Average American Washes Sheets Every 24 Days

[iheartmaytag]

When I was young and my mom stayed at home. All the sheets were changed every day, line dried, and ironed. Thinking of that now, I wonder how she got anything else done.

Weekly, Saturday, Hot wash, and line dried weather permitting is what I manage now. Sometimes Mom's bedding is changed more often, as it isn't us kids that are having the accidents now. Ironing sheets, yea, forget that.

My kitties do sleep on the bed(s), goggie does not.

 

[kenwashesmonday]

Our winter sheets are a nice set of flannel sheets with blue stripes. They're marked "wash cold", but they get washed in very warm water every weekend, and it doesn't seem to hurt them any.

 

[tomturbomatic]

This is just so gross. Children are not trained in how to take care of themselves or their living quarters any more. I wonder when they will stop bathing. They do not know how to sort or wash laundry so all of the whites turn gray. What they call washing just serves to build up oils in fabrics that can lead to dryer fires. They do not know how to load dishwashers.

I grew up with sheets laundered weekly and bath towels used once. I remember when I was a kid how if I was sick with something that kept me home and in bed for more than a day, Mom would change the linens while I was having something to eat or drink at the table.

As to horrible smells, the woman next to me fixes some frozen dish for her breakfast in our microwave every morning and then eats it at her desk. The odor is a combination of hard boiled egg fart and puke. I checked the ingredients on the box as it sat on top of the microwave. It has eggs, cheese, chicken and other stuff. It must be some sort of quiche. Before she got back to her desk, I sprayed a line of Febreez into the burlap like material near the top edge of the partition between our desks and it partially subdued the stench then the perfume went away or was overwelmed. Thank God it is not as permeating and long-lasting a stench as microwave popcorn. We finally had to put a stop to the popping and eating of that in the office and the poor souls who consume that lethal chemical concoction are always the overweight to morbidly obese.

Civilization is going to hell.

 

[washman]

6-8 days MAX

more often in the summer.  And in spite of the wash temp of the label, I use a nearly tap hot wash for sheets.  Been doing that for 20+ years and nary a problem.

 

Generally speaking, people today are disgusting. 

 

[ken]

As bad as some people may be today just think how odoriferous people were 100+ and more years ago. In the 1800s and even into the 1900s before indoor plumbing people took a bath once a week on Saturday night in a tub in the kitchen. Water heated on the wood or coal stove. Children first. Then mother. And lastly father using the same water.

 

During the Renaissance period in Europe perfume became very popular with royalty and the wealthy to mask body odors because of the sanitary practices of the period. At about the same time the popular tradition of the June bride came about in Europe because it was when people took their yearly bath and brides took advantage of that so to have a decent smelling crowd. It was also convenient because flowers were available and very necessary to mask the smell of those who hadn't yet cleaned up. The tradition of a bride carrying a bouquet came from a time when she carried it out of necessity to mask odors.  

 

 

 

[kenwashesmonday]

Ken wrote: " And lastly father using the same water"

I thought Dad went first, and the baby last. Hence the term: "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water".

 

[ken]

Cant say 100% for sure but I always understood that father bathed last because he was the dirtiest. I am thinking with the mindset of where I live which is very rural and was dominated by farms where people worked hard everyday. May have been different in cities where father may not of had a physically strenuous job.   

 

[lorainfurniture]

People are disgusting

Wife changes the sheets weekly. Back when I used to deliver a lot of furniture, I can’t tell you how many times I walked in to a bedroom and saw NO SHEETS at all on the bed.

 

[iowabear]

Great Thread!

Cleaning habits are like religions, there is the "light and the way" and everyone else is doomed!

 

I loved this MMM essay on cleaning...and boy did it generate a lot of comments.

http://https//www.mrmoneymustache.com/2013/12/30/are-you-cleaning-out-your-own-wallet/

 

[appnut]

Mine get changed usually every Sunday but sometimes I'll go up to 10 days.  Hot water and heaviest soil to allow heater to boost water temp.  When my partner and the 4-legged kids are here, then Allergen cycle is used (130 degrees for sure).  With queen size bed, I wash 2 sets together and I always picks colors/shades which can be washed together.  I've already told him when they're here full time, we'll have a king size bed and I'll wash sheets every 3 to 4 days.  I've also told him they'll each have 2 "blankets" each that will get switched and washed every 3 or 4 days as they roll up/around in them and lay on them all the time when awake or asleep during the day.  (It's what's put on the couch as a "cover")  the Dependable Care dryer will need to be replaced by the time they're here full time with all that laundry too. 

 

[gansky1]

24 days is average, many likely wait much longer...

Once a week here as well, usually annoys my 24 year old son, but it takes only a couple of minutes to put new sheet and pillowcases on a bed.  We do our mattress pads once a month and vacuum and turn/flip mattresses at the same time.  All hot washes, always.

 

I have rarely had clothes shrink in hot water, Martin is right, the dryer will be the culprit in most cases of shrinkage as the evaporation of moisture can make natural fibers constrict when dried.   Chocolate causes more shrinkage than any laundering process.

 

I have known some who obviously wash clothes in cold water, nowhere is this more obvious than the gym.  I wonder if anyone gives any thought at all of the temperatures it takes to make the polyester and nylon threads their workout clothes contain and that 100-120F won't hurt them one bit.   The olfactory evidence is clear on that pondering.  Blech.

 

[good-shepherd]

Meanwhile, those who admit they drool

Quote from the article- "Meanwhile, those who admit they drool when they sleep don’t seem to mind the browning of their pillows. Those folks change their pillowcases every 31.8 days on average".

Well, I may be one of those people that drool when sleeping, but no way am I going a month+ on the same pillow case!

 

[helicaldrive]

And we also don’t want to know

How many days the average person goes between showers, and how many times they re-wear garments before washing them in overloaded machines on cold, and how many times they re-use towels...

 

[helicaldrive]

Not to mention the crazy trend of not washing jeans often

Revolting to me. Jeans should be worn once, period. Otherwise can you spell crotch odor???

Google something like celebrities wth poor hygiene if you’re in the mood to be grossed out. I was surprised that Anderson Cooper popped up on the list. He looks so squeaky clean. Not so at all.

 

[mrsalvo]

Sheets are changed weekly here (Friday is laundry day). Try to clean both bathrooms and dust the bedroom and get everything freshened up on those days too. Funny, but I think of how the maids in the hotels clean everything when a guest leaves.

My mother used to iron the guest bed sheets, but not for the other beds. She kept the bathroom(s) so clean all the time. Fixed meals everyday. I don't know how she did it!!!

After visiting relatives this year, I really appreciate my laundry and home. You all hit the nail right on the head concerning what others do. Then again, they wouldn't understand collecting and appreciating vintage appliances.

 

[maytag85]

I always clean ALL of my bedding every week! I can't stand dirty bedding! I wash my bedding every Thursday, and I dry most of my bedding on high heat. I can't stand dirty bedding!

 

[polkanut]

Sheets and pillowcases changed weekly.  Mattress pad washed monthly.  Washed in hot water, rinsed in warm water, and dried on high in the dryer or line dried weather permitting.

 

[launderess]

Children first. Then mother. And lastly father using the sam

Actually IIRC it was other way round; father, children then mother.

In all things the bread winner and provider went first. He got the lion share of food, waited on hand and foot, word was law, etc...

Thus it would be natural that His Nibbs went first at bath time. Water was not only cleanest but hottest as well. Ever self sacrificing mothers would go last after seeing to it husband and children were sorted.

Some mothers got round this by simply bathing their children earlier in day while His Nibbs was out.

 

[lakewebsterkid]

Jeans

I wear my jeans until there is some form of visible soil. No odor ever. It normally is three times worn, albeit not in a row. I always wash them in cold with Tide PurClean and I have no issues. I am not a sweaty or dirty person, and only wear them for a few hours at a time. My family wears them once and done. I do prefer lighter jeans so they can be washed in warm or hot, but most of our pairs are dark.

 

[rolls_rapide]

Vile

What a disgusting read (in the link)!

Do they even teach 'Home Economics' at school these days? If they do, they'll probably have dumbed that that down too.

I blame all the crap about washing at 30 deg C and lower, peddled by detergent makers and clothing manufacturers, on useless politicians, who wouldn't know the difference between one end of a thermometer and the other.