By Cherie Lowe
Some days, I wish my life were a little more like an animated fairy tale movie. Somehow, the female protagonist keeps a head of perfectly coifed hair while coaxing woodland animals into doing all of the housework. A million different options vie for my attention when it comes to keeping the castle clean in the real world. In other words, I’d rather do just about anything else than dishes, laundry, dusting, vacuuming, taking out the trash, putting away clutter . . . you get the picture.
Laundry tops my “do not want to” list. Don’t get my wrong. I like clean clothes. Is there anything more wonderful than freshly laundered sheets and clean pajamas? Maybe I just like going to bed.
While just having to do the laundry can be challenge, what’s worse is paying too much for the equipment and supplies required to keep your clothes clean. You can make a less than pleasant task (more power to you if laundry is a personal passion, though) more enjoyable when you save money with every load.
Fine tune the machine
I don’t appreciate my washing machine and dryer nearly enough. While laundry proves a monotonous, never-ending task, I am thankful I don’t have to wash my clothes in the nearest stream or wait days for the items to air dry. So maybe it’s time to show the appliances we all depend upon a bit more gratitude and love.
Maintaining appliances saves you money in more ways than one. When you take care of a major household item such as a washer or a dryer, you extend its life, which means you’ll avoid a big-ticket purchase for a longer period of time. But, you also increase your appliance’s efficiency. That means you’ll decrease your energy costs, too. You save money in two ways.
For your washing machine, it’s wise to clean it out on a monthly basis. You can purchase an appliance refresher to run through a regular cycle. I like the Lemishine Appliance Cleaner product available at most big box retailers and home improvement stores. There are a number of other products on the market; however, if you don’t have these items on hand you can just as easily use baking soda and/or white vinegar to get the job done.
Cleaning your dryer has less to do with the actual drum that does all the work and more to do with your vents. Regularly cleaning out the vent in the dryer and the hose leading outside your home helps your dryer perform at a peak level. Drying time decreases which in turn decreases your energy bills. Plus, your dryer is less likely to catch fire — always a good thing and incredibly cost effective.
DIY detergent
At the beginning of our journey to pay off $127,000 in debt, I remained brand loyal in purchasing the laundry detergent my mom used when I was a kid. Using coupons, I reduced the sticker price when I could. However, our favorite brand changed its basic fragrance and the sensitive noses in our home couldn’t handle the new aroma. So, I researched making our own detergent.
That was nine years ago and I’ve never gone back to name brand detergents. Not only do we prefer the fragrance free smell, we love the money we save, too. You can find a number of different options with a quick Internet search. My basic recipe breaks down to a ration of 1 cup of washing soda to 1 cup of Borax to a ½ cup of an oxycleaner. Typically I make a batch that yields 15 cups of detergent. Each load requires only a tablespoon of the powdered detergent. Our clothes have remained clean and color safe.
What I love about this particular recipe is how long it lasts in our home. Necessities such as laundry detergent often lead us to the store to pick up “just one thing.” Somehow we roll out of the store to our vehicles with a cart full instead. So, you save both on the overall price of the detergent and avoid impulse purchases, too.
Fabric softener without fuss
Formula changes in my favorite fabric softener also led to seeking out other options, too. We chose to use white vinegar to brighten clothes and keep them soft, too. I also purchased some reusable dryer balls to decrease static electricity. At first, I worried that my family would smell like Easter eggs or salad dressing. However, the vinegar leaves no residual odor on clothes and gets the job done.
Just because washing, drying, folding, and putting away aren’t my favorite chores doesn’t mean I need to overspend on the process.
Greenwood resident Cherie Lowe and her husband paid off $127,000 in debt in four years and now live debt-free every day with their two kids. She is the author of “Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After.” Send questions, column ideas and comments to [email protected]
