*For anyone who wants to be a bit more proactive with their household chores or is perhaps moving out of their parent’s home for the first time, doing laundry needn’t be a scary or unpleasant task! As much as we may dislike it, we all need to do laundry, but once you know the right tips and tricks then laundry doesn’t seem so bad at all. We’ll provide some useful hints for how you can complete your laundry without running into any major drama and having to buy a whole new set of clothes!
Always read the clothing tags
Usually found on the back of your jeans or T-shirt, clothing tags provide all the info you need to wash, dry, and iron your garment. With this info, you’ll know what temperature to wash it, if it is dry clean only, whether it can go in a tumble dryer, and even if it can be ironed at all. Don’t throw all your clothing into the washing machine without first checking the label, and once you’ll know then you won’t forget for the future.
Separate the colored and white laundry
It’s no fun for your brand new white t-shirt to turn a weird color just because you washed your green socks and red hoodie as well! New clothing, in particular, is often prone to color bleeding when washed, which means that the dyes can seep out a little bit and blend into your white laundry. Unfortunately, it often gets stuck like this, so it’s best to avoid it happening by doing a separate wash for colored items and another for your whites.
Using different types of detergent
There are definitely a lot of options to choose from when it comes to detergent! Powder is usually the cheapest but isn’t as good at dissolving in cold water. Liquid detergents can vary in price depending on the brand but are a safe option for all types of clothing and temperatures, as well as removing tough stains. Laundry pods, sometimes called discs or caps, are pretty useful because you won’t need to measure out anything but simply throw them into the washing machine on top of your laundry. If you want your clothing smelling really fresh and soft, then use fabric softener, but it’s not a must to have this.
Check the water temperature
Although the aforementioned clothing tags will tell you the maximum temperature at which to wash your clothing, it’s also good to know a few more hints. Hot temperatures are good for socks, underwear, towels, and bedding in order to really remove the dirt, sweat, grease, and any potential germs lurking there. If you have anything made out of wool, silk or another delicate material, then it’s best washed on a cold setting or even hand-washed because hot water often shrinks or ruins these delicate materials. For typical items like t-shirts, jeans, and hoodies, then any mild temperature is fine. Most modern washing machines even have settings for types of laundry, but read this CNET guide for help on choosing washing machine settings.
Some laundry can last a while without being washed
It’s true that t-shirts, underwear, socks and gym gear need to be washed after every use, especially on a hot day. However, buttoned shirts can often go at least two wears if the fit isn’t too close and if it was only worn for short time. Jeans can go roughly a week without being washed, as denim manufacturers like Levi’s often state that it’s better for the material to go longer without washing! Towels can go about 4-5 days and bedding can be washed around every 2 weeks.
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