Let’s state the obvious. Very few people love doing laundry. Far fewer to love to do dorm laundry where you have to trudge down several floors or even buildings away to do it. When it comes to our students living in a dorm on a campus away from home, we can only hope that they don’t wear their favorite hoodie 10 times before finally washing it. A bottle of Febreeze can only go so far. Doing laundry has to be as easy and convenient as possible in hopes they do it more often.

Could they begin to love doing laundry? That’s probably a stretch. But read on for ideas and tools to make the chore of dorm laundry easier and less stressful.

College Prerequisite: Laundry 101

If your college-bound student is not already doing their own laundry at home, there is no time like the present to get them started! It is one of those life lessons that will always be useful. You can begin teaching them at almost any age, starting with sorting clothes by color, separating towels, understanding the different cycles, and handling a new red shirt. The more they familiarize themselves with the entire laundry routine, the more likely they will keep doing it once they head off to college.

See our 56 Life Skills For High Schoolers for more ideas on what to be sure to teach them before they leave home. 

Do Some Research On Your Dorm Laundry Situation

All schools are different, we say this all the time, and it is the same story with dorm laundry.

1. Where are the laundry machines? The answers could be in your suite, on your hall, in your building (is there an elevator), or in another building.
   
2. How much is it to do laundry? If there is a charge, you’ll probably be able to pay with your Student ID or an app. Most schools have done away with coin-operated machines, but you should check with your school.
   
3. What laundry soap is permitted? Yep, there are rules on this, too. Some say no liquid detergent, some say only liquid detergent. Some say no laundry detergent sheets or dryer sheets. These detergent sheets would be such a great option if allowed, since they are so lightweight. Those liquid bottles are so heavy and cumbersome!

If you can’t easily find this information, please refer to our article on how to research your dorm room.

Dorm Laundry Hampers – Size Matters

Let’s be honest with ourselves. We would love for our students to do laundry every week, but we will take it if they do laundry every two weeks. The hamper needs to fit at least two weeks of dirty laundry without being overwhelming, given the size of their dorm room. A fine line for sure!

Here are 3 different types of laundry hampers to consider:

1) Dorm Laundry Hampers With Wheels

Wheeled laundry hampers are a great solution IF you don’t have to navigate stairs to get to the laundry room. If you have to take stairs, move on to the next section!

Not having to carry a heavy hamper a long distance while also juggling laundry supplies is a big plus. Here are some wheeled laundry hamper options with rough measurements.

Sterlite Ultra Wheeled Hamper with Lid – 20″x15″, 26.75″ tall. You can clean this with a Clorox wipe while the clothes are in the machines, and then the clean laundry can ride back home inside it. Throw a small container in your accessories bag (see below).

Heavy-Duty 3-Section Laundry Sorter Cart – 30.5″x17.5″. 33″ tall. This is fairly narrow but is a little over 30″ long.

2) Dorm Laundry Backpacks

Backpack hampers are a great alternative to rolling laundry carts. Please keep in mind that laundry can become heavy, and consider what your student is capable of carrying. Some backpacks have built-in storage for laundry supplies. Others will require a separate bag or something to carry laundry supplies; see accessories below.

Dalykate Backpack Laundry Bag – One of our dorm group favorites.

Extra Large Backpack Laundry Bag With Padded Straps – If they really won’t do laundry very often…

Freestanding Laundry Backpack – The 2 above need to be kept open with a hook on the wall or other method. This one has structure around it so it stands on its own.

3) Dorm Laundry Hampers To Carry

Simple Popup Mesh Laundry Bags – This very affordable 2-pack is great – one to fill with dirty laundry, and the other can be folded flat until ready to use.

Collapsible Laundry Hamper With 2 Washable Bag Inserts – A great option for a sturdy hamper with 2 removable and washable laundry bags – throw them right in with the dirty laundry.

XL Lamper Plastic Laundry Basket – A large, basic laundry hamper that would be great for in-suite or very nearby laundry.

Carrying Clean Laundry Back To The Room

What’s the difference between laundry hampers and laundry baskets? My understanding is that hampers are for dirty clothes and baskets are for clean clothes, but I recognize these terms are used inconsistently! Regardless, knowing how gross and foul-smelling my boys’ dirty laundry can be, I’m not a fan of them putting their clean clothes back in the same vessel that holds their dirty clothes.

These are a few options for clean clothes if you’d like a carrier that only handles clean clothes.

Collapsible Laundry Basket – Use this to carry your clean laundry back to the room for immediate put-away, of course. And take the advice of one of our Dorm Shopping Group members and be sure your student knows that this basket indeed expands and is not a “laundry tray”!

Collapsible Mesh Basket – A bit lighter and with carrying straps, this horizontal basket would make carrying folded clothes back to the dorm room easy. Put the clothes away and fold the basket flat to store.

Open Top Tote Bags – Show your school spirit or back your favorite pro team with a large open tote bag perfect for toting clean laundry to your room. Lots of other uses for this one, too!

Dorm Laundry Drying Racks

For clothes that need to lie flat to dry or hang-dry, there are a few options that can be folded away when not in use.

Wood & Stainless Collapsible Drying Rack – Takes a bit of floor space, but is good for laying clothes to dry (vs hanging them).

Tall Drying Rack For Hanging Clothes – Takes less floor space and is good for hanging clothes to dry on hangers.

Over Door Drying Rack – Good for hanging items or a few that need to dry ‘flat’.

Dorm Laundry Accessories

We’ve listed a few laundry helpers below. The easier it is for the student to carry and do the laundry, the more likely it is to be done.

Set of Mesh Washable Laundry Bags – For delicates or your favorite t-shirt or leggings, mesh laundry bags protect these items from the often rough commercial washing machines.

Waterproof Tote Bag For Laundry Supplies – Particularly helpful if you need to tote messy items such as liquid detergent.

Slim Hangers – These are the best! Slim hangers help save precious space on a short hanging rod. You have to look at the pictures to see how versatile these are, thanks to the design.

Over the Cabinet Basket – An affordable basket to hold your laundry supplies that you can hang over a door, on your laundry hamper or over a bed slat.

Conclusion

While we may not get them to LOVE doing laundry in college, we can help them manage space constraints by providing easy-to-carry/roll laundry hampers and convenient access to laundry supplies. With a bit of planning and the right tools, tackling dorm laundry can be a manageable task, allowing students to fit it into their busy academic schedules.

More Dorm Information And Recommendations

Our Dorm FAQs Article covers all of the questions frequently asked in our Dorm Shopping Recommendations & Deal Alerts Facebook group. The Facebook group is also a great source for prior years’ move-in pictures for decor and organizational ideas.

Our complete Dorm Shopping Guide is available here.

Have More questions?

Still have questions? Please comment below, or come ask us in the Dorm Shopping Recommendations & Deal Alerts Facebook group. So much great info in the group along with hundreds, maybe thousands, of move-in pictures from previous years to give you ideas and inspiration.

=> Please share this article with your dorm-bound friends and their parents. I would love for everyone to understand this topic before they start dorm shopping!