Things they need to know before
they go
How to do laundry – Why does every book about preparing for
college advise students to learn how to do laundry? Because, every September in residence hall
laundry rooms across the nation washers and dryers meet untimely deaths due to
user error. Considering that college students have never had to invest
thousands of dollars in appliances like their parents and university
administrators do, it makes sense that they don’t think about how common
mistakes can have a big impact. Here is a list of common laundry room problems
and their solutions.
Problem: Too much detergent or fabric softener can lead
to machines overflowing with bubbles and slimy fabric softener. This usually
floods the laundry room and requires repair of the machine.
Solution: Always read and follow the product and machine
labels. More soap doesn’t get laundry any cleaner; it just makes more suds that
will need to be rinsed out of fabric over and over again.
Problem: Overstuffed machines and unbalanced loads. A
machine that is too full or unbalanced will result in clothes not being clean
at all and an unbalanced machine will stop running midway through the wash.
Solution: follow the posted machine instructions and
fill the machine loosely. It’s better to use two machines than to cram one too
full and end up with clothes that were never actually cleaned because the
machine was too full to agitate or tumble the clothes.
Problem: Colors bleeding.
Solution: Almost everyone has had a red sock make its
way into a load of whites or noticed that when colors aren’t separated from
whites, the whites eventually become dingy. This is another situation where sorting
colors and running two loads instead of putting everything in one machine make a
big difference.
