Americans wash about 35 billion loads of laundry a year, according to research done by Proctor and Gamble. That’s a lot of laundry to check on.

However, some students have the capability to receive a text message informing them that their laundry cycle is done. The service is now available with the LaundryView Monitoring System.

The Mac-Gray Corporation, a laundry service provider, has developed a way of checking on the progress of laundry from any computer with Internet access.

LaundryView is an Internet application that allows you to monitor the status of washers and dryers in connected laundry rooms through a Web browser, according to Mac-Gray Corporation’s Web site.

The service is available at several universities across the country, including Bradley in Peoria and Columbia University in New York. In Champaign, Illini Tower, private certified housing at 409 E. Chalmers St., introduced the system for the convenience of its residents.

Bob Tuttle, representative for the Mac-Gray Corporation, said in a phone interview that his company has been providing laundry services to colleges and private companies for more than 40 years.

“In talking to the schools we service, we found that students were always looking for ways to manage their time better,” Tuttle said. “We developed LaundryView as a way to help with those time management issues.”

The LaundryView Monitoring System eliminates much of the guesswork that comes with doing laundry in the residence halls. The company Web site includes a weekly usage chart that details times when the machines are in high and low use, as well as each machine’s availability, including time left in the cycle.

Users can also set alerts via the Web site. The alerts can tell the user when their cycle is finished or when machines become available.

Tuttle said alerts can be transmitted via a variety of routes including e-mail and cell phone text message.

The system makes doing laundry much more convenient, said Holly Brune, sophomore in LAS. As a resident of Illini Tower since Fall 2004, Holly has experience with both the traditional and the LaundryView ways of doing her laundry.

“I usually check the Web site to see if machines are available before lugging my stuff all the way downstairs,” Brune said. “Sometimes before (using LaundryView) I would take everything down there just to sit around and wait for other people to be done with the machines.”

Denise Ide, sales and marketing director for Illini Tower said the system has been in place since Spring 2005, and residents have been very appreciative of the service.

“Because we have 16 stories, it’s so much easier for students to check the computer from their room to see how busy it is before taking everything downstairs,” Ide said.

Students use rechargeable cards to pay for laundry services. To see how the system works, visit http://demo.laundryview.com/.