show it off.

[samclem]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley DW found this https://www.bpghome.com/products/ver...torage-system/. It's been well worth the cost. Every time somebody visits I show it off.

That's very cool. I think it costs more than the value of everything that is actually in my attic, but that's beside the point. Cool, cool.

Here's another handy storage idea, while we're off topic. Harken Hoists let you store a pallet of crap supplies, or a kayak, train set, pickup truck shell, etc snugged up against the ceiling of your garage

[haha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Khan I could so see a dwelling with a dumbwaiter (mechanical or electric).

I grew up in a three story house with a huge mechanical dumbwaiter.

Ha

[Bestwifeever]

UncleHoney's laundry room is nicer than my whole house, let alone my kitchen. Very nice!

[harley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem Here's another handy storage idea, while we're off topic. Harken Hoists let you store a pallet of crap supplies, or a kayak, train set, pickup truck shell, etc snugged up against the ceiling of your garage

I've actually been looking at these things for bikes and kayaks. Have you used it?

[thefed]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREdreamer We have 2 hampers, one of whites, one for colors. And much to my wife's dismay, I still pile some of my clothes... on top of the hampers... Socks, underwear, shirts and undershirts, always go in the hamper, but jeans and sweaters can often be worn more than once before being laundered so I don't want them to get wrinkled and smelly with the rest of the laundry. My wife doesn't get it though... she thinks I am just being lazy.

I knew I wasn't the only one!! I dont know why I dont return a pair of jeans or sweatshirt to the clean clothes drawer/handers...but they seem right at home on top of the hamper...then if I desire to wear them again I grab em...usually the wife just yells at me and washes them.

She's onto my scheme now though, and on occasion a truly dirty garment doest make it ALL the way into the hamper and she'll exclude it from the laundry in a meek attempt to thwart my habit. "but you said if it's ON the hamper you are going to re-wear it" baaah....


For the record, I might wear a pair of my work pants to clean ducts foronly 3 hours and have lawn care or more ducts the next day....so I just re-wear em if it wasnt a dirty day. no 2-day underwear or socks though

[samclem]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley I've actually been looking at these things for bikes and kayaks. Have you used it?

Nope. They are not cheap, and I think I saw them at some specialty online kayak places. I'd hope they are well made.

[Frugality_of_Apathy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bestwifeever UncleHoney's laundry room is nicer than my whole house, let alone my kitchen. Very nice!

It's exactly as nice as my kitchen.

I put in those exact same cabinets from Home Depot last year. Different colored tile floor, double basin granite sink, black appliances, and I put in 2" ceramic tile countertop with some inlaid glass tiles.

But it's basically my kitchen.


As for laundry, I like to switch it up just in case someone's trying to learn my routine to ambush me. Sometimes I use a hamper, somtimes I make a pile next to the hamper, sometimes I leave the clothes where I drop them. Sometimes I toss them into the empty room across the hall, and sometimes I just sleep in them and don't change all weekend.

[ladelfina]

We use a couple of things kinda like this. If something's wet it can be draped over the edge. I haven't gotten around to building a removeable stop into the frame so it doesn't collapse on the floor when the bag is removed.