What's The Big Deal Of A Washer & Dryer??

now consider that you have kids and you'll be sending out their clothing to be washed in same machines as the dog beds or sneakers or old people's cloth diapers. also, the cost of electricity is negligible to the cost of having it done. within a few years, it pays off. the best part, you cleaned it, you used the detergent you want, you folded it the way you like it and you know that your machine hasn't had shit in it just before your stuff went into it.

ab-11218: How about dry cleaning do you do that yourself also? How about eating in a restaurant, do you know who is cooking your meal and handling your food? How about staying at a hotel, do you know who last slept in that bed? See what I mean, you can carry that theory to extremes. Believe me, no one is getting sick by using a public laundry, it's only the boogeyman in people's heads

It's all about convenience.
I pop my clothes in the washer/dryer and it's done in 2hrs. No need to make a call, picked up, delivered, etc. Financially, it also makes more sense as it pays off within a year.
Washer/dryer in apts is a must. I rather live without a closet.

RENY - i understand your point. my kids like to eat at McDs once in a while. that does not mean that i'll have them eat there every day.... get my point?

The easy answer is you save a lot of time and money depending on how much laundry you do. We had an illegal washer in an apartment for 6 years, bought a bosch for around $1000 and it paid for itself. We had a baby where you are washing clothes a few times a few at least, plus our laundry, clothes, sheets, towels. If you assume we did 4 loads a week at $1.50 per load for 52 weeks, it is $312, so after 3 years it paid for itself. Not having to fight for the few machines in the basement and going up and down makes it easier. The cost of detergent you are paying no matter what and the electricity usage is minimal.

As for sending out clothes, that seems to be a waste of money. However tell me how much your clothes weigh. I have to assume with kids clothes, our clothes, towels, sheets, etc, that paying by weight would be very costly.

Washer and dryer is key and it was a feature I was unable to live without in my recent serach for a new apartment. My time is too valuable to spend an evening each week in the basement, and spending $100 a week to have my housekeeper come in and do my laundry and clean an apartment that's already clean was a huge waste. I think a washer / dryer (especially if vented and legal / grandfathered) can add 25K-50K value over an identical apartment without one.

Plus if you have your own w/d you don't need to have your clothes take on the repulsive stenches that most laundry products have, and all the creepy additives (like silicones) that leading products contain. Even if you use the detergent of your choice in shared machines, you get the residue from other people's products.

"Even if you use the detergent of your choice in shared machines, you get the residue from other people's products."

I believe people on this board think they are going to live forever. Do you know what you're exposed to every minute of everyday living in NYC. LOL!

alan sleeps in formaldehyde.

Wash and fold service is overrated.

You still have to make arrangements for pickup and delivery.

And in my experience, items of clothing almost always get lost ... AND they're never as clean and fresh as when you wash them yourself.

And with your own washer/dryer with all the options you can often wash things often (ridiculously) marked "dry clean only".

The whole laundry industry is evil.

"You still have to make arrangements for pickup and delivery."

We're in a doorman building so I guess that's easier, just call the cleaners and drop the bag off in the lobby on the way out. It shows up in a day or two, so I don't get how anyone can make a case for time savings when you do it yourself. The doorman calls when it arrives and sends it up right to our floor. It pays to tip those doormen well during the Holidays.

Nice to see a fresh new topic that hasnt been beaten to death 500 times already.

Anyone that has had a W/D ensuite will tell you that they would not live without it again. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

"The doorman calls when it arrives and sends it up right to our floor. It pays to tip those doormen well during the Holidays."

Um, that's their JOB.

>Um, that's their JOB.

Not in your building.

NYCMatt: "Um, that's their JOB."

Their job is to sign for it and hold it in the lobby store room and to inform you that it has arrived. Not to send it up in the elevator.

gcondo: "Nice to see a fresh new topic that hasnt been beaten to death 500 times already."

Than why did you respond, must not have much to do, how about doing some laundry. LOL!

Why do all the guys wanna have sex with the pretty ones? The last time I chked every women comes with a set of knockers and a vagina... Gotta earn my grayness, everyday!

-smoke that op-

As a strategic renter, I always look for the lemming who wants to sell his 3 bdrm w/ w/d for $2.5mm but is willing to rent it to me for $7-$10k. FLMAOzzzzz. Negotiating against oneself. Another hallmark of a tool.

@realestateny still waiting on you telling me how much it costs you to do all your laundry. It sounds as if the costs are way out of line. Now if you were comparing in apartment w/d vs in building w/d that would be different.

And I concur, I do not tip my doorman more just because we get packages 3-4 times a week. I give him what I feel is fair at holiday time, but i do not go overboard as he is doing his job.

Thigs I know about bjmatt.

Yalie
Coop Pres at wash heights
Borker
Dont tip
Clueless to bubble
Came to nyc to be free to have sex as much as he could handle in his 20
Ended up borker with a Yalie degree

Awesome.

Mikev: "I give him what I feel is fair at holiday time, but i do not go overboard as he is doing his job."

"Fair" is a subjective term. I'll bet you tip wait staff at restaurants 10%. LOL.

I just don't like the idea of strangers handling my skivvies.

What's wrong with little asian women handling your skivvies?

I have a washer/dryer but dont use it and drop off every week. It is so cheap to have it done outside and pay for it to sorted and folded more than washed.
And it's nice to have the option at home for some emergency towel washing or spinning the neighbor's unruly dog for a min or 2.

Now I understand once having kids this tide may turn. But for a single person, even a couple, no brainer for me.

And what freakin' arrangements to make? In AM on way to parking garage, carry a 20lb bag 50/100 feet and say "hello......see you later." On way back walk in say hello, here is $16 dollars, thank you.

""Fair" is a subjective term. I'll bet you tip wait staff at restaurants 10%. LOL."

Is doorman base pay the same as wait staff?

"nd what freakin' arrangements to make? In AM on way to parking garage, carry a 20lb bag 50/100 feet and say "hello......see you later." On way back walk in say hello, here is $16 dollars, thank you."

Provided that you live 100 feet from the laundry service.

Sorry, I thought there was one on every block, not so over there in washington heights?

In Fort George you have to go to the combination beauty parlor/liquor store/laundry/check-cashing/3 bodegas/rey de sandwich/fast-food joint instead.

For me to rationalize buying a W&D that costs around $2k, I would probably have to be a family man. I spend an average of $2.75 on doing laundry bi-weekly. Not factoring in detergent/electricity...it would take me over 30 years to recoup the initial cost spent. For a single person it is simply not cost effective to buy the w&d. Of course this is NYC, and space is a rarity...which is always a plus to have.

I guess for those who can rationalize buying a w&d, they're just going to have to pick the lesser of the 2 evils.

"Is doorman base pay the same as wait staff?"

When you hear "Fair Tip" and "they're only doing their job" in the same sentence, you know the recipient is going to get stiffed. LOL.

A washer and dryer is a must with kids, especially if the play sports. Just wait...you'll see.

You mean a duane Reade alanhart? On the alcohol front, just mix some nyquil and......

@realestateny actually I tip very well when the service deserves it, so 20% for last nights dinner. Obviously if you and your glowing personality were ever to serve me it would probably be closer to 5% if I didn't ask you to actually tip me for having to put up with you serving me.

And really a restaurant waiter is in a different line of work and pay structure then a doorman in a building who when union is making over $70k a year in salary and benefits.

>It's like having a wife. You can always masturbate, but hey there she is. ;)

All along, I bet you are imaging the "thousands of people who have touched [your] wife".

A w/d is essential to me because of extreme sensitivity to scented products and the various chemicals used to make them. As alanhart said, even using my own laundry products does not work because the scented detergents and fabric softeners that so many people use leave lots of residue in public machines.

FWIW, we had our towels stolen from the laundry in our basement, and we know of others that have items stolen as well.

"For me to rationalize buying a W&D that costs around $2k, I would probably have to be a family man. I spend an average of $2.75 on doing laundry bi-weekly. Not factoring in detergent/electricity...it would take me over 30 years to recoup the initial cost spent. For a single person it is simply not cost effective to buy the w&d. Of course this is NYC, and space is a rarity...which is always a plus to have."

Who the hell ARE you people who don't do laundry???

I'm a single guy and do at least four loads a week. At $2.00/wash and $2.00/dry for each load, that's $16/week.

I've been using coin-op laundry machines since 1987. That's $19,968. That's *almost* a brand-new washer/dryer set EVERY SINGLE YEAR.

And by the way, how do you singles get away with washing only ONE load a week?

Do you not launder your bed sheets/towels/washcloths every week? That's one load by itself, and you haven't even touched your clothes yet.

Matt: Four loads a week for a single guy is about 2 too many. Especially if you are using full size double loaders in public laundries. How many loads a week do you think that a couple with 2 kids are doing, based on your standards and those small stackable washers, that would equal about 30 loads. Don't think so. Seems like you have a clean fixation.

By the way, a load of laundry didn't cost $2 back in 1987, so re-do the math. LOL.

Back to OP. Alright you are pissed Bc the units that you are currently selling has no wd. So your 6% isn't coming fast enough

It ain't your units, it's the random coin toss of being a realtwhore. FLMAOzzzzz. Don't hate the playerz, hate the game.

RENY: "Than why did you respond, must not have much to do, how about doing some laundry. LOL!"

I think you wanted to use "Then..."

Life skills, like knowing how to fold laundry and use proper grammar, even when writing on a stupid message board, are more valuable THAN the 30 minutes of free time you get by sending your dirty underwear out.

You are a broker, right?

gcondo: "You are a broker, right?"

Guess again.

Enjoy folding that laundry, one of your valuable life skills. LOL.

Used car salesman?

No wait, I got it... You own a laundry service and are trying to drum up business by trolling a message board?

Dear Mr RealEstateNY,

You are clearly looking to argue, "change your life to do things my way because it is better" and don't really want to hear contradictory thoughts.

"We're in a doorman building so I guess that's easier"

Try this on for size. "I'm amazed by the lenghts people will go to, to have a doorman for their apartments. They'll give up valuable privacy, deal with the security issue of allowing a stranger to have keys to their apartment, and spend at least several thousand dollars a year in maintenance and tips."

Get it? To each their own....

Kill the thread. Now it has gone into another realm, and has fallen somewhat off topic. People's opinions vary from getting your laundry done outside to having laundry available in the home. We can see that. Thanks for bringing up such an opinionated thread, RealEstateNY.

Gotta agree with gcondo...once you have had one in your apartment you will never be without it again. Rented here two years ago so we could study the market and research where/what to buy. did not have a washer/dryer and either did it in the basement or sent it out. after a few months of that, it became the number 1 priority on my wish list for an apartment. Our new place has stacked miele units which we put in when we renovated. i'm in heaven.

This is way too subjective of a topic to have a slam dunk argument winning one way or the other; I for one, made it a top priority in my latest apartment search. I simply do not like doing laundry communally and prefer to do it in the privacy of my own apartment, without being on a strict time schedule to run downstairs to the basement as soon as its done so that I don't make others wait. Same goes for wash and fold service; I prefer to simply wash my own clothes as opposed to having someone else handle it for me.

It's simply a matter of preference. It's like arguing about starch or no starch in your dry cleaning.

"It's simply a matter of preference. It's like arguing about starch or no starch in your dry cleaning."

Who puts starch in their dry cleaning??

"Life skills, like knowing how to fold laundry and use proper grammar, even when writing on a stupid message board, are more valuable THAN the 30 minutes of free time you get by sending your dirty underwear out."

30 minutes of free time?

When you don't have your own machines, the total elapsed time from the time you first reach for the hamper and the laundry soap ... to sorting, pre-treating, packing, schlepping, washing, drying, re-packing, re-schlepping, folding, and putting away ... is more like three hours.

"Kill the thread"

When did you become the arbiter of when it's time to "Kill A Thread". I think there's plenty more life left in this thread.

Gotta go now and sell an apartment or used car. LOL.

"Matt: Four loads a week for a single guy is about 2 too many. Especially if you are using full size double loaders in public laundries. How many loads a week do you think that a couple with 2 kids are doing, based on your standards and those small stackable washers, that would equal about 30 loads. Don't think so. Seems like you have a clean fixation."

"Clean fixation"?

All clothes that come in direct contact with skin are laundered after each wearing, including dress shirts (collars). On gym days that means two t-shirts, two pairs of underwear, and two pairs of socks. Sheets and pillowcases weekly. Bath towels after 2-3 uses. Wash cloths after each use. 2 dish rags and dish towels per week.

My building has standard top-loading machines. It ends up being four loads.

What do you suggest I cut back on?

Cut back on the each wearing part...how about every other wearing?

You can always turn underwear inside out to double your usage!

"Cut back on the each wearing part...how about every other wearing?"

Underwear? Socks?

Sorry, but that's just gross.

matt, i think if you had to change anything, i would change the pillowcases twice a week, but wear a shirt twice if not hot/sweaty. in the summer of course you have to wash everything after each wear. but i'm surprised you don't change the pillowcases more often. that's where the real dirt and old skin stay. yes, now you are thinking about it as i am. ha!

i sent out laundry and did the baby stuff at a laundromat myself in manhattan. i now live in a house in that has a fabulous big light laundry room with counters, drawers, things to hang the air dryables. it was not feature that was very imporant to me in the past, but if/when we come back to the city, i'm putting in a laundry room. at the expense of half the kitchen if need be.

Now I know who Matthew is: he's that guy at the gym wearing

I lived in a building where I sent my laundry out for years, now I have my own washer n dryer would never live in a place with out one again

Two t-shirts and two pairs of socks.

Stupid smartphone.

Why all the OP snark about wanting a washer and dryer in the apartment? People have differing priorities and life circumstances. We would never live without a washer/dryer again. Don't like going to the basement, had too many items lost or ruined by laundry service. So what? OP, I'm glad you're happy with the way you've arranged your life. Can't you simply be glad that others have arranged their lives to suit themselves?

without this thread we would not have known that matt changes his underwear daily. some things are worth the price.

I seem to be in the minority. i gave up a washer/dryer with no regrets. i like having someone else match up all the socks.

This may be a "fresh" topic free of the stench of use and soiling (see what I did there?) but it of course degenerated into the same old name calling and hence became free of any useful new information. Hence there is a 20% chance this post is revived for the next couple of years and reaches some 300-400 messages.

Yep, I am in a mood today.

RealEstateNY is probably trying to seel his apartment and does not have a washer n dryer
lost out to the neighbor that did

^--- I think you nailed it.

The bitterness in his posts are quite self evident.

>without this thread we would not have known that matt changes his underwear daily. some things are worth the price.

It's amazing what personal and intimate details people will reveal about themselves on streeteasy.

Having our own washer/dryer was so important that it was written into our contract when we bought our coop that we'd have permission to have them legally -- we also insisted on letters granting permission from both the coop board and managing agent before we'd agree to sign the contract.

As others have noted, I want the convenience and control of being able to do laundry when and how we want to do it. I can wash my cotton sheets in hot water using a non-allergic detergent and then dry them to damp dry making it easier to iron the pillowcases and tops of the sheets. I can do my husband's cotton polo shirts in cold water and also gently wash my cashmere sweaters so I'm not wearing clothes that have been rinsed in a dry cleaner's chemicals. We have nice clothes and beautiful kitchen, bath and bed linens and how you wash and take care of things made of fabric makes all the difference in how they wear and last. And I can do all this at any hour of the day or night without having to trudge to the basement, although I do use the big basement machines to wash anything that is particularly dirty, like our cotton kitchen rugs (I wouldn't want to wash my sleepwear in the same machine after that task).

Am I a laundry fanatic? Perhaps. I also cook most of our meals for similar reasons -- I want to know where our food comes from and who handles it before we eat it, and I care about the day-to-day circumstances of our domestic life (and yes I also have a demanding job; one doesn't rule out the other).

So to the OP's original question -- the big deal is convenience, cleanliness, control and being able to care for my nice things. And taken together it's about good grooming and having a nice home. So what's the big deal? I guess if you have to ask....

>although I do use the big basement machines to wash anything that is particularly dirty, like our cotton kitchen rugs (I wouldn't want to wash my sleepwear in the same machine after that task).

Apparently that doesn't matter for others.

nextera, i'm sorry but that post made me lol. do you have a sister i could gay marry? because i would totally dump my husband for one of you.

While your comment was meant to be snide, I'd agree with you if it weren't for the facts that A) almost everyone in the building has their own washer/dryer and B) the large washers in the basement laundry room are posted as being allowed for washing items like cotton rugs so there's no secret as to the machines' use. The smaller basement washers are designated for personal items.

not snide! i would totally gay marry you or your sister!

Sorry, Lucillebluth -- I meant my response to Huntersburg. As for a sister, no, I'm sorry it's only me. But I am indeed a domestic goddess. I'm also make a fabulous martini, I bake pies, and I can my own tomatoes. All this and I'm still a serious city girl. My husband is one lucky guy...

Yes, I got it, thank you.

Hunters burg and Lucille are the same person.

columbiacounty has a window in his shower.

and here is our crazy one eyed uncle. just fyi, do not follow him to his study, there absolutely no candy or neat toys there. he just wants to show you his 9th district congressman.

ok ok, nextera. but what's your bra size?

You are correct, Huntersburg is in Anthony Weiner's district. Good catch.

Remember this:
http://streeteasy.com/nyc/talk/discussion/11160-do-you-really-need-a-washing-machine-in-apt-if-you-have-kids
w67thstreet
about 2 years ago
only if you want to be clean.....

I remember when my daughter didn't have a bowel movement for 1 week.... long story short... when it "happened" at nite and let's just say they don't make diapers big enough :) .... it was all hands on deck kind of morning.... my wife kept saying "thank god" for the W/D... and we had just moved from an apartment w/ washers on every floor to one in the apt.....

Now that I'm back from selling:

Apartments,
Used Cars,
Laundry Services,
My Apartment,

LOL!

NextEra: Does anyone still Iron sheets?? Most people I know are using that time to see a movie, Broadway show, go to dinner, a museum. That's why most people live in the city, not to iron sheets. Heck you can do that in Peoria.

Matt: Stuff those machines more fully and you'll cut down on the number of loads. Also try stretching out the linen washing cycle to 10 days, you won't know the difference.

"Matt: Stuff those machines more fully and you'll cut down on the number of loads. Also try stretching out the linen washing cycle to 10 days, you won't know the difference."

An over-stuffed machine does not wash the clothes adequately.

And I will not "stretch" the linen washing cycle because I'm a civilized human being.

Suppose it must be handy when you don't have help? And by "help" I mean someone you pay to do that kind of menial shit for you. Like I have a dishwasher. I don't know how to turn it on. Because I don't need to.

You are 35 years old and you don't know how to use a dishwasher?

I'm sure if I had to I could learn. Domestic help keeps me from having to.

Do other people only use a washcloth once? Not that they take up a lot of space in the washer, but still!

It depends how dirty the users's face is.

I love the convenience of the in-apartment washer/dryer, and would have trouble going back.

"I'm specifically talking about doorman buildings where the laundry is picked up and dropped off in the lobby all folded and ready to put in a draw."

Not everyone has that... and for folks that do, you still have to deal lug the bags down, and then wait for the doorman to take 'em, then wait a couple days, and wait for the doorman to check them out back to you. Plus, remembering you needing something in that wash when its out...
To me, there is no substitute for throwing the dirty clothes right in.

In terms of time, its negligible. You aren't going anywhere. You aren't waiting for it. That's the point. You press the button when you feel like it, and don't have to worry about getting back right away so someone else doesn't use the machine. You do it on your schedule, not someone else's.

why do you have to make any complicated arrangements for the transport of the laundry between you and the place? they have delivery people. in the morning, call when you wake up, by the time coffee is ready the guy is at your door. get home before 7ish and call again they will bring it back. you have to tip, but they'll pick up and deliver. when i used mimi's on columbus the owner would bring the bag himself if all his delivery people had already left. lovely man (you don't have to tip the owner, just say thank you) why are you people lugging around your giant bags of laundry?

Well I have the best of both worlds.
I wash my colors at home and lug my 20lb bag of whites down the block.
Id rather lug than fold my 100 articles of whites.

And to the original point of this thread, if I stop using my washer dryer alltogether I can store unoften used clothing in them and use them as closets. :)

I'm surprised by how testy this post is. It's really just a matter of preference. Closet vs laundry. Doorman vs none. Location vs space. Sometimes you can't have both. Some people wash towels after every use; others wait a few weeks. Some would argue it's not good for dress shirts to be washed frequently; others wash after every wear. In NYC you have the spectrum of people washing their clothes in their bathtub to those that don't even touch their dirty clothes. I don't think it's a point for criticism or judgment. As long as you don't smell and your clothes are clean, I don't care :)

"why do you have to make any complicated arrangements for the transport of the laundry between you and the place? they have delivery people."

Who aren't servants...

"in the morning, call when you wake up, by the time coffee is ready the guy is at your door."

Never had someone who came within 20 minutes of call. Not to mention, having to remember first thing post alarm clock to call. Sorry, not for me.

"get home before 7ish and call again they will bring it back"

and when you get home after closing time?

You don't need to tell me how it works... I spent 3 years doing it. Never did my own, only sent out... and was still a pain in the ass.

"why are you people lugging around your giant bags of laundry? "

maybe they're the delivery people you love.

of course they aren't servants. they are delivery people and i tip them. if you get home after they close you can call first thing the following morning and get your unmentionables then.

"You don't need to tell me how it works... I spent 3 years doing it. Never did my own, only sent out... and was still a pain in the ass."

Here's how ours works:

On the way out the door we call and ask for a pick-up from the lobby.

Drop the bag off with the doorman.

Laundry is returned to the doorman within 24-48 hours.

Doorman rings as soon as it arrives and sends it up on the elevator. (That's where giving out good tips to the doorman at the holidays pays off.) If we're out when it arrives, we pick it up on the way in.

Is that a pain in the a**??

>Laundry is returned to the doorman within 24-48 hours.

Do they wash it 4-8 times before returning it?

"And I will not "stretch" the linen washing cycle because I'm a civilized human being."

I'm sorry, can I get a clarification here? What timeframe is the civilized linen washing cycle? Is this in the Code and I just missed it? Somebody help...

lucillebluth
about 17 hours ago
ignore this person
report abuse of course they aren't servants. they are delivery people and i tip them. if you get home after they close you can call first thing the following morning and get your unmentionables then.

if you can, go the servant route. only don't call them that. unless you live on the ues, west of park ave.

"Is that a pain in the a**??"

Of course not.

Now try doing it without a doorman, with the closest laundry service 10 blocks away.

I just leave my linens on my bed for three months or so, then throw them out and put new ones on. There's nothing like the crisp cool feel of new linen.

It's all about compromises. If I had a RS apt in mint condition at the Belnord or Apthorp, would I complain about the lack of laundry facilities. Nope. If I was paying 15,000 for a 3-bedroom at the Aire or Corner, I would demand vented, full-size W/D in apt.

Wow who knew you could have a buy vs rent debate turn into a laundry thread?
My preference for machines in my place is simple. My wife works on some weekend days and I don't. Before we bought a place(and had to send out laundry) she would come home and say,"what did you do today?" Having spent the entire day couch surfing and watching sports I would say,"ummm nothing really." Now i get to say, "I did laundry all day Sweetie".