Etiquette about washer/dryer usage in condo building?

I live in a 6 unit condo building, been here about 2.5 years. All but one of the units is single occupancy and there's no kids. We have 2 washes and dryers in our laundry room and it's normally no problem about getting a washer and dryer. However, one condo owner is married and his wife lives out of state due to a work relocation. She visits about every 6-8 weeks.

It seemed like whenever the wife paid a visit, the washers & dryers would be used a lot more than usual. At first I thought she might be doing his laundry, or maybe it was just my imagination. Then the condo treasurer (who gets the water bill) said that each time she visits he sees a huge spike in the water bill.

The problem is getting progressively worse. What was first kind of a joke and a minor inconvenience has become a pain. She was here for over a week at Thanksgiving and again monopolized the washers/dryers. Then, she was here over Christmas for nearly two weeks. The washer and dryer has been going nonstop. When I say she did probably 30 or 40 loads, it's not an exaggeration.

Her husband does massage therapy on the side. I suspect he leaves all of the towels for his wife to do as well as his laundry. And I think she also brings her dirty laundry to do here, since it's free.

I don't want my condo fee to go up because some person is monopolizing the washers/dryers causing the water bill to go way up and have to pay to replace a washer and dryer because they're wearing out.

We don't have regular condo meetings and the rest in the building seem apathetic about it. I'm thinking about the best way this could be handled. My first thought is that business related laundry be done off site and maybe assigning everyone a laundry day, with one open day that anyone could do laundry.

Any other thoughts?

I can see why this is annoying, but reading through it, what struck me most is you're not SURE about anything. You suspect, you think...but this isn't really good enough to spur others to action. This is probably why the other tenants are apathetic about it.

You also seem to be making some wild assumptions. If the landlord needs to buy a new washer and dryer, this cost wouldn't be passed on to tenants. He can write it off. The water bills are different.

The other issue is did you get a sense of how much money we're talking about? If it's $30 extra split six ways, I can see why it's not a hill to die on, especially if most of this is his clothes. If that's true, then the other monthly water bills are actually lower than they should be.

Where you might have a valid complaint, though, is this guy running a business in a private condo. Is the landlord aware he does this? I can't imagine him allowing it, and one of the biggest reasons is liability. Another one is it might even be illegal if the guy (and the unit) aren't properly licensed. Even someone who owns a private home can't just run a business from it without going through a lot of paperwork. To me, this is a much more valid issue.

If you are the ONLY one who cares about this, then let it go.

if it were a REAL problem, there would be others who also need to use the machines -- but it sounds like YOU are the only one who thinks there's a problem.

If there's an association, then call a meeting. There's no reason to go all extreme, psycho, and fascist about it -- such as COMMANDING everyone to do their laundry on a particular day.

Yes, something about not doing commercial laundry there, but using a laundromat would make sense.

Are there by-laws? Have you checked them?

Maybe a limit on how many loads per week -- though it's hard to see how to enforce it.

You could let him know where the nearby laundramats are -- IF a person has a bazillion loads, it's much easier, and much less time, to do them all at once, using many big machines.

Check the HOA rules for the building first, then if there's a rule regarding the laundry, cite it in a note and tape it to the offender's door. Also, try to figure when the wife is about to return, and do your own laundry just before that so you aren't overly inconvenienced. It sounds like it doesn't happen all that often, but the water fees going up because of one occupant isn't fair for the rest of you, either. Bring it up to someone who can take action.

If you have evidence and are SURE he is running a business in a residential building, then file a complaint (anonymous, if you must) that states he is using the condo laundry mat for his private massage business' laundry needs.

Asking for assigned laundry days is not a good idea. I would want NO ONE telling me I have to do my laundry on a specific day. I wash my laundry at my own convenience. Period.

First check your HOA contract/bylaws. There might be washer and dryer rules and regulations that each owner must follow. Talk with your neighbors before writing a letter to the HOA. Perhaps they feel the same as you do.

Try toavoid your last dry after 8:00 pm. It is just courtesy. If it is emergency, you can violate the rules sometimes. Othern than that, just try to finish everything before 9:00 pm, so you will not disturb your neighbor(s) who are trying to have a quiet and relaxing evening after a busy day at work :-)

If the wife is doing what you say she is, then challenge her to a fistfight.

just take stuff out when youre done using them so others can use it too

http://goo.gl/rmt2hA