# Getting boys to do laundry



## NativeRose (Nov 15, 2003)

When my boys were in high school and I was teaching I told them they would have to help with their own laundry. I bought 4 large hampers and labeled them whites, darks, towels and sheets and special care. I had gotten tired of turning jeans and socks so the rule was they were to turn their own jeans and socks and sort accordingly. I posted a poster on the wall with washing instructions(how much to load, how much laundry det.etc...) They would then help with the laundry. They are 27 and 29 now and help their wives with laundry.


----------



## Ninn (Oct 28, 2006)

I have put this off for a while, simply because I like my new washer and dryer the way they are! Kevin has a habit of leaving guitar picks, jewelry, money, tools and who knows what all else in his pockets. His brother did the same at this age. I remember pulling an amp cord out of his cargo pants one day! Right now, we are working on learning to sort and pretreat for stains. If he gets that much done, I don't mind washing n drying. He just recently learned how to properly hang a shirt and a pair of pants on the same hanger! (i was waaayyy to lenient with him as a child)


----------



## Sumer (May 24, 2003)

I taught my boys to do their own laundry when they were around 8 or 9. Even if they each only did one load a week it helped me out a lot. I took nail polish and marked the setting where they should turn the dials to. They mostly only had jeans and t-shirts so it wasnt that tough, and I always picked up their slack when they got behind. 
The hardest part was getting them to empty the lint from the dryer. And emptying their pockets. Socks never did get folded or turned .. they just got pitched into a drawer as is.
When #1 son went off to collage he taught girls how to wash their own clothes. 
#2 son, here at home, still forgets to empty his pockets sometimes. I still find gum in the dryer but at least now its still in the wrapper. And nails, OH I hate nails in the washing machine, they get stuck in the holes and drag around scraping ..But the money he leaves in his pockets is sometimes bills instead of pennies so that is a plus. :baby04:

~~Sumer


----------



## annethcz (Sep 25, 2004)

I have an acquaintance with 5 grown children. Starting at age 10, they were responsible for their own laundry. She assigned each child a laundry day- the child had that day (and that day only) to do his/her laundry. She said that it only took a few instances of not having the clothes the child wanted for a special occasion for the children to learn to take responsibility. My kids aren't quite old enough for this, but once they are I will be instituting a similar policy


----------



## momlaffsalot (Sep 9, 2004)

I didn't know they could!!!!

Just kidding, all of my boys do their own laundry, the youngest is 10 and he started being 100% responsible for his own this year. I would be doing nothing but laundry if I did everybody's! As it is, I do my own and all of the towels, miscellaneous and whites. That's enough!


----------



## MiniMama (Apr 18, 2008)

Both of my children started doing their own laundry when they were around twelve. It started with my daughter, because she got into a bad habit of piling up her dirty clothes, then bringing them to me, whenever I was doing laundry, expecting me to do all of them. I put a halt to that right quick! 

When my son, who is five years younger than his sister, hit that age, I didn't wait for him to develop a bad habit. LOL! He's been doing his own laundry since then, (he's now twenty-one), and he's highly amused, and puzzled, whenever he comes across someone who is still having their mother do their laundry for them. I remember a few years ago, the first girlfriend he ever had, was amazed, and the girl's mother was actually horrified, that I made my son wash his own clothes! But, the girl was an only child, and was extremely spoiled, and the mother, well, the less said on that score, the better, (needless to say, that relationship didn't last long, thankfully)!


----------



## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

I lived for a while with my sister and her kids. When her 13 year old son stated that his laundry was not being done correctly (sorted, washed, bleached, tenderized, ironed, folded, hung up or folded in drawer) we decided he was old enough to do his own laundry. The two ten year olds followed up, not to be outdone by the oldest. All of them had watched mom(s) do laundry and knew how the system worked. They learned quickly through trial and error what happens when you wait until you have no more clothes before you do your laundry, and what happens when you overload the machine. They learned to iron and hang up clothes.

It saved a lot of time for us moms. I still did the sheets and towels, but it was so nice not to have to sort and fold clean clothes for six kids.


----------



## OUVickie (Mar 8, 2003)

I commend all Moms who teach their children to do laundry when they are young!! :rock:
I taught my DD at 10, too. We started out by learning to sort then I just taught her the basics of cold water wash. Delicates and whites came after she mastered that. It shouldn't matter what gender a child is, they should all have to learn and be responsible. 
Mothers who never teach their kids end up with children who bring their clothes home to be done when they're grown!

It's wonderful to have a husband who launders his own clothes. My MIL taught her son well and I decided not to spoil a good thing. If you have boys who do their own laundry, you'll likely have DILs that think you hung the moon! LOL!!


----------

