Like you, we had good laundry luck. We never did it on a first sea day, though, because then it was jammed up. We typically did ours after we got back on a port day, especially if we were a little early back.
All 6 functional washers and dryers were going every morning when I walked by at 4:45 on 7th floor. It was the most insane place I've ever seen! I waited in line for 90 minutes on the night we left Civitavecchia and decided that I might have better luck early in the morning. It's a good thing I am a happy morning person.