The Decline of the American Laundromat • Hacker News Board

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#101

Post by EADGBE » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 1:57 PM UTC

arethuza wrote: post #85

Sleeep wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Plenty of apartments in the US have washing machines, I've lived in several apartments and all had a washing machine[1]. As for the reason why many don't - historical (they weren't designed when household washing machines didn't exist and were never retrofitted), and slumlords not wanting to manage another appliance. Add to that nowadays Americans don't do much air drying of their clothes so a washer without a dryer…

"Adding a dryer is very costly" Condenser dryers are pretty easy to install - all you need is an electrical outlet.

Very cool that these exists. I had no idea. But I'm just your typical stupid American.

However, it looks like they're about 3x the cost of a vented dryer.

And smaller capacity than vented ones.

> Ventless dryers also take longer to get your clothes dry. A vented dryer might finish a Normal load in about 45-50 minutes, but a condenser or heat pump dryer could run for an hour and a half. Want to dry a bulky blanket or comforter? You could be waiting more than three hours.

http://laundry.reviewed.com/features/everything-you-need-to-...

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#102

Post by ihaveajob » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 1:57 PM UTC

legulere wrote: post #84

dtech wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It might be the large US population of homeless people worsens this (especially in the bay area), as they have no better option than to leave their waste in public places.

At least according to Wikipedia, many European countries have a higher homeless rate than the US: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_homeless_...

The US is a big place, which averages away the extremes. In San Francisco, population 868k, there are about 10-12k homeless folks (http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/San-Francisco-homeless...), which puts it at over 1% homelessness. That's a tragic number for such a wealthy city.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#103

Post by mblack1968 » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 1:58 PM UTC

justinjlynn wrote: post #24

minikomi wrote: post #5

I live in Japan where Laundromats are often attached to Public Baths. I love going to my local, taking a soak while the load runs, and then coming out and having a coffee while my clothes go through the drier. Not much to add.. just felt like professing my love for that Sunday arvo ritual.

That sounds quite nice. I wonder why public baths never really took off in the States. In the records I can find, they seem to have a less than savoury perception.

We have "public baths". They are usually called "YMCA's" and they charge a fee. There are saunas and steam rooms and chlorinated swimming pools at most YMCA facilities.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#104

Post by nradov » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:01 PM UTC

Veratyr wrote: post #37

greggman wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed but this isn't just a USA thing. Many countries have a culture not taking care of public places. All of Europe comes to mind. As does China.

There are other places yes but out of the countries I've visited, the US is definitely one of the worst. All the Europe I've visited (Paris, Berlin, Zurich, Istanbul, south-eastern region of Russia) has been about as well kept as Australia, my home country. Aside from Malaysia, I can't think of a country that's worse than the US. Even the (disclaimer: nicer, less impoverished) parts of Mexico I've visited were arguab…

In terms of litter, the Dominican Republic is far worse than the USA. Major DR roads are lined with unbroken mounds of trash.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#105

Post by jccalhoun » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:04 PM UTC

gpvos wrote: post #64

I really don't see why more laundromats haven't added cafés and internet/wifi, or even small eateries. Or conversely, some cafés haven't added small laundromats.

The laundromat I used in grad school was owned by Korean immigrants. They opened up a little restaurant that became popular enough that when I went in to do laundry one day during the summer they told me they weren't running the laundromat during the summer.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#106

Post by simonsarris » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:04 PM UTC

brightball wrote: post #88

I live in a house with a washer and dryer. After we had our first child there was a stretch where my wife and I were both sick for about 2 weeks and the laundry ended up building up significantly. We had probably 10 loads worth to catch up on and it was going to take all of at least one day, maybe two. Threw it all in the car, went to the laundromat and had it done in 2 hours. Laundromat's are now how I explain "the…

> Laundromat's are now how I explain "the cloud" to non-technical people.

That is quite brilliant analogy. I always used "printing something off at Staples/Fedex" - no need to own a printer, deal with buying reams of paper and ink cartridges if you do not print often, you use the cloud printer of the Fedex locale to get the single spot job done.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#107

Post by fundabulousrIII » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:05 PM UTC

dtech wrote: post #38

Veratyr wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are other places yes but out of the countries I've visited, the US is definitely one of the worst. All the Europe I've visited (Paris, Berlin, Zurich, Istanbul, south-eastern region of Russia) has been about as well kept as Australia, my home country. Aside from Malaysia, I can't think of a country that's worse than the US. Even the (disclaimer: nicer, less impoverished) parts of Mexico I've visited were arguab…

It might be the large US population of homeless people worsens this (especially in the bay area), as they have no better option than to leave their waste in public places.

Years ago I travelled through norcal without stopping in to SF. Started in Crescent City, traversed into Oregon, past Shasta region and the farthest south I achieved was to Santa Rosa. Headed east to Oroville and then back to Crescent City to catch my prop flight to SF for the flight east.

Wonderful personal trip on the winding mountain roads and experiencing the abrupt climate|vista changes in an hour+ from pacific coast to desert. Morning 50 degrees, afternoon 80+.

It was my first time in norcal and the thing that shocked me the most (reading my emails to friends from that time) was the filth, poverty and mental illness in the towns and cities.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#108

Post by arethuza » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:06 PM UTC

EADGBE wrote: post #101

arethuza wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Adding a dryer is very costly" Condenser dryers are pretty easy to install - all you need is an electrical outlet.

Very cool that these exists. I had no idea. But I'm just your typical stupid American. However, it looks like they're about 3x the cost of a vented dryer. And smaller capacity than vented ones. > Ventless dryers also take longer to get your clothes dry. A vented dryer might finish a Normal load in about 45-50 minutes, but a condenser or heat pump dryer could run for an hour and a half. Want to dry a bulky blanket or…

I've never waited 3 hours for our dryer to dry anything - in fact even a heavy blanket doesn't take more than an hour.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#109

Post by Declanomous » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:10 PM UTC

martinald wrote: post #67

csydas wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many of the apartments aren't designed well for such a set up, or have other strict noise rules, concerns over water problems and maintenance costs, or just simply the landlord doesn't like the idea of the units having the machines as even with more modern washers with good locks/seals, people still manage to misuse them and cause water damage. Or they just don't want to manage the maintenance for such units. It's al…

I've lived in 17th Century buildings in the UK that have all for washing machines - I doubt the apartments there had washing machines in mind when they were built :)

You guys also put your washing machine in the kitchen. In the US the washing machine goes in a different room, which means you have to run a lot more plumbing. Combination machines are also extremely rare, and people don't really air dry clothes much, so you need space for both a washer and dryer.

Plus a unit with an in-unit washer and dryer generally costs more than a similarly sized unit, and part of that space is taken up by a washer/dryer.

Re: The Decline of the American Laundromat

#110

Post by EADGBE » Tue, Aug 01, 2017, 2:11 PM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #15

freetime2 wrote: post #7

From the article: Laundromats’ margins are further thinning as the price of water and sewage services have risen across the country. Utilities make up by far the heftiest of Lavanderia’s expenses, costing over $100,000 each year. Add to that the roughly $30,000 Tillman spends fixing his aging washers and dryers, and the laundromat is left with about $140,000 of profit each year, a number that continues to dwindle. Fo…

Solar water heating seems like a no-brainer for a laundromat. Most are in strip malls or freestanding box-type buildings with a lot of flat open roof space. Article also didn't seem to mention cost of emplying attendants. Never seen an unattended laundromat -- people need help with jammed coins, etc. and to prevent vandalism.

Yeah, they give you an un-answered phone number to call in case of a jam.