How to do Laundry
Did you know that the average American family does over 400 loads of laundry per year? With regular clothes, bedding, towels, and other items, these can add up to several hours per week spent cleaning your garments.Have you ever wondered how to do laundry more efficiently and save money and time? Here are some laundry tips that you can start using on your next load.
Try Wool Dryer Balls
Although you may be used to throwing a dryer sheet in for every load, these can be very wasteful and even harmful to the environment. There are many eco-friendly alternatives that will remove static and leave your clothes smelling fresh.
One of the most popular reusable alternatives is wool dryer balls. These come in sets, and you can choose how many to toss in with your load. They can be reused for hundreds of loads before you have to replace them.
If you miss the scent of your dryer sheets, you can still achieve the same effect with wool dryer balls. Spritz them with a light coating of your favorite essential oil to form any scent combination you want.
Use Less Detergent
When you wash your clothes with liquid detergent, you only need a couple of tablespoons of cleaner. Even if you feel the need to fill up the cup, the extra detergent could do more harm than good.
Before you start using less detergent, check if your washer is high efficiency. If so, the machine will operate better using much less liquid laundry detergent. You will save money and extend the life of your detergent by weeks or even months.
In addition, less detergent means that your clothes will not have any residue on them. When you wash your clothes with the recommended amount, they will still come out perfectly fresh and clean.
Hot or Cold Water?
The type of laundry that you wash can determine which type of water you use. Using the wrong water temperature could cause problems and even ruin certain fabrics if you are not careful.
For most clothes, you can get away with running them in cold water. You may even save money on your energy bill by using cold water for most of your laundry needs.
However, for items like bedding, you should stick to hot water. In addition, heavily stained clothing does best under hot water.
Knowing where your energy goes will help save money and the planet
Read Washing Instructions
Whenever you get a new item that you need to launder, it is essential that you read the washing instructions. These are located on the package or the tag and can give you the best method to preserve the garment.
Some fabrics may have written instructions, but others feature symbols if there is not enough room. Use a laundry reference guide to decode the symbols so you know how to wash your clothes.
The most common instructions you will see involve the temperature you should run your washer, or whether the garment needs to be dry cleaned.
Try this for a video tutorial on how to do laundry
Utilize Mesh Laundry Bags
If you have delicate clothing, such as lace or bras, then you should not put them in with all of your other clothes. This could cause rips and tears, reducing the lifespan of the garments.
A great solution, rather than washing them separately, is a mesh laundry bag. Most mesh bags are both washer and dryer safe.
You can buy these in all different sizes and place your sensitive items in the bag. They can still run with the rest of your clothes, but they have an extra layer of protection. Much like a laundry bags, there are also hat shapers that will help keep your one of kind hat collection in tip top shape.