You are stupid if you do your own laundry

[Goldielocks]

Okay,   while looking for "laundromat near me", this popped up high on the web browser list:

You are Stupid if you do your own Laundry
http://www.wealthysinglemommy.com/you-are-stupid-if-you-do-your-own-laundry/

Well, upon reading it, and noting a horrendous lack of math skills in the money comparison, I thought you would find it interesting.    (Although the comment about having a better use of a single mom's time may be very true!)

Upon locating and driving to a laundromat today, while on a work trip, and despite work willing to pay for my little bag of laundry to be outsourced,  I STILL found it better to do my own laundry..

Mainly because I have a great sense of satisfaction knowing that I am capable, and can do things for myself.  I can even manage to do my own laundry while in a hotel in a strange town.

Side benefit was seeing a new neighborhood and getting to know a community in a brief but intimate way.  You can't buy this experience with a tour or even a Ritz Carlton concierge.

[MoneyCat]

That woman's article is stupid, because her math is completely wrong.  Unless she is wearing the same set of clothes day after day after day without washing it, she is going to end up with multiple loads to do each week or so.  Especially if she is a mother.  If you are using a high efficiency washer and dryer set, especially with a dryer running on natural gas, it is much, much cheaper to do your own laundry.  If you hang dry your clothes, you save even more money.  That article is just your typical materialist justifying their laziness.

[Rezdent]

I guarantee that we save money by doing our own laundry.  Plus I know I do a better job - especially on my DH dress shirts since I can optimize the starch level and use a sleeve board for a crisp, crease-less finish.

[dragoncar]

I am stupid

[Johnez]

I hate laundry.  The quarters, the detergent, the timer, the pulling it out and folding, the....every effing thing.  My way around this is to not launder everything all the time.  I wear my work shorts 5 times before I'll throw them in.  I'll wear my "day off/going out" shirts a dozen or more times, as long as I don't soil them.  The only thing I wash regularly is sheets/towels once a week and my socks/underwear/work shirts.

[KBecks2]

She lives in New York City and doesn't have her own washing machine.  I am in a regular house and my washer is on the first floor, 10 steps from where I am sitting.  Plus I have 3 kids.  Do you have any idea how much laundry that is?   1 load or 2 loads a day.

One of my college roommates had a laundry soap from her mom that had instructions for washing that the mom had written on it.  #1.  Wear it until it is dirty.   (e.g. don't waste the soap! (and your time))

[EricL]

If you're a single mom who's rich, needs the extra time to stay that way, or at least wants to use it to stay connected with their kids and money be damned, it's a great idea.  But otherwise it's a line of face punch worthy crap and should be on the "shame and comedy" page.  I hand wash my own clothes in a fraction of the time with a fraction of the money and water.  Could I do it with a family with a working wife and infants?  That's doubtful.  But once the kids grew a bit I could get them to do their own laundry by hand. If  I was a bastard could con them into doing mine and the wife's too.

[dios.del.sol]

Could I do it with a family with a working wife and infants?  That's doubtful.

Not a problem. We both work, have an infant, and do our laundry and cloth diapers. I don't really think about it. It just gets done. Nobody complains.

[Primm]

If you're a single mom who's rich, needs the extra time to stay that way, or at least wants to use it to stay connected with their kids and money be damned, it's a great idea.  But otherwise it's a line of face punch worthy crap and should be on the "shame and comedy" page.  I hand wash my own clothes in a fraction of the time with a fraction of the money and water.  Could I do it with a family with a working wife and infants?  That's doubtful.  But once the kids grew a bit I could get them to do their own laundry by hand. If  I was a bastard could con them into doing mine and the wife's too.

Could I do it with a family with a working wife and infants?  That's doubtful.

Not a problem. We both work, have an infant, and do our laundry and cloth diapers. I don't really think about it. It just gets done. Nobody complains.

You missed a critical part of EricL's post, I think.

Do you hand wash your own clothes with an infant and cloth diapers? I didn't think so...

[dios.del.sol]

You missed a critical part of EricL's post, I think.

Do you hand wash your own clothes with an infant and cloth diapers? I didn't think so...

Whoops. You think correctly. My apologies. It makes much more sense now.

[MrsPete]

Who on earth does that many loads of laundry each week? 

[Beric01]

Who on earth does that many loads of laundry each week?

I didn't get that either. Even when I was still living with my parents before college, as a family of 8 we had about 6 loads a week. Does the writer have a really small washing machine?

[Goldielocks]

Who on earth does that many loads of laundry each week?

That's where the really crazy math comes in.  Somehow she seems to be equating 1-2 loads a day per her reference article,  with her once a week pick up of a huge bag by the local service.   Huh,   that major bag is at most three loads, not 10+.   So, doing the math, she now pays $20 + $8 change/soap for her "girl" to do it for her.   $1500 per year or so for 120+ loads of laundry.

Let's be generous and assume it is really 4 loads a week, or 200 loads a year if you use a smaller "home" washer..  (I can definitely pull 4 loads a week if I want)

She mentions it being about the same cost as a maytag washer / dryer, so she must have room for a stacker in her place.
A stacker is under $2000, delivered, including typical install.

So,

200 loads, at $2 per load for fuel / soap/ water (rounded up!), is $400.
Maytag stacker should last 10 years  (more with maintenance), so the equipment cost is $2000/10 = $200 / year

Net cost for your own laundry, in your own stacker is $600 / year. 
VS
Paying help== $1500/yr
Paying service == $$1250
Laundromat == $400  (at $8 per week, using large capacity machines..)

Time to launder your own clothes at laundromat -- 2.5 hr per week (max), for unlimited amount, (multiple washers, yeah baby!)  125 hr / year.
That's $8+/hr in your pocket, tax free, instead of paying someone else.  To a single mom, $8/hr may be worth it...   but don't justify it on money saved.




(yes, I am assuming 50 wks / year to make it easier, and call it a vacation)

[MrsPete]

I didn't get that either. Even when I was still living with my parents before college, as a family of 8 we had about 6 loads a week. Does the writer have a really small washing machine?

Yes, that sounds like about what I did when my kids were all still at home.  Perhaps the author changes the bedsheets more than once a week and never re-uses a towel or never wears jeans or pajamas multiple times? 

That's $8+/hr in your pocket, tax free, instead of paying someone else.  To a single mom, $8/hr may be worth it...   but don't justify it on money saved.

Now that I can believe.  Some choices I make aren't necessarily THE CHEAPEST OPTION POSSIBLE, but I've decided they're the right choices for me.  The author of this article, however, is trying to pass off what may well be a good choice for her as a cheap option -- and that's a flat-out lie.

[FreeWheel]

Didn't read the article, but I will say this. When our home machine was down, I could do the entire weeks laundry in an hour and a half or so (at the laundry mat), thanks to having several machines running at the same time. At home with one machine it takes most of the day. (but most certainly costs less!)

[scottish]

Holy doodle.    How to outsource your life, indeed!

It's one way to keep the local economy ticking along.   (I feel a little bit like Paul Krugman when I say that!)

[wepner]

I am stupid

Serious signature bait right here.

[JoshuaSpodek]

From the article: “Do you think Barack Obama does his own laundry? And why not? Because he has more important things to do! So do you!”

Gandhi cleaned the toilet like everyone else in his community. I considered it a sign of integrity -- http://joshuaspodek.com/integrity-successful-leaders-gandhi -- based on his values.

I have a feeling if she read Walden she'd consider Thoreau misguided.

But everyone has their own values. If hers work for her, who am I to criticize?

I got a hand operated clothes washer used off Craig's List and it works great. I can afford to send my wash out, but I don't think it's holding me back.

[Timmmy]

I pay for the cleaners to come and pick up and drop off my dress shirts.  It's quite possibly the best money I spend.  For what works out to be less than $10 a week, I don't have to wash, dry or iron them.  I throw them in a bag on my porch on Monday and they are cleaned, pressed and returned to me on Thursday. 

[dragoncar]

I am stupid

Serious signature bait right here.

It's a trap!

[jmusic]

I agree with some of the other folks that said this topic belongs on the Antimustachian Wall of shame! 

Tremendously bad idea.  I be the author of the linked article has her service pick up the laundry, then drives right by the laundromat on the way to feed the family a low cost, healthy meal at McDonalds. *FACEPUNCH*

[MoneyCat]

I have another great idea:  Let's all go get our coffee at Starbuck's rather than slaving over a hot coffee pot at home.  We deserve it and our time is so valuable!  We should also all get high-performance pony cars and drive them to work too because we'll get there faster and that will save time too.  In addition, we could all order out our lunches at work everyday, because that will save some time each evening instead of packing a lunch.  It goes on and on and on.