Ek sit die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien voordat ek werk toe gaan.

That is a very common point of confusion.

In Afrikaans, sit can mean:

• to sit in the literal sense
• to put / place something somewhere, in everyday speech

So in Ek sit die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien, sit means I put or I place.

Examples:

• Ek sit die boek op die tafel. = I put the book on the table.
• Hy sit op die stoel. = He is sitting on the chair.

The meaning depends on whether there is an object being placed somewhere.

Wasgoed means laundry or washing.

It is often used like a collective noun, similar to English laundry, so it does not have to be plural even though it refers to multiple items of clothing.

So:

• vuil wasgoed = dirty laundry
• skoon wasgoed = clean laundry

A learner might expect something more like dirty clothes, but wasgoed is the natural Afrikaans word here.

Because die is the definite article the.

So:

• die vuil wasgoed = the dirty laundry
• die wasmasjien = the washing machine

Afrikaans uses die for:

• singular nouns
• plural nouns
• all grammatical genders

Unlike languages such as German or Dutch, Afrikaans does not change the definite article according to gender.

Afrikaans often uses in for both:

• in
• into

The exact meaning is understood from context.

So:

• Die klere is in die wasmasjien. = The clothes are in the washing machine.
• Ek sit die klere in die wasmasjien. = I put the clothes into the washing machine.

English makes a stronger distinction between in and into, but Afrikaans often does not.

Voordat means before.

In this sentence:

• voordat ek werk toe gaan = before I go to work

Yes, in many situations Afrikaans speakers also use voor in similar ways, especially in speech. But voordat is very clear and standard when introducing a clause.

Examples:

• Voordat ek eet, was ek my hande. = Before I eat, I wash my hands.
• Voor ek slaap, lees ek. = Before I sleep, I read.

Both can occur, but voordat is a very good form for learners to know.

Because voordat introduces a subordinate clause, and in Afrikaans subordinate clauses the verb typically goes to the end.

Compare:

Main clause:

• Ek gaan werk toe. = I am going to work.

Subordinate clause:

• ... voordat ek werk toe gaan. = ... before I go to work.

This verb-final pattern is one of the most important word-order rules in Afrikaans.

Because toe in this expression comes after the place or destination.

So Afrikaans says:

• huis toe = home
• skool toe = to school
• werk toe = to work

This is a fixed and very common pattern.

Examples:

• Ek gaan huis toe. = I am going home.
• Sy ry skool toe. = She drives to school.
• Ons stap werk toe. = We walk to work.

So werk toe gaan is the normal order.

Because werk toe is an idiomatic destination expression, and places used in this pattern often appear without the article.

So you usually say:

• Ek gaan werk toe.
• Hy is skool toe.
• Ons ry dorp toe.

It works a bit like a set phrase. You are not focusing on the work as a noun with an article; you are expressing destination.

Here gaan means the normal verb go.

So:

• voordat ek werk toe gaan = before I go to work

It is not the future helper gaan in a sentence like:

• Ek gaan môre werk. = I am going to work tomorrow.

In your sentence, werk toe gaan is a literal movement expression: going to work.

Yes, it could.

The original sentence is:

• Ek sit die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien voordat ek werk toe gaan.

You can also say:

• Voordat ek werk toe gaan, sit ek die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien.

Both are correct. The difference is mainly emphasis:

• starting with Ek sit... focuses first on the action
• starting with Voordat... emphasizes the time relationship first

Notice that when the voordat clause comes first, the main clause shows inversion:

• ..., sit ek ... not
• ..., ek sit ...

Afrikaans generally does not use a helper like English do in ordinary positive statements.

English:

• I do put the dirty laundry in the washing machine.

Afrikaans would usually just say:

• Ek sit die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien.

Afrikaans is usually more direct here and simply uses the main verb.

Normally, no. Wasmasjien is written as one word.

Afrikaans, like Dutch and German, very often forms compound nouns as single words.

So:

• was = wash
• masjien = machine
• wasmasjien = washing machine

Other examples:

• skooltas = school bag
• tafeldoek = tablecloth
• handskoene = gloves

This is a very common spelling pattern in Afrikaans.

Yes, it is natural and idiomatic.

It sounds like something someone would really say in daily life:
Ek sit die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien voordat ek werk toe gaan.

A few small variations are also possible, for example:

• Ek gooi die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien voordat ek werk toe gaan.
• Voor ek werk toe gaan, sit ek die vuil wasgoed in die wasmasjien.

But your original sentence is perfectly normal Afrikaans.