Laundry is not for the faint of heart. While the most enlightened college students can transition easily from the maternal laundry service to the rigors of independent clothes-cleaning, the majority of hapless newcomers to the art find themselves floundering for guidance or with a bureau filled with pink socks. Yet never fear, the following tips will take you from separation through spin cycle. Be the envy of every student on your hall — but don't get tricked into washing their underwear.
The key step to successful laundering is sorting. Separating whites and darks may not seem like such an alien concept, but skip this step and you'll wind up with a wardrobe of pastel tie-dyes. Even the most conscientious people can de-emphasize the importance of looking through their underwear for the potentially disastrous black sock. If you aren't doing much laundry, a dark pile and a light pile (khaki, gray, yellow) might suffice.
Color isn't the only thing to watch out for when sorting laundry. Navy blue sweatpants shouldn't be washed with a lacy black bra, no matter how similar their tone. If you balk at the idea of washing your unmentionables with Woolite in the hall sink, invest in a lingerie bag for your delicates. And be careful of the extra-dark indigo dyes in some jeans. When the tag says the color will bleed onto light-colored fabrics and upholstery, believe it.
A final sorting tip: Make sure to check all pockets for loose change, important phone numbers and stray pens. All the sorting in the world won't do any good if you left a black pen in the pocket of your khaki cargoes, and you won't believe how much money you can find in your hamper. Though most clothes don't need to be cleaned every time they're worn (especially jeans) make sure you are washing things that are easily taken for granted. No matter how clean you think your sheets and towels are, you should wash them about once a month. These items will probably require a load unto themselves, but it's worth it. I know of at least one college student who suffered from a mysterious rash that wouldn't go away until her roommates forced her to wash her sheets. Who knows what other contaminants are lurking in your bedding? Most of the other pitfalls of laundry can be easily avoided by following a few simple rules. 1. Don't wear anything labeled "dry clean only," "lay flat to dry" or "gentle cycle." Set aside a few bucks to clean the formal outfit you drag out once a year. It's worth the extra change. 2. Unless it's towels or all cotton, don't use hot water. Opt for warm or cold, or you'll be giving your wardrobe to your 10-year-old cousin. 3. Only use softener sheets, not liquid softener (way too complicated). And make sure you've emptied the dryer's lint catcher, lest you set off the smoke alarms. It's also a good way to find dollar bills.
Laundromats can really drain you of cash, but don't often accept your green. On most college campuses (at least the ones that haven't installed debit-card washers) quarters are worth their weight in gold. Many a college student will wander the street looking for whatever stray two-bits they can find, whether making change for panhandlers or relieving local convenient stores of everything but paper money. The best gift for a new college student is often a jar full of quarters. Suggest it to your relatives.
Alternatives to laundry can be a godsend to college students. Simple, time-honored solutions like hanging clothes outside for a few minutes or spritzing them with perfume before wearing have given way to chemical advancements. Spot treatments like "Shout" can come in handy for students who don't have immediate access to laundry machines, or those who forgot about that accident at the frat party until later in the week. And make sure that you obtain a bottle of fabric deodorizer Febreeze — the greatest invention of the modern era. Just make sure it doesn't take the place of your usual laundry regimen. This isn't Chem Lab.
And when it comes to dryers, it's best to stay near the machine. Any burning smell requires prompt attention, and it's better to watch your clothes anyway, lest you become another victim of laundry bandits. Leave your clothes unguarded for a moment, and they're likely to end up on the floor in a soggy heap or, worse, gone altogether. Another reason to watch the dryers is so you can remove your clothes promptly. You'll also avoid the wrath of your fellow launderers, because there's nothing more frustrating than having clothes to dry and no dryers available because they are full of clothes whose owners are AWOL. And finally, taking the clothes out while they're still fluffy and hot will allow you to avoid the most dreaded of all laundry duties — ironing.
Trust me, you don't want to go there.
This article appears in Aug 23-29, 2001.