Most newer communities have washer/dryer hook-up in each apartment but there are still many communities who still use the “laundry room” style communal system. For some residents this is the most frustrating (or maybe “interesting”) part of living in an apartment community. I recently came across a thread on one of my favorite social media sites where they were discussing their experiences in the apartment laundry room. Reading their antidotes, stories, complaints, and revenge plots had me thinking... What policies do communities have in place to keep the peace on the Battlefield Washeteria? I’m going to share some of the comments below and maybe offer a little peace keeping advice.

“When I lived in an apartment complex with communal laundry I would set my alarm for 2am and do my laundry then and just sit and guard it. So many weird people all day and night. I never let my laundry linger. The one time I did it during the day someone took all mine out and threw theirs in as soon as I left so they'd get their clothes washed on my quarters.”  ~lustywench99

“Charged $2 to wash and $2 to dry. Smallish washers/driers and you could only pay by putting money on a laundry card through the office. I would just drive half hour to my parents and do laundry there.”  ~AustinRivers25

“Laundry is by far the worst thing about living in an apartment.[…]Once, some a**hat brought their dog in and put dog sh*t in the machines for some reason. After that, there were set laundry hours like (9am to 9pm) making it even more difficult to get a machine..”  ~professor-i-borg

“Last time I lived in a building with common laundry, my wife's cloth started to dissapear. A couple of months later one neighbour was wearing the exact same clothing that had gone missing, albeit, it was a bit small for her.”  ~XS4Me

“I set a timer when I was doing my laundry in the same scenario. Alarm goes off, I head down to switch my load. Lady is already using my machine and I find my laundry in the dryer. Which means she stopped the machine early. Maybe it was "good enough", but there was one machine that was empty next to mine...”  ~Deluxe_Flame

“That's exactly why I would pay the extra money to go to the nice laundromat that had WiFi. I'd get to do all my laundry at once, and I could watch it so no a**hole could try to steal my machine! The last apartment we lived in had 8 washers and 10 dryers, but only 2 or 3 of each worked at any given time...and there was no way to know which one was broken until you put in your money. Of course, there was no coin return, either, so you were out a dollar, and the office would pitch a fit if you made them repay you. Plus, they weren't maintained, so your clothes came out smelling funny, no matter how much fabric softener you used. That place sucked.” ~ jhonotan1

“I also set a timer and am prompt at taking them out. I'll give people some time if the dryer is full and finished What irks me though, is when people take their laundry out one by one to fold them slowly instead of using the table or just taking the two minutes to bring it back to their apartment and fold .Our complex has only two washers and dryers per floor and half of them are always broken.”  ~Purifiedx

“Had a woman who would leave her laundry there for a week. Just left it in the dryer after she was done. Of course, we'd move it to the table. She'd go in, pick out the outfit she needed for the day, and leave the rest there.”  ~gdaman22

“Used to rent where this girl did the same thing in the only 4 coin opperated machibes. Instead, I would just open the door of two of them and let her time run out with her clothes sitting in water or the dryers. After a couple weeks of conditioning her, she started only using 2 machines on the left because the two right machines as she put it "would stop running midcycle all the time".”  ~GamingWithBilly

Given all of that, it’s probably a good idea to have a few rules of engagement in place at your community to help avoid angry tenants who would have all day to wait for someone else to move their laundry. Here are a few of my suggestions. Let me know if you think they would work for you!

1.  Know the amount of time your washers/dryers take. Post a sign letting everyone know when their laundry can be expected to be finished so that those who want to set a timer and come back have a reasonable idea of how long they can be away.
2. Provide wifi in the Laundry Room to help encourage residents to stay with their laundry.
3. Hang empty baskets above each washer/dryer so if someone has to move someone else’s clothes, they have a place to put them.
4. Don’t have restrictive hours. Some residents may prefer to launder in the middle of the night. You can put a lock on the door with a code that you only provide to residents.
5. Have a laundry policy in place (for when a resident seemingly abandons their clothing). Possibly a pick-up place for them if you have had to remove their laundry for them.
6. Use only washers/dryers that lock to avoid someone removing clothes and washing their own clothing using someone’s coins.
7.  Keep your machines in working order and make repairs promptly.

So there you have it! Any thoughts or added suggestions are greatly appreciated! End the War in the Laundry Room!