Laundromat

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Nalani Hightower

At first, glance as I entered the laundromat in the Manoa shopping center I admit I was a little intimidated. First, this place doesn't take quarters period. I mean for the machines. You need to feed the machine with cash and it will give you back a plastic card (like a bank card) you use that to feed the machines. Btw if you didn't use all the $$$ on your card there is no one there to refund you. However, it's clean the machines are clean and new. Got chairs to sit in when waiting. No sinks to wash your hands but plenty of counters to fold your laundry. Everyone says it is affordable but I'll let you be the judge of that. As for me, I love the way my laundry turns out. 💓💕💓I will be back for sure.🤙🤙🤙💯😁

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Jennifer Lalani

I have been coming to this establishment for about a month and a half. Before I say any more, I have to confess that I havent been to a ton of laundromats. I found this particular one, along with a few others, though google (duh). I made a few stops to take a look inside and see the prices, what the vibe was, check prices, etc. When I came to Manoa Laundry the first time, I was perplexed by the payment system. I assumed youd just put money in the machines. I am also almost 50....enough said. So, the payment situation was a card that you loaded through an ATM like setup, then you use the card at each machine. The cards are reloadable and simple looking. The washers come in several different sizes. I think its 2, 3, 6 amd 10 loads? And the dryers have 2 sizes, i believe. The prices graduate with the sizes. I THINK they start at $4.50 and go to $6.50. The dryers are .50 for 8 minutes. Again, I dont have a good reference point for pricing, however it seemed to me that if you got a good wash and dry, it was fair (considering rent, power, water, maintenance, etc). I made it through my first visit feeling comfortable and knowing I would be doing my laundry here for the foreseeable future. It was clean, bright, the location is great with lots of parking in front. The space has a comfortable layout with seating at the entrance, snack machines, detergent machines, and lots of counter space for clothes folding. The machines seemed to work well and were pretty quick. The shopping center is adorable woth lots of fun little shops,shade, seating, and a CLEAN well stocked public restroom (with a code). There is a rear entrance with 2 loading spots, but all other parking is reserved and strictly enforced when the security is there. Incidentally, the lovely lady that does security is just a bonus to the experience. She is so fun and sassy! And stern so dont act dumb.
So, I knew where I was going the following week when it was laundry day. I thought I had things figured out amd walked in knowing I was one rung higher than the newbies. Imagine my surprise when I got to the reloading machine with a smug smirk, ready to show how seamlessly I understood the process, and the familiar screen was not allowing reloads. There was nnew matches next to them, with a note from the owner explaining that they were upgrading, followed by instructions to guide me through the process. There was also a phone number provided in case I had questions or problems, which was handy because I had both. The condensed version of the rest of my experience is that I couldn't figure out how to get my balance switched over from my old card to my new one.So I texted, the owner and immediately got a response back. She said that they had been having a lot of problems with the old system so it had all been replaced. The new system is far less clunky, and is actually quite impressive. But here is the thing that actually blew me away: Because I had been having a bit of a tough time figuring things out (totally my fault), the owner kindly put a credit for a couple of washes on my card. I walked away from that experience feeling so valued, and like my patronage was appreciated. It wasn't until the next time I came in that I saw the sign stating that manoa laundry was under new ownership. This made sense, as each week I noticed little improvements and details that elevated the space. It was already very clean and comfortable, but with each visit, it's a little brighter, a little cleaner, and so incredibly welcoming. The owners are often present.... cleaning, chatting, bringing depth and connection while supplying this community with an essential service. In all seriousness, i was struck with the realization, this place is so special because its a Small Business. In an age of box stores and cattle corral like check out lines, the difference is astonishing. There is life in this building. There is a feeling of care and pride among the patrons. In my opinion, the owners have done this right. Do your laundry here, and support local small business ❤️

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Lin Squee

Love the new ownership….. always maintaining property well and ensuring that it’s clean and all the machines are properly working. Even the fact that she took the time to explain the new card system is a big plus for me! Highly recommend to all our local people in the area!

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Rt 808

DO NOT GO HERE!!!! Save yourself the trouble
The washing machines do not fill up with water.
And most if the dryers are out of service.

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M W

Update 01/05/25
Only 4 large dryers are working today. I am going to be looking at going elsewhere to do my laundry.
I would update to 0 stars if possible.

Update 12/15/24
I got here today and more dryers are broken so maybe only half are working and some of those don't dry very well. Also it used to be slower in the early morning but will multiple washers and half of the dryers broken I am going to be looking elsewhere very soon for a new Laundromat. The excuse during COVID which was understandable is they couldn't get the parts. What's the new excuse? Rates were tripled with less access. Also good luck if you're disabled or partially like myself.
Google make a half or 1/4 star rating.

This place used to a great laundry mat but over the last year or maybe 2 it's going down hill fast. Every week more dryers are not working and now entire rows of washers were out of order. Some of the dryers have been out of orders for over a year. The excuse when called was we can't get the parts. Also rates were tripled or quadrupled about a year and a half ago over a couple of weeks and yet equipment is breaking down and not getting fixed or repaired? Seriously think about using a different Laundromat soon.

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Jamie M.

My washer at home recently broke down so I’ve needed to find a place to get everything done while I wait for repair/replacement, and honestly my experience with this place overall has been pretty great.

Pros: Plenty parking, 24/7 hours, one of the least creepy locations one could hope for, and apparently has a new owner that does actually seem to give a damn about fixing the broken machines!

Cons: It can get hot inside especially during the day (to be fair the dryers pump out a helluva lot of heat, oh and it’s Hawaii so what do you expect), still quite a few machines out of service but they do seem to be working on it, and I really think the card readers on the machines themselves could probably use an update and/or refresh as it is pretty tough to get them to read the card within the first few tries.

But guess what? It’s a public laundromat. 🤷‍♂️

With that in mind, five stars. Keep working on fixing the machines/readers, and we’re golden. Thank you for being here, it has made my life easier and I very much appreciate that. 🙏

Edit: Split the sections up to avoid the whole wall-of-text issue ✅

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Robert Matthews

Great washers and dryers you have to purchase a card to pay with.

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Michael Savage

Always a relief they are there..clean, respectful, convenient and dependable to do a great job..all machines are well maintained so no worry about a bad one in the mix! I work nights so they keep perfect hours...24 open! Everything is self explanatory by reading the signs making it easy to operate...There is the thing about the guy doing his whole business there at once..he does not respect others, loads all machines slowly seprating as he goes..not starting any until they are all loaded. NOT RIGHT..DISRESPECTFUL...BUT Takes all kinds.. i just come back later! Thank you!

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J A

This place is Terrible. They don’t have a sink, 50% of their machine doesn’t work. I lost about $8.00 switching machines because one of them, the soap dispenser wasn’t working. The cheapest and smallest machine here is $4.20. It’s so hot inside, there no carts to make it convenient for their patrons to transport clothes from the washer to the dryer and the ceiling it’s disgustingly filled with dust which is def a fire hazard. Who ever owns this dump doe not care at all! This place is so terrible.

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Nahiku

Super chill spot. Easy to use. Took me a bit to find bc it's not on the outside of that shopping area but def coming back here