<p>This might seem like a bit of a strange question, but how do students do laundry at Swarthmore? Are there laundry facilities in each dorm? If so, what are the washers and dryers like? I haven't been to a laundromat in at least ten, possibly more years, but last I was at one they had these enormous, front loading machines that had only one sort of cycle (no selections between delicate, bulky, etc, and only "hot" or "cold" water temperature selections). Are the laundry machines like that at Swarthmore (if they have them)? I looked at the dorm profiles online, as well as searched the website, and I couldn't find an answer.</p>
<p>There are coin-operated machines in every dorm. I don't know about all the different temperatures and cycles, but will ask my student next time I speak with him. :)</p>
<p>chuckle away interesteddad ;)-the answer is top loading washers with three cycles- heavy, permanent press and delicate. He doesn't recall any ability to adjust temperature settings but assumes that the temperature settings are automatically set to the different types of cycles. :) I've had my 3 boys doing their own laundry since they were about 12/13 years old, and I think that at least two of them could come up with a basically correct response. The third would probably say, "Wait, what?"</p>
<p>By the way, the S who answered the question graduated from Swat last year, so he's going by memory on this one. Don't want to get flamed here if this answer isn't 100% correct, but I wouldn't want to bet against him. ;)</p>
<p>I'm impressed. "Wait...what?" was more what I was thinking you'd get!</p>
<p>My daughter says the strangest feature on the washing matchines at Swarthmore is that the door won't open to load them until every piece of clothing you own is dirty.</p>
<p>Yeah, both washers and dryers have several different cycle options, three each I believe, so you do get a choice! That said, what the machines say they'll be doing and what they do...is not always in line, haha.</p>
<p>oh dear.<br>
looks like i'll be needing to try and set aside some time for handwashing...i'm scared of washers and dryers that don't do what they're told to. </p>
<p>I can guarantee that you won't have time for handwashing, haha. It's mostly the dryers that aren't very good at drying - you can always do what I, and a lot of other students, do and get a drying rack and just dry your clothes in your room. :) The washers don't usually do anything harmful to clothes.</p>
<p>yeah well....i wasn't exactly expecting to have a lot of time to handwash, but most of my clothes are, um, pretty delicate. so it's either handwash or have no clothes.
i don't know, i'll see how they handle my more "rugged" clothing (sweatshirts, jeans i go hiking in) and see how that works out.</p>
<p>can't.
i've actually been in college for two years (i'm a transfer) and it hasn't stopped me yet (but these past two years, i've had a fabulous washing machine with a "handwash" cycle as well). i don't find them at all impractical, and since i intend to work in the fashion industry (working on finding and promoting green alternatives to current industry standards), "leaving my clothes at home" is kind of like telling a painter to forgo painting for their college years.
i'll just have to find time to handwash. really, i've kind of got it down - there are some things i haven't wanted to put in the washer and so have located the best products and discovered the most efficient ways to handwash. so i might get a few weird looks in the shared bathrooms while rinsing my clothes out in the sinks. it's okay, i'm very used to receiving weird looks.</p>
<p>I don't know abut Swat sinks, but my daughter (at another LAC) finds it useful to have a dishpan-style bin that she uses for soaking and handwashing. It's useful for a lot of other things between washday too, including storing the liquid detergent container that tend to drip. They stack inside each other so it can be handy to have two, and they won't take up more room than one would.</p>
<p>Sorry about the typos in #15. You will do well to get a folding drying rack and invest in some of those zippered mesh bags (but try the bags out before using them on delicate things - some models stay zipped but others unzip in the laundry almost every wash, defeating the purpose).</p>