The washer & dryer

[RubenX]

Sometimes we have obsessions that we don't even realize. Last night my girlfriend told me that the dryer broke. I'm gonna take a look at today. I really hope is something easy to fix because if is not, that means I'll have to go to a public laundromat full of strange people and sit there for hours, doing nothing, surrounded by strangers.

I often fantasize having my own house with a big laundry room and 2 washers & 2 dryers. So if one breaks, I can still do laundry with the back up machines.

I just realize that I do have an obsession with washers & dryers. Obsession that is triggered by my dislike/fear of using public laundry facilities.

 

[imagesbyholly]

I used to fantasize like that. I don't know if I still do. My husband really likes to stare into those front loader machines with the glass doors while they are running. He watched a whole cycle once. One reason I married him- I'm not the only weirdo : )

 

[Nolan1971]

Sometimes we have obsessions that we don't even realize. Last night my girlfriend told me that the dryer broke. I'm gonna take a look at today. I really hope is something easy to fix because if is not, that means I'll have to go to a public laundromat full of strange people and sit there for hours, doing nothing, surrounded by strangers.

I often fantasize having my own house with a big laundry room and 2 washers & 2 dryers. So if one breaks, I can still do laundry with the back up machines.

I just realize that I do have an obsession with washers & dryers. Obsession that is triggered by my dislike/fear of using public laundry facilities.

I know how you feel! I won't even go in to a laundromat with more than 5-6 people tops! Mine is 5min away on foot so I usually throw everything in the
wash & go home till it's time for the dryer then I use several dryers so I only have to wait 18 min tops. Even then I must have a newspaper to pass the time.

One annoying thing they do around here is some patrons will pop open their car trunks and blare music usually with too much bass in to the laundromat while they wait!

 

[Soup]

HAHA, Holly! When we first got those front loader machines I sat in front of it with popcorn & watched (I may be nuts too...)

@ Ruben: Our laundry room has the front loader 'HE' machines, a sink & a big window that looks into the back yard. It has a row of cupboards above the machines. However...I keep looking at it & thinking that we really dropped the ball on it. It's kind of a trend here to design really nice laundry rooms since people with families (esp) spend so much time in them. I'd love a double set of machines, dry cleaning facilities, a place where the iron + a vertical steam iron could be permanently set up, a small microwave & a cafe table & chairs + a tv. We sound-proofed the wall between the laundry room & the kitchen but I'd sound-proof the entire room, given my druthers. Sometimes stuff like the buttons on jeans or a jacket start pinging & clanging around in there & it droves me nuts. Also, the clunking of stuff like the dog's toys can be loud too: sounds like someone pounding on the side door: not great at 3am!

The only time I ever set foot into a laundromat was when we were visiting family in rural N.S. as a kid. We were staying at a hotel but I hated having dirty clothing in my luggage, even in a separate bag so off we trooped to the laundromat, quarters jingling. There was a tv playing some soap opera (as the stomach churns) & rows of plastic seats. Good thing I had a book! There were gossiping, chatty locals & restless bored kids begging for change for the soda & snack machines. It really was purgatory! I hope you don't wind up in such a place!

 

[RubenX]

Well... didn't got to work with the dryer today. I have to open it's back panel to take a look. But I can't move the dryer because it's block by the washer, which is blocked by some boxes. I need to clean the porch, to make space for the boxes, to make space for the washer, to be able to move the dryer... jigsaw puzzle.

 

[Soup]

Sounds like domestic Tetris!

 

[Cerulean]

Ugh. My husband and I are apartment shopping right now and he's been running some complexes by me. There are some reasonably priced, decently located ones, but as soon as he says "laundry facility" the next words out of my mouth- ABSOLUTELY NOT. I can't *stand* sharing laundry stuff. People are gross. And you have to hang out by your machine or someone will move/take your stuff. Gah.

 

[Soup]

I agree, Cerulean! My Aunt lived in such a building because it was wheelchair accessible & close to the services she used regularly. The unit she had was small, but she was single so it was perfect for her. It also overlooked a gorgeous tree filled park so in Fall, the views from her balcony were stunning. BUT...there was a laundry room she had to ride down to the basement for. Once, someone stole all of her clothing(!!!) & another time, some malicious prankster poured bleach into all the machines & ruined everyone's clothing. A young woman was sexually assaulted by some nutter who'd entered the bldg when the garage door was opened by someone coming in to park their car. He lurked in the laundry room & assaulted that poor woman. they're just not safe. Some bldgs with their own laundry room will allow you to install a washer/dryer unit in your own apt. If you see a pace you both like, it may be worth asking.

 

[Cerulean]

Yeah at our last apartment we had the hookups and rented a set. I actually own a very nice set of side-by-side w/d but most apartments we look at (small and cheap) don't have the space for them I do fantasize about someday how my large husband will be able to wash more than two articles of clothing at a time. Someday. When we have space and a little bit more money. Mmmm.

 

[CJinherPJs]

Washing machines were actually one of the first obsessions I remember having at the age of 2. I used to sit in front of them and watch them go round and round, not only at home but when I went to visit family and friends. I used to beg my mum to take me to the launderette too, and when our washing machine broke my dream came true. That was when I first saw a dryer, and I remember getting upset because I wanted one in the house but my mum said there was no point because she could just put the washing on the line.

 

[Soup]

Actually, line dried clothing is much more energy efficient & makes use of evaporation. When you take it down, it smells heavenly (providing you're not living in an overly polluted area). When you hang white stuff out in the bright sun, it bleaches it to a blinding crisp white much better than any liquid bleach & without the damage. I'd do that now but some idiots decided that it isn't permitted in this neighbourhood. Even a low clothing rack that isn't visible from the street or readily visible from the neighbours' yards isn't permitted (but I do sneak sometimes!).

 

[imagesbyholly]

I would sneak to : ). I love to hang blankets and sheets out if I have the time.

 

[Soup]

I've gotten pretty good at laundry sneaking. I'd bet that most households in the area are doing exactly the same thing: the temptation of fresh truly clean laundry is irresistable. I can see not having rows of soggy men's long johns or granny's humongous girdles visible from the street, but I don't see the problem with a simple rack or carousel in the back yard. We've become silly with aesthetic-type regulations. One gated community busted a toddler for drawing on her own driveway with wash-away chalk!!! The neighbourhood committee deemed it an eye-sore. I thought that this was just plain mean-spirited bullying. I hope the kid gets loose with SPRAY PAINT next time: they'll be grateful to see her with wash away chalk after that. What next: a bubble-blowing ban?!?

 

[Pella]

I hate the laundry mat, when we were little, when our washer and dryer broke, my parents would make my brother and I walk down to the laundry mat carrying the laundry and doing it there, even though they had a working car, they didn't want to go themselves. Also, I had to start doing laundry when i was 8 years old for five people including two bed wetters. It was too much for me, and I couldn't keep up with it, I started getting up at about 4am to do a full rotation of laundry so that everyone in the house had clothes. Now I hate laundry so much, but it would be awesome to have a laundry room with at least two washers and drying so that yes if one broke that we still have another, but also to get it all done at once, Also counters for folding, a place to hang the stuff that can't go in the dryer. Also an elevator to transport things from floor to floor, or if it is a one floor house, then the baskets and stuff should be on wheels.

 

[Mike_GX1]

I used to fantasize like that. I don't know if I still do. My husband really likes to stare into those front loader machines with the glass doors while they are running. He watched a whole cycle once. One reason I married him- I'm not the only weirdo : )

I envisage a day when you walk into a laundrette and every single person has been possessed by their spin cycle and every single person is stood there staring into their washing machine. I envisage a day when we'll all be 'plugged in' and hardwired by our washing machines and our minds will be gone to that next special level of consciousness caught up in the spin cycle! We will no longer have any need for our bodies and will forever spin to infinity and beyond...

 

[RubenX]

Update on my dryer saga:

I did a number on the porch stuff. It has gotten so out of hand that one could barely walk in it. Took me a day checking box by box, tossing a lot of old stuff and re-arranging what was left. Move some stuff to the attic too. Then I use the porch space to move the boxes stored in the laundry and repeated the process. I now have space to move the dryer aside and access the back panel to see what's going on. I just need some motivation to continue, which is lacking atm.

See, while everything is drama-free at *my* home (girlfriend + kids), my larger family (8 brothers and sisters, dad, mom, nephews, nieces, nephews & nieces kids, etc) always have some drama. I'm far away from them all, I'm the only one in FL. So I don't live the drama when it happens. Instead, I get updates every few months or so, in the form of phone calls. This calls might last a few hours and contain the concentrated drama of months past. It is stressful to digest, even debilitating. I'm recovering from one of those updates. Feeling so useless not being able to help the people I love. But enough of that, back to the dryer...

I noticed I do have space to fit another dryer. It would be the washer in the middle, a dryer on the left and a 2nd dryer on the right. That would be great because dryer cycles take longer than washer cycles. When doing multiple loads, the dryer is usually the bottleneck point, slowing down the whole process.

 

[Soup]

That sounds like quite the time consuming ordeal, RubenX! The idea of a 2nd dryer is great when time & speed are of the essence & you've got one load after another. A'trick' for speeding up dryer efficiency: throw in your wet wash, add in a very large dry cotton towel & then turn the machine on. Your stuff will dry significantly faster & you'll be able to stop the machine well before the cycle finishes on its own.

You really have a large family!!! That many siblings is rare these days. As for all the drama, with that many people & all their interconnected relationships, drama is to be expected. As for you being able to solve it all, it is impossible. You are probably very helpful none the less simply by being a good listening ear & letting them get it out of their systems by talking it out.

I hope, now that you can access the machine, that you are able to fix whatever is wrong easily & without having to invest in too many replacement parts.

 

[imagesbyholly]

My washer went out this weekend! But my husband fixed it - it just needed the switch replaced. $20. Maybe we'll get another nine years out of it.

 

[Soup]

What IS it with washers? Ours was installed carefully using a level to ensure balance but it has taken to walking: NOT just a few centimetres, but several feet! I think it's trying to make a break for it! If you see a French speaking washing machine run by, do not intercept it yourself but do notify the authorities.

 

[imagesbyholly]

Lol and what will this French speaking washer be saying? We want to hang onto ours for as long as possible- it seems like the new ones are all kinds of trouble.