I read a book written by Kunal Nayyar, who portrayed Raj on The Big Bang Theory. He recounts coming to the US from India to go to college at the University of Portland. He writes:
Since I was so accustomed to someone taking care of the laundry back home, I had this misunderstanding that somehow, perhaps while I was at class, our bedsheets were being laundered for us at least once a week. Apparently this wasn’t the case. I slept in the same sheets for eleven months without them ever being washed.[/quote]
and an oldie but a goodie from the boarding school forum:
And now adding to my list a note to constantly remind him to wash his sheets regularly even if he doesn’t do them weekly with laundry. Someone did just tell me his dorm has laundry on every floor! That’s amazing.
I do see this one issue with lofting beds. It’s a royal pita to change the sheets/make beds so kids changing them to wash them I bet is a rarity. Girls and boys.
I’d consider it but S is like no way! I can do it myself! (That was a plus at Davidson when he was there for a Duke Tip summer: they had laundry services RIGHT next to the dorm!! It was a beautiful thing!) Sadly, when we toured there a couple years later, they were in process of replacing the on campus laundry facility service building with a new dorm I believe. I was SO sad about that!
People have mentioned this in the UM group as well and many do it at Cornell but I don’t pay. If my kids want to use their allowance for it that’s on them but they don’t get more $ from me for it. So far I have no takers willing to pay for it, although people say it’s not that expensive at UM like only $250/semester but I wonder if that’s because of Covid because that sounds way too cheap considering the amount of time our kids spend doing it and folding it alone plus the cost of laundry machines.
Also separate from laundry for those looking for fans I’ve been told to check out the Woo Zoo fan from Costco from a bunch of people commenting on how great it is in the dorm chatter group. My daughter had a good tall oscillating fan that she said stunk so we need something more powerful this year knowing my son has no a/c.
With my oldest I bought him a second set of sheets so you know, he could put fresh sheets on and then wash the others whenever. They were never touched. Still in the package when we moved him out. Ay ay ay. (I didn’t bother with son #2)
S21 just got an email that his college is now partnering with a weekly laundry service. I do kind of love the idea - it includes sheets and towels so they would actually get washed! I wonder how many students will sign up for the service. We won’t be, unless S wants to pay for it himself. Managing your own laundry seems like a college rite of passage for most kids!
Been on calls with two different start ups looking for funding for college laundry service. They pick up and deliver from
campuses and hire “stay at home moms” (their words) that do the laundry with a 24 hour turn around. So if you miss the extra laundry - there is a job for you …
Just looked it up. $365 per semester for up to 195 lbs of laundry. Lol. And there are more expensive options too. I wouldn’t even allow D to use her own money for that. She won’t want to spend that either!
A benefit included for student athletes across many school - with practice time of 20 hours a week - there are just not enough hours in the day. I think these services started out of that (beside NYC where it is more common to have wash and fold service) and finding there is a market outside of athletes. One company that recently launched across a few test markets also offers dorm cleaning !!!
D21 is going to Hamilton. On its Q & A there is this:
Is there laundry service available for students?
No. One of the many learning experiences that will take place after you arrive is doing your own laundry! All residence halls come equipped with washers and dryers.
My company has a laundry service for several of the colleges. Big brand name (to which I’m extremely loyal), but I’m just not going to pay for it. I don’t think my son will pay for it, either. He actually does his own laundry now and does it twice a week.
We are all bad with washing sheets weekly at our house so I can’t comment. I don’t even make my bed.
Is she running at Hamilton? Bowdoin does the XC/track laundry for the athletes. S19 runs and then hangs his dirty running clothes on some hook with his name on it and, wala, the next day they are on the hook clean! It’s a perk for sure and I know he does laundry way less often because he never has to wash his running stuff.
@skieurope My older son has been doing his own laundry since he started high school. As an athlete, he goes through a lot of clothes. He does his laundry at school at least once a week, sometimes more, because his clothes are damp/wet from sweat from workouts and practices. Sheets are another story though . I know he actually does wash them more than once a semester, but definitely not once a week!
@srparent15 my boys use these mesh laundry hampers from IKEA at home. When S19 was leaving for college, I bought him one of those collapsible laundry baskets thinking he would use that to take his laundry to and from the laundry room at school. He never used it first semester - he prefers his mesh hamper! I have not yet queried S21 what he wants to use but we will probably bring both since we don’t know what kind of storage space he will have. The hamper won’t fit under a bed, but if he has room for it elsewhere, he will probably prefer it to a basket. They are both used to carrying the hampers down two flights of stairs to our basement laundry at home, so not a problem to transport it this way at school.
. I know he actually does wash them more than once a semester, but definitely not once a week!