More info about doing laundry than you know and maybe want to know

[Muse]

Was curious to know if I should really turn my clothes inside out before washing and encountered this 20+ minute treatment covering "all the bases" so to speak. OMG! Stain removal, different fabrics, deciphering laundry tags, how to dry, things to do and avoid, etc....

It's not sexy but it's pretty thorough

I knew laundry could get complicated but didn't know the extent of it.

 

[lxskllr]

I'm 43 seconds in, and it's already too much work. I separate my laundry by "clean" and "dirty". I don't bother washing the clean stuff. All the dirty goes the machine at normal duty, warm wash, and one cold rinse. It then gets hung on a line to dry. Done.

 

[Muse]

I'm 43 seconds in, and it's already too much work. I separate my laundry by "clean" and "dirty". I don't bother washing the clean stuff. All the dirty goes the machine at normal duty, warm wash, and one cold rinse. It then gets hung on a line to dry. Done.

There's a lot to be said for keeping things simple for sure.

 

[BoomerD]

I've been the laundry bitch in our household for nearly 40 years...except when I was working out of town, or working more than 50 hours per week. I'm a very good laundry bitch...I sort colors by light and dark, and even by fabric type and water temp. White clothes are the only things that get washed in HOT water, and even some of those get cold or warm water. I use chlorine bleach for white clothes...but some things aren't "chlorine friendly, so they get sorted out before I nuke stuff.

 

[GodisanAtheist]

I always knew I was lazy but I am straight up doing less than bare minimum

If clothes dirty, clothes go in hamper (Three hampers, one for wife and I, two for the kids).

Once a week, hamper clothes goes in laundry machine.

Laundry machine run at "normal" setting with a half filled detergent cup.

Laundry then goes to dryer, run at normal.

Laundry then goes back into the hamper from which it came.

Hamper goes back to the room from which it came.

Everyone sorts and folds their own God damn laundry to their own specifications and puts it in whatever clothing storage system is available to them.

No sorting, no pre-treating, no nothing.

 

[sdifox]

Wash cloths? You guys don't just wear once and donate like I do?

 

[Greenman]

I haven't done laundry in decades.

 

[biostud]

My wife does the laundries at our home

 

[Charmonium]

I use the 'can it stand on its own' test for what needs washing.

Then, I shoot it, just in case it has come to life in the interim.

If it doesn't bleed, it gets washed. If it does, I burn it . . . with fire.

edit: seriously though, I really don't like holey clothes, so . . . no shooting.

I don't think I own anything that's pure white. Not even vaguely beige. I much prefer colors, even for undies (wink, wink ladies )

Everything gets washed together on warm with 2 warm rinses. So far, so good. No rashes or any other 'contact' issues with any of my clothes.

Just don't do this with wool - if anyone actually owns any woolen casual clothes. I don't touch the stuff. Way too itchy.

 

[Muse]

I've been the laundry bitch in our household for nearly 40 years...except when I was working out of town, or working more than 50 hours per week. I'm a very good laundry bitch...I sort colors by light and dark, and even by fabric type and water temp. White clothes are the only things that get washed in HOT water, and even some of those get cold or warm water. I use chlorine bleach for white clothes...but some things aren't "chlorine friendly, so they get sorted out before I nuke stuff.

I stopped using chlorine bleach on whites and started using oxygen bleach probably over 15 years ago. It does a pretty good job at keeping my whites from getting grey. I think it's probably easier on the fibers, and of course it's less toxic. I have always used the stuff they sell at Costco, Oxyclean. I add some liquid laundry soap too. I do a normal pretty hot cycle and leave the lid up (top loader), so the machine stops before the first drain cycle. I let it sit like that preferably overnight for a protracted soak in the juice. After the long soak, I usually set the machine back for another agitation cycle, let it drain and when it prepares to fill with cold rinse water I reset the machine's controls to make it think it's filling for a cold wash. Thus, I get an extra rinse cycle (it's an old Sears washer and it doesn't have that option built in). I almost always work in an extra rinse. I'm good with water conservation, but do this anyway because I want real clean clothes less soap residue in them.

My dryer gets occasional use but usually I just line dry.

I bought this:

Sodium Percarbonate Powder 99% Purity - Oxygen Bleach, Hydrogen Peroxide Release Cleaner for Laundry, Dishwasher, Deodorizing & Stain Removal, Multi-Surface Use, Color-Safe (9 lbs)​

It presumably can be used like the Oxyclean they sell at Costco and is less expensive. I figure to try it for whitening when my Oxyclean runs out.

 

[Muse]

Wash cloths? You guys don't just wear once and donate like I do?

Dude, you're supposed to wash new clothes before you wear them.

 

[IBMJunkman]

I turn printed T-shirts inside-out. I read somewhere it help to preserve the printing. Especially in the dryer.

 

[Brainonska511]

That's way too much work for laundry.

I'll turn tshirts inside out to protect the print, and I'll do towels/sheets separate from regular clothes, but that's it.

When we had more space in our last place and could store two bins, we would also split socks/athletic clothes/underwear into a separate load, but that was only made easy by the two bins. Not digging through a bin to properly sort stuff...

 

[sdifox]

Dude, you're supposed to wash new clothes before you wear them.

Let me guess, you are one of those hypochondriacs that washes everything before use, including electronics.

 

[Muse]

Let me guess, you are one of those hypochondriacs that washes everything before use, including electronics.

Dickface strikes again. I don't have to guess.

I cook with garlic frequently. I am no chick magnet.

Obviously

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

My household has a natural selection mindset to home good ownership. If it cannot survive a dishwasher on auto setting, or the washer on cold, dryer on auto, it doesn't belong in the home.

 

[nakedfrog]

My household has a natural selection mindset to home good ownership. If it cannot survive a dishwasher on auto setting, or the washer on cold, dryer on auto, it doesn't belong in the home.

Yeah, I have garments with outlandish claims on them too.
YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME, SHIRT!
I don't own a washing machine so I can hand wash garments either*

*I do actually hand-wash some garments because I also like to look like a fabulous bitch sometimes, occasional sacrifices are acceptable