Is it a horrible idea to dry two loads of different-colored clothing in the dryer at once?
If my clothes were all light or all dark I could do only one load a week to wash them all, but they’re not. I have to do two small loads a week, and I could easily put them both in the dryer at the same time. But I separate these clothes from each other before washing them for a reason! The colors might run, and I do have a few dark things where the dye has bled before. Will bad things happen to my clothes if I dry them all together?
Woman who’s been doing laundry for 45 years now checking in.
The biggest problem with trying to dry double loads is that the dryer drum is too full with two loads–it’s designed to hold, and to function best, with exactly one load, and if you fill it up too full, the wet clothes won’t be tossed around properly and will take, yup, twice as long to dry.
Also, permapress needs to be fluffed up in the dryer, so if you stuff the dryer totally full of two loads, the permapress may not come out non-wrinkled like it’s supposed to. You’ll end up with a double load of clean, dry, and weirdly wrinkled laundry. However, my son does this all the time and it doesn’t seem to faze him that his khakis constantly look like the dog has been using them for bedding. Chacun a son gout and all that.
If you’re just talking about a load of underwear and a load of t-shirts and jeans, there’s no particular reason why you shouldn’t dry them together, considerations of wrinkled-ness and public appearances aside. IME, different-colored lint isn’t an issue with much-washed ordinary clothes.
ETA: Have been on many family camping vacations, when Laundry Day entailed spending the afternoon at the campground laundromat, and I can attest to the fact that it’s perfectly possible to dry t-shirts, jeans, underwear, bath towels, and kitchen towels in the same load with no harm coming to any of it.
Colors that will run in the wash will streak in the dryer. Period. Remember, they’re still wet when you put them in. The more important issue is that nothing dries if it doesn’t have room to tumble properly; I will cram a washer full, but I’ll split the load for the drier; drying is cheap.