How to Do Your Laundry in a Dorm

Getting Your Laundry Together

Get a laundry bag or basket. You don’t want to have to carry your dirty laundry in your arms all the way to the laundry room. Look for a bag or basket with handles or straps so it’s easy to carry. If you have a lot of clothes, get something big enough to hold all your laundry in.

Separate your darks from your lights. Don't wash your light-colored clothes in the same load as your dark-colored clothes or the colors might transfer. Make one pile with your white clothes, one pile with clothes in light colors like gray and beige, and another pile with all of your dark clothes.

Pack your dirty clothes, towels, and bedding in your laundry bag. Pack anything you wore or used from the previous week. Try to keep your lights and darks separated when you pack them in your laundry bag.

Grab laundry detergent, fabric softener, and dryer sheets. Fabric softener and dryer sheets are optional, but you’ll need laundry detergent to get your clothes clean. Put these items in your laundry bag on top of your clothes so you can access them easily.

Bring money for the laundry machines. If your school’s machines take quarters, put some quarters in a small baggie or in your pocket. If there’s a coin machine, you can bring cash instead. Some laundry machines take debit cards or student IDs as payment, so bring yours along if you’re not sure.

Washing Your Laundry

Wash your laundry early or late at night if you want less of a wait. Those are times when other students will be sleeping, so the laundry room won’t be as busy. If you have an early class, wake up an hour or two early and try to get your laundry done then. Or you can wait to do your laundry late at night before you go to bed.

Look for an open laundry machine. If you see a machine that’s currently on or one that has someone’s clothes in it, don’t use it. Wait until there’s an empty machine available. If you’re doing more than one load, try to find several available machines that are all next to each other. That way you can do multiple loads at once.

Wait or come back later if all the machines are full. Look at the timers on the machines to see how long of a wait it will be. Keep in mind that if you leave, the machines might still be full when you come back later. You may have better luck getting a machine if you hang out in the laundry room until one is available.

Fill the laundry machine so it's two-thirds of the way full. Don’t overfill it or your laundry won’t wash properly. Fill the machine with a load of your lights or darks. Wash your towels and bedding separately.

Add laundry detergent to the machine. If you have liquid detergent, look for a slot on top of the machine that says “detergent.” If there isn’t one, pour your detergent directly into the machine with your laundry. Refer to the lines on the inside of the cap to see how much detergent you should use. You'll need less liquid detergent for smaller loads. If you’re using a gel detergent pod, throw 1 pod directly into the machine with your clothes.

Choose cold water if you don't want your clothes to shrink or fade. There should be a dial or button on the machine you can use to select the water temperature setting. If you’re washing whites, towels, or bedding, you may want to use hot water. Hot water will clean your clothes better than cold water, but it can be more damaging. If you’re not sure, go with cold water. Cold water is less likely to damage or alter your clothes.

Pay and press the start button. There should be coin slots on the top or side of the washing machine if the machine takes quarters. If there aren’t, look for a slot to insert cash or swipe a card. Once you’ve paid, hit the start button so your clothes start to wash.

Set a timer for when your laundry will be done. That way you’ll know right when your laundry is ready. If you don’t have something to set a timer with, check the time and calculate what time you’ll need to be back to change out your laundry.

Remove your laundry from the machine promptly. You don't want to keep other students waiting. When your timer goes off, immediately take your laundry out of the machine it's in.

Drying Your Laundry

Look for an open dryer. Just like you did with the washing machine, make sure the dryer you use is off and empty. If you find a dryer that has someone’s clothes in it, look for a different machine. That person might be on their way to the laundry room to get their clothes.

Hang out until a dryer becomes available if they're all taken. Don't leave with your clothes still in the washing machine or other students might think you forgot about them. If someone asks why you're not taking your clothes out of the machine, just tell them you're waiting for a dryer to become available. If the laundry room is busy and you don't want to hold up the line, you can take your clothes out of the washing machine and set them on a folding table until a dryer opens up.

Clean the dryer’s lint trap. Cleaning a dryer’s lint trap before you use it will help the dryer function better. The lint trap should be located at the bottom of the opening to the dryer. Grab the edge of the lint trap and pull it up and out of the dryer. Then, use your fingers to pull off any lint on the mesh part of the lint trap and throw it in the trash. Slide the lint trap back into the dryer.

Transfer your laundry from the washer to the open dryer. Transfer the laundry one piece at a time, and shake each item before you put it in the dryer. If there’s anything in the wash that you don’t want to shrink, put it in your laundry basket so you can hang dry it in your dorm room. Once all your laundry is transferred to the dryer, double check the washing machine to make sure you didn’t forget anything.

Put 1-2 dryer sheets in the dryer to soften your clothes. You don't need to use dryer sheets, but your clothes will be more comfortable if you do. Toss the dryer sheets into the dryer with your laundry and shut the dryer door.

Insert your money and start the dryer. The payment method should be the same as the one you used on the washing machine. Once you've paid, make sure you hit the start button so your clothes start drying.

Set a timer for yourself. You want to collect your clothes from the dryer right when they’re finished drying so they don’t get wrinkled. Check the timer on the dryer and plan to be back in the laundry room in that amount of time.

Take your laundry out of the dryer and fold it. If the laundry room isn't busy, fold your laundry as you take it out and then put it back in your bag. If there are people waiting, move all of your laundry to a folding table and fold it there. Don't forget to throw away your dryer sheets if you used some. EXPERT TIP Christel Ferguson Christel Ferguson Professional Organizer Christel Ferguson is the owner of Space to Love, a decluttering and organization service. Christel is certified in Advanced Feng Shui for Architecture, Interior Design & Landscape and has been a member of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Association of Productivity & Organizing Professionals (NAPO) for over five years. Christel Ferguson Christel Ferguson Professional Organizer Expert Warning: Take the time after you do laundry to fold and put away your clothes so you don't lose any pieces of clothing. A lot of people are in a rush and just throw their socks and underwear into a drawer. Then their socks don't match, and their underwear isn't folded. It's always nicer to have rolled socks and folded underwear all in a row so you can see everything.