🚐 Van Life Essentials: My Must-Haves for Doing Laundry on the Road
These are my Van Life: Must-Haves for Doing Laundry in the RV! Let’s be real—laundry day doesn’t stop just because you live in an RV or travel full-time in a van. Whether you’re boondocking in the middle of nowhere or parked at an RV resort, doing laundry in an RV can be a challenge if you’re not prepared. But with the right tools and a solid van life laundry setup, keeping your clothes clean in a small space doesn’t have to be a hassle.
Over the years of full-time RV living in my Pleasure Way, I’ve figured out the best way to do laundry on the road—and which RV laundry essentials are actually worth bringing along (and which ones just take up space). From compact detergent sheets and wrinkle-release sprays to pet-friendly dryer sheets and drying hacks, I’m sharing all my RV laundry must-haves that make wash day on the road way easier.
So whether you’re just starting out with van life, or looking for RV laundry tips to upgrade your van life laundry essentials, this post will walk you through exactly how to do laundry in a van or RV—no matter where your wheels take you.
✅ Van Life Laundry Essentials Checklist:
This is a checklist of all my must have Van Life Essentials, Accessories & Optional Upgrades for doing laundry in the RV! If you’ve ever wondered if RVs have washers and dryers, the answer is that most of them do NOT. Especially if you’re like us, living in an RV exploring the Van Life, which brings a bigger question: how do you do laundry in an RV without a washer or dryer on the road? — That depends on lifestyle and location!
Sometimes we can go for weeks without doing laundry in the RV. While one time we ended up having to go back and wash our sheets the next morning — since we live with a lot of rescued furbabies we picked up on board, while working and traveling, exploring the world!
>> 🚐 TAKE A TOUR of My RV Van and see all the items mentioned below here ⬇️
Must-haves for Doing Laundry in the RV…
If you didn’t know we have two RVs, one is our RV van is a 2012-2013 Pleasure Way Excel TS (built on a Ford Chassis) for traveling and the other RV is our travel trailer, which is made for living stationary in an RV park (it NEVER moves).
We have all of the van life essentials to live, work, and travel in our van, along with 5 dogs and 1 cat! But, it has taken several years and many van life adventures to find, install and customize everything to fit our van life needs!
Keep in mind: we are always testing out ideas, seeing what works, what doesn’t, and trying new things. Also, this is our 3rd van, so we know every van (or RV Van, Travel Trailer, and Motorhome set up) is different!
These are all my Van Life Essentials and: Must Haves for doing laundry on the road:
- Laundry Bag
- Detergent (packets or sheets)
- Dryer Sheets (Pet Friendly)
- Lint Roller
- Down Wrinkle Release
- Clothes Line with Clips
- Stain Remover
>> SHOP all our Van Life Essentials in our RV STORE
🧺 Laundry Bag
A collapsible or hanging laundry bag is essential for keeping dirty clothes organized in a small RV space. Choose one with a drawstring or zip closure to contain odors and keep everything compact. Mesh bags are breathable and easy to carry to a laundromat, campground laundry room, or even outside for hand washing. Bonus points if it’s waterproof or has separate compartments for lights and darks.
🧼 Detergent (Packets or Sheets)
Traditional detergent jugs are bulky and messy—opt for space-saving detergent sheets or single-use pods. They’re lightweight, mess-free, and easy to store in tight RV cabinets. Plus, detergent sheets are eco-friendly and often biodegradable, making them great for RVers who care about reducing their footprint while boondocking or camping off-grid.
🧼 Stain Remover Stick or Spray
Spills and stains happen—especially when you’re active and outdoors. A small stain remover stick or travel-sized spray is compact and can save your clothes from permanent damage. Great for pre-treating items before heading to a laundromat.
🐾 Dryer Sheets (Pet Friendly)
Dryer sheets help reduce static and add a fresh scent to clothes, but if you travel with pets, make sure you choose pet-safe options. Some scents or chemicals can irritate sensitive skin (yours and your pets’). Budget-conscious RVers can often find affordable packs at Dollar Tree or similar discount stores, perfect for stocking up without taking up much space.
If possible, and traveling with pets, look for the Pet Hair Dryer Sheets; they do seem to trap the pet hair from dogs and cats more effectively than the average dryer sheets, from my experiments.
🧽 Lint Roller
When you live in a small space—especially with pets—lint and hair can accumulate fast. A lint roller is a quick fix for clothes, upholstery, and bedding. Choose a compact or refillable version that’s easy to stash in a drawer or cabinet. It’s a must-have before heading out or meeting up with people after days off-grid.
👕 Downy Wrinkle Release (or similar spray)
Ironing in an RV? Nope! A wrinkle-release spray is a game-changer. Just spritz it on wrinkled clothes, smooth them out, and let them hang for a few minutes. Perfect for travel days, remote work meetings, or casual nights out when you want to look fresh without needing a full-size iron and board.
🧦 Clothesline with Clips
Whether you’re hand washing clothes or saving money by air-drying, a compact clothesline is essential. Look for retractable lines or bungee-style cords with clips that can attach between trees, inside the RV shower, or across an awning. Many versions come with built-in clips or hooks so you don’t need to carry clothespins separately. Great for boondocking, sunny campsites, or drying swimsuits and towels after beach days.
>> SHOP all our Van Life Essentials in our RV STORE
Optional Upgrades (you might like to make…)
🧴 Fabric Softener Sheets or Beads
If you prefer a softer feel or fresher scent to your laundry, bring along compact options like scent beads or travel-sized fabric softener sheets. These take up little room and add comfort to your clothes and linens. We don’t use fabric softener, just laundry detergent and dryer sheets to help with static electricity and dog hair. But you might want to add this to your laundry list of van life essentials.
🧦 Mesh Laundry Bags for Delicates
Throwing your socks and delicates into a mesh laundry bag prevents them from getting lost or tangled, especially in communal washers and dryers. They’re also great for hand-washing small items in a basin.– We don’t have these or use them now, but we have in the past. I personally never can keep up with them between van trips.
🪣 Portable Washing Machine (Optional)
If you have the space, a manual or electric compact washing machine can be a game-changer for full-time RVers. These devices use minimal water and can handle light loads—perfect for boondocking or remote stays.
🪟 Drying Rack or Over-the-Door Hooks
Not every campground allows clotheslines. A foldable drying rack or over-the-door hooks give you indoor drying options without taking up much space. Use them in your shower, bathroom door, or over cabinet doors. — We use the back of seats, command hooks installed throughout the van, as well as, the curtain rod, all to hang any clothes that need drying.
📌 Van Life Laundry Tips for Buying & Packing: Clothing, Bedding, Washables, etc…
Purchase Patterns / Printed Fabrics
Purchase Patterns / Printed Fabrics – don’t show stains and easier to keep clean since I don’t have a washer/dryer in my RV van! Laundry is usually done once a week and we’d have to pull over somewhere like a laundry mat, rV Park or friends/family to do the laundry.
Nothing you need to iron!
Nothing you need to iron! There is no iron or ironing board. Try to buy fabrics that are okay to wear even with wrinkles! All my clothes go into drawers, so I have to purchase clothes that won’t wrinkle, don’t need an iron or any special treatment. If you do need to deal with wrinkles, try something like “wrinkle release spray” — I always keep this on board in case!
Nothing dry clean only!
Nothing dry clean only! Don’t waste space, time or money purchasing something you might wear once if you’re exploring van life (maybe not ever). This also goes for specialty fabrics like cashmere and wool etc…
Be careful buying shoes that use glues!
Be careful buying shoes that use glues! Mainly for ladies with heels or expensive boots etc.. what I’ve noticed is keeping say a pair of heels (for that once time out) that use glue for the soles can get HOT inside the van if you leave it off without any AC for a periof of time and that does do good things for glue or adhesives. Hot weather and heat can cause them to “un-glue” — just something to keep in mind I learned the hard way!
🧺 Final Thoughts on RV & Van Life Laundry Must-Haves
Laundry might not be the most glamorous part of RV or van life, but having the right tools and a solid routine can make a huge difference in how smoothly your days go. When space is limited and every inch counts, it’s all about packing smart, staying organized, and using multi-purpose or space-saving laundry gear.
Whether you’re washing clothes off-grid with a bucket and clothesline or hitting up the laundromat with your detergent sheets in hand, these essentials can save you time, space, and stress on the road. Trust me—once you’ve dialed in your RV laundry system, it becomes just another part of your travel lifestyle.
Have any favorite laundry hacks or RV laundry must-haves I missed? Drop them in the comments—I’d love to hear how you handle wash day while living tiny!
>> SHOP all our Van Life Essentials in our RV STORE
Don’t miss a thing!
Follow and stay social with @RVersity via Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Twitter (now X), YouTube! Also be sure to sign up for the RV Newsletter!
>> DOWNLOAD: My RV Essentials Checklist for all of these Must-Haves and More!
Get All My Van Life Essentials
Ultimate RV Checklist for Van Life: almost everything we keep in the RV van. All our Must-Have Essentials, Accessories & Optional Upgrades
- 🚐 Van Life Must Have Essentials for Driving Safe + Riding Comfy
- 🚐 Van Life: Must-Have RV Kitchen Essentials, Accessories & Upgrades
- 🚐 Van Life Bedroom Essentials: My Must-Haves & Upgrades Made
- 🚐 Van Life: My Must-Have RV Bathroom Essentials + Upgrades
- 🚐 Van Life Entertainment: Must-Haves for Watching TV in The RV
- 🚐 Van Life Essentials: My Must-Haves for Doing Laundry on the Road
- 🚐 Van Life: Storage Solutions, Ideas + RV Upgrades (Extra Space To Stowaway Non-Essentials)
- 🚐 What’s in My RV Closet? Van Life Wardrobe Essentials + Space-Saving Solutions
- 🚐 Van Life Pet Essentials: Must-Haves for RV Living (traveling with Dogs & Cats)
- 🚐 Van Life Hookup Essentials: Must-Have Electric, Water & Sewer Accessories for RV Living
