I haven't bought an ironing board since the 70's. Are they smaller than they used to be? Mine is 53" wide and washed fabric is seldom more than 42" so ironing yardage has never been any kind of problem for me unless it's the wide backing fabric. One main reason I prewash is to remove the chemicals, so I don't add new ones like starch when I iron. A spritz of water and a hot iron do just fine on any wrinkles.