A while ago I made the effort to put a load of washing on every day. Having smaller loads to fold each time meant I was able to stay on top of Mt Washmore and we never ran out of any clean clothes, even when there had been multiple accidents in undies (the boys that is, not us LOL!). But I noticed my water usage had gone up a fair amount, so this last quarter I went back to larger loads less frequently and was amazed to see that our water usage dropped 13% on the previous quarter. That is a huge amount, so I guess I won't be going back to daily washing.
I'm wondering what others do to find the right balance?
I wash when the basket gets full. My nappies load is generally a half load, but I can't help that. If I wait until there is a full load, both buckets are full to burst and I'd pass out from the smell. Some days I wash several loads, but that's when sheets and towels get done too. Which reminds me, I'm going to put our sheets on and I forgot to get my daughter's sheets. Will do that in a sec. But I do try to wash only when necessary. We haven't got our water bill yet, so have no idea what our usage is.
It might be hard to get a true balance as from the 1st Jan many utilities went up. I used to wash every second day and I now wash about twice a week. My machine has a few levels so I don't have to use a lot of water if I don't have a large load.
Also we use the washing water on the garden so we save by not having to water.
Its a hard balance as Mt Washmore is a pain as is Mt Foldforever.
We didn't realise we were using more water than we needed to by not having the outlet hose hooked higher than the top of the washing machine.
DH unhooked it to attach it to an irrigation pipe for the back lawn, but because the whole pipe was lower than the washing machine, apparently it siphons out extra water during the rinse cycle. So now he's got it hooked over the tap then out to the irrigation pipe.
we only wash weekly here - i figure that way we can make up full loads from the weeks clothes - i am really picky about washing stuff in certain loads, and hate doing half loads - work stuff might not get washed for three weeks til i have a decent load full of stuff! haven't noticed what is happening with our water bill - i'm just peeved that, over THREE years, they're raising charges by over SEVENTY PERCENT!
i try not to give them any more money than i need to anyway - bloody water board flog us over $100 a quarter as we own two blocks of land (under one title) and because they were too slack to hook the house into the exisiting water when the house was built on the opposite block, we have to pay for the "annoyance" of having a meter (not even a TAP) on the bottom block... grrrr bitter lady!
I did five loads of washing yesterday. I think that will make a difference. But its not often that happens. There will be one load of nappies in a few days, and one load of clothes the same day. Generally 2-4 loads a week.
Water is actually very cheap per kilolitre. So its a tough choice for me....convenience vs enviroment rather than a financial factor for once!!
I do try and do full loads, and use the water on our vege patch and grass every time. So I feel I am doing the right thing by not using the hose on our designated days
I do washing 2-3 times a week. I generally do a few loads at once, but it has to be full. I got a new machine last year, and at the same time I started using cloth nappies. My water usage dropped!
We have a front loader with lots of stars for energy and for water. So I think that although I wash a bit, I'm saving a lot too. I try to really limit my washing, but sometimes I just need to do the nappies because they stink (damn ammonia) or we've run out of something or DF needs his uniform washed.
Our washing machine is a water-efficient front loader and it only uses the right amount of water for the load size. So I was really surprised at just how much difference daily washing made. We have a water tank which we use for all outside watering so I don't need to use the grey water either. I will keep going the way I am now with bigger loads less frequently and hope that I can keep on top of it all. The worst thing is when I am hanging out a load to dry at 10pm at night after work and I wish it was a smaller load!
We're not on water restrictions here, thankfully, but I do still try to be mindful of water usage (because the day may come!!). Up until recently, we were renting so never got to see what our water usage was like, and now we're living in our own home but we haven't been here long enough to get an idea of what's going on with our usage (I'm not even sure if we will be paying the rates, DH's step-grandparents are handling the trust, which the house is part of so we will probably never see a bill, it'll go straight to them in Melbourne).
Personally, I wash quite a lot - DH has work clothes that need doing twice a week (he only has three uniforms), and I'm wearing the same five or so outfits day in, day out because I'm preggers and refuse to spend money on maternity clothes when I have a few bits and pieces that get me through (babydoll tops, hipster jeans etc that fit under or over my belly), and DD is consantly getting herself filthy so she goes through a fair few sets of clothes...
So I usually let it build up as much as I can, then dedicate a whole day to doing nothing but laundry. Sometimes, that ends up being two or even three days a week of load after load, especially when you throw in things like towels, bed linens etc. I only do half loads for things like DH's work clothes (our washing machine is massive so it fits a good week's worth of stuff, but we can adjust the water levels so I'm not wasting huge amounts on three sets of clothes), and I try to make a fuller load by doing my underwear and warm-wash stuff with DD's clothes (I like having my knickers washed in her sensitive detergent, too!!), and then just doing all the black clothes (that's pretty much all DH and I wear, denim and black stuff) together.
I find I use less water if I wash "almost" daily. This is mainly due to me bucketing the bath water into the machine, if I do multiple loads in a day, then one load uses 100% tank water. I would be washing all day if I washed once a week, plus we only really have line space for 2 loads. Also DH needs his work shirts done mid week. Most loads are full, it tends to be the whites/delicates load that is smaller and I will adjust the level on the machine for that one. We are on tabk water, so we are very concious of water usage.
For some reason I feel better if there is a load of washing on. The house can be a disaster, but the washing will be done, it may not be folded, but it is clean.
Mabello: FYI, grey water is fine on ornamental gardens, but should not be used on veggies/
Washing every day and water usage
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