My son is an entering freshman and will unquestionably need a laundry service. Do any students or parents have experience or recommendations for these two services, either through the school or through Dorm Mom? Trust me, suggestions he do his own laundry will not be helpful. Thank you.
http://www.brownbsa.com/students/laundry/
https://www.dormmom.com/colleges.aspx?cid=270
I know people use the Brown BSA service, and it’s relatively convenient, if he’s willing to carry his laundry to Faunce (on the Main Green). Speaking honestly, though, most of us made fun of the people who got their laundry done for them, except for the ones who needed it for medical reasons (disability, etc). He’ll eventually need to learn how to do laundry in real life, and college is a good time to make him learn.
Agree – frankly tell your son that he’ll be ridiculed by his mates. That’ll get him in the laundry room with you asking how to sort his stuff.
TerpDad - you beat me to it. I was going to ask the same thing. I think dragging the laundry across campus to Faunce will be as much trouble as doing it himself. Dormmom’s service says they pick up in the student’s dorm - but I can’t find any reviews on it.
I would love to hear from someone who has actually used the services.
He also will eventually need to learn how to find stuff out about daily life, and I think now would be a good time to begin that too. I mean, not only is operating a washer and dryer too much of a chore for him, but parents have to figure out alternative laundry solutions for him too?
There are blogs for Brown students and Facebook pages for freshman dormmates, depending on the dorm and the initiative of a resident-to-be. Plenty of opportunities for the students themselves to network and get opinions from other students…on their own.
My sons both ended up loving doing their laundry. Said it was zen & the younger met a girl in the laundry room that he dated a bit. There are definite perks for them 
but the biggest perk is mine & my husband’s. When they returned home on breaks, they insisted on doing their own laundry. I know it’s wrinkled but frankly, I don’t care. My brown kid said his wrinkled clothes made him fit in, lol. It’s a rite of passage. Don’t rob him of it.
Thank you for the replies and I know those who recommended he do his own laundry meant well, but I can’t see it, so same as stemmmm, reviews from those who used the service would still be appreciated. I will say to stemmmm that Dorm Mom does have some negative reviews online and since Brown has it’s own service, I think we are leaning that way. The only issue with Brown’s service is in the mailing, button down shirts were included in the basic service, but not on the web site. I intend to call to clarify.
Have you discussed the options with him? This just seems like the epitome of helicopter parenting, and it’s not going to help your son in the long-term. If he can’t be trusted to do his laundry in the dorm, do you really expect him to carry it across campus on a weekly basis, and then pick it up again?
The Brown Student Agencies’ Basic Plan is only $595, plus incidental charges for anything sent for laundering that is not covered by the plan. Look Sharp Plan is only $995. That is chump change for some people, I suppose.
Plus, with either BSA plan, your sons and daughters get a personalized laundry bag with their name on it! This bag must be used to carry laundry across campus–yes even in February–to and from the drop-off point. During Spring Break, it can double as a beach bag and let everyone know that you attend Brown (and have clean clothes).
I don’t know anything about the service quality of either provider, but I don’t think I would ever do business with a company named Dorm Mom…so 1950’s in their outlook about family structure and the woman’s role.
If you guys living close enough, you could use the laundry plan my friend had. He packed enough clothing to last a month or two and then when he got low (or ideally, around some natural break in school), he would go home with all his dirty clothes and his parents would wash them for him at home. He’d then come back with his month or two of clean clothes and repeat the cycle. Probably cheaper than the BSA plan - especially if he’s ok wearing old t-shirts that have holes in them and getting made fun of by all his friends for his absurd laundry behavior (some of his friends might even go so far as to ridicule him in a on-line public forum years later).
If he is smart enough to go to college, he is smart enough to do his own laundry. It’s really not that difficult. My son who was notorious for losing clothes, managed all 4 years at Brown, not only doing his own laundry, but also not losing any. Agree with previous comments that he might be ridiculed.