Learning how to do laundry is not difficult. Today’s fabrics, detergents, and machines take most of the mystery and mistakes out of the process. Follow these 10 basic steps for washable clothes and you’ll have clean laundry to wear and use tomorrow.
Before you get started, however, determine if your clothes really need to be washed. You’ll save time and money if you follow these laundry hacks to stay on top of laundry.
1 Read the Labels
Check the care labels on your garments and linens. They will tell you whether or not an item can be machine washed. Also, every type of fabric has properties that determine how it reacts to heat, water, and cleaning solvents:
Care of Cotton Fabrics
Care of Synthetic Fabrics
Care of Wool Fabrics
Place all clothes that are labeled “wash separately” or “hand wash” into separate piles. If the label says, “dry clean only,” believe it and place it in a bag to take to the dry cleaner. There’s no need to risk damaging any special fabrics by trying to save time or money and tossing them in the washer. In the future, try to avoid buying delicate items if you prefer not to deal with special laundry care.
2 Sort
Start by sorting the laundry by color:
- Whites, pastels, light grays, and white background prints will go in one pile.
- Deep colored clothes—black, red, navy, brown, dark gray—go in another pile.
- Heavily soiled clothes should be washed separately.
3 Sort Again
Sort each pile one more time by type of fabric. For instance, in the whites pile, separate towels, and sheets from apparel. In the dark colors, separate t-shirts and jeans from lighter weight items like blouses and dress shirts.Washing by fabric type allows you to use different water temperatures and keeps drying cycles simple. To reduce lint, never wash lint producing fabrics and lint attracting fabrics together!If there are not enough items for a full washer load of each type of fabric and you are in a hurry, you can wash all items of each color together. Just be sure to choose the washer cycle to fit the most delicate garments in the load.
4 Pick a Detergent
Select an all-purpose laundry detergent. Read the directions to determine how much to use based on the size of the load.If your clothes have stains, pre-treat them before washing so it doesn’t set in. Simply apply a stain remover or rub in a bit of laundry detergent.Add the detergent to the washer drum or dispenser before loading it. This will prevent residue on your clothing.
5 Pick a Water Temperature and Cycle
Unless your clothing is caked with dirt and heavily stained, washing in cold water will serve your needs and prevent most laundry disasters. The exception is cotton underwear and bedsheets that need hot water to remove body oil. Bed linens and towels need to be washed at the highest recommended temperature at least every other wash to sanitize them.No matter the temperature, always rinse in cold water. You will also want to choose the best washer cycle for the fabrics in the load. The “normal” cycle will be fine for most loads, but you may also need to use “permanent press” or “delicate” for certain fabrics. “Heavy-duty” is great for articles like jeans and towels.
6 Final Check
Take a bit of time to double-check everything before you load the washer. This will save you from any last-minute mistakes. Look for any stains and pretreat them. Certain types of stains require special techniques to remove them, while many can be handled with a spot treatment. There’s also a proper approach for mystery stains when you’re not sure what caused it. Also, check that all pockets are empty—no tissues or paper, either—to prevent disasters. Remove any accessories such as belts and jewelry. Close all zippers, VELCRO, and buttons to prevent them from catching the fabrics.
7 Load the Washer
Load items into the washer one at a time, making sure they are not in a wad. Do not cram the washer too full. The clothes need room to move about in the water. To protect fabric finishes and reduce the “washed out” look, turn knitted items, corduroy, textured fabric, and dark colors inside out.
8 Unload the Washer
Promptly remove wet laundry from the washer to lessen wrinkles and prevent mildew. Hang items to air dry, lay flat to dry, or place them in the dryer.
9 Load the Dryer
If you did not separate loads by fabric type when washing, do it now before placing items in the dryer. It’s important to dry all lightweight items together and all heavy fabric items together and choose the correct dryer cycle for each. This will help prevent shrinking and protect your clothing. There are many good reasons why you might consider line drying your laundry. Chief among those are saving energy (and money) and less damage to your clothes. Not everyone can do this, though, because of space and weather restrictions. If you are able, be sure to get a few tips for hanging clothes on the line.
10 Hang or Fold and Store
As soon as your clothes are dry, you’ll want to take care of them right away. Hang or fold each piece as it comes out of the dryer to prevent wrinkling. And, of course, iron if you must. As soon as possible, return clothes and linens to the proper closet or drawer.
Final Tips
Mistakes happen. Everyone makes them but here’s some help to save the day…or your favorite shirt.
- Save a Shrunken Sweater
- Remove Dye Bleeding
- Save a Iron-Scorched Garment
Laundry is much less overwhelming if you do it frequently. If you let a mountain of dirty laundry accumulate, it can become scary. It may feel like a hassle to go to the laundromat, so find ways to make the trip better like using the time to read, relax, and enjoy the scent of your fresh laundry.
