Save Money While Doing Laundry

Many families are looking to cut their budget or pinch some pennies. There are obvious places to look in your budget to cut back. One place you might not consider but should is in your laundry products. There are a few simple techniques that can really save you on your laundry budget.

The first consideration is the laundry detergent. Most clothing doesn’t need the full amount of detergent to clean your clothing. You may need to use more depending upon your water but if you have soft or softened water, you can cut back on the amount of detergent to obtain the same clean clothes results. Detergent left in your clothing can actually break down the fabric’s fibers and cause your clothes to wear more quickly.

Fabric softener may be a luxury or a considered necessity. Either way, stop buying fabric softener and replace it with white vinegar.  Place the vinegar in your softener dispenser and use as you would liquid fabric softener. The vinegar will help remove deposited laundry detergent as well as any body odors that might be lingering in your clothing. The aroma of the vinegar will be present in your laundry machine upon opening however; it will not be present in your dried clothing.  The price difference between the fabric softener and the white vinegar is astounding.

Another laundry area you can save money is in fabric sheets. Many will suggest using more than once but I would suggest not buying them at all. I have an alternative that saves money and is more eco-friendly. Buy a roll of aluminum foil from the dollar store. Unwrap the entire roll and mold it into a ball. Now for the strange part, place the ball in your dryer. It works as a fabric softener. It removes static cling. It works great. It is reusable indefinitely. The one I have in my dryer has compressed and changed shape. It has bonded into a solid form but it still works. The noise of the aluminum ball bouncing around in your dryer does take a bit to get used too but the annoyance of the pounding is well worth the results and the savings.

Some clothing doesn’t need to be actually laundered fully. To remove wrinkles and or odors, run the dryer with the wrinkled and or smelly clothing along with a wet washcloth. Borrowing from the fabric softener, consider applying a bit of white vinegar as well to the washcloth. Run the dryer for a few minutes. An entire drying cycle is not necessary. Remove the clothing immediately and hand up or fold.