Every laundry basket is different, and each item of clothing has its own weight. But it’s good to know what a typical load of laundry is, so you don’t overload your washer and risk damaging the machine or washing your clothes less thoroughly.
How Do You Measure Laundry Weight?
Ideally, you should weigh a load before washing it to get a clear picture of how much it weighs. However, this isn’t always possible. Moreover, weighing your laundry each time isn’t an efficient or convenient way of measuring laundry weight.
Instead, there are some simple steps you can follow to find out how much a laundry load weighs. First, you need to weigh yourself without holding the laundry wash and fold. Then, you need to weigh yourself again while holding the laundry. Subtract the second weight from the first to get the laundry’s weight.
A washing machine’s load capacity is based on the total dry weight of the laundry. However, this isn’t necessarily an accurate figure for a specific load of laundry because the weight of dry laundry can increase when wet. This is particularly true of large items such as comforters and bedspreads that are not washed regularly and therefore have a high moisture content.
To help, we’ve put together a chart to show you what size of laundry equates to a small, medium/regular, and large load of laundry. This will help you choose a washing machine with the right load size for your laundry, and ensure you don’t overfill your washer.