Sorting Laundry
When you’re faced with laundry day, it’s tempting to just shove everything you possibly can into the washer and hope for the best. But proper sorting beforehand is easier than you think and can help the clothes you love most look better for longer. Here are a few low-stress ways to go about it.
Sorting laundry by color
White fabrics and dark fabrics go great together on your body, but not so much in the washer. You should separate whites from colors. Unstable dyes, especially in reds and dark-wash jeans, can cause stains or turn a white tee that sickly gray in just one wash. In fact, most colored fabrics contain a combination of dyes, some of which are bound to transfer in the water.
Common causes of dye transfer:
- Dyes transfer in the first few washes due to the method of dye application
- Lengthy direct contact between fabrics, for instance they’re damp in the laundry basket
- Overloading the washer, or a high concentration of dyes in a low-water or HE machine
Sorting laundry by type
You don’t have to go crazy on this one. Just think about your heavy-duty bath towels washing around with that new beaded top you love. Things can go awry, right? Also, some things take longer to dry than others. So wash towels and linens last. That way, they’re not the bottleneck to your well-run laundry schedule. Also, if you have an item that’s a new kind of fabric or looks a bit delicate, check the label to see if it has temperature restrictions.
Think about the following categories:
- Towels/linens
- Clothing
- Delicates
Washing clothes inside out
There’s a lot of movement in your washer, and things rub together. Fabric pilling can happen when tufts of fabric rub free and then clump together again. Turning things inside out can save some of the most pilling-prone gear (wool, fleece), plus it can prevent fabric fading. So things last longer.
A few last checks
No one forgets the first time they wash a pair of jeans with a wad of tissue paper inside the pocket. Here are a few last checks to make sure nothing gets in that will snag in your wash.
- Check pockets for tissues, change, etc.
- Close all zippers to avoid snagging
- Ladies: Put bras in a separate wash bag to protect straps
See, that wasn’t so bad. As a last resort, remember that labels are your friend. When in doubt, check there first. And click here for our handy Laundry Symbol Guide.
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Tips & Tricks
Many stains are more likely to be removed entirely if soaked in cold water before it has had time to set.
If in doubt, test your color garment for colorfastness – apply warm water to an inconspicuous part (inside of the hem, for instance), then press this part with a warm iron between two pieces of white cloth.
To protect your favorite garments, try turning them inside out before washing.
Use a partitioned laundry basket to sort your laundry as you remove it.
Overloading your washing machine could mean that your clothes don’t properly get clean.
White streaks of powder left behind on your clothes due to undissolved detergent are usually caused by overloading your machine, and can be removed with an additional rinse cycle.
Washing much smaller loads on non-cotton cycles to give more freedom of movement in the drum and result in better cleaning.
Using too little detergent can cause whites to become dingy as there are insufficient ingredients to hold soils in the water so they don’t redeposit on the garments.
Overdosing in a soft-water area can lead to “oversudsing” which, in extreme cases, can mean suds come out of the machine.
Always check the fabric care label for the manufacturer’s washing recommendations.
Some dyes will bleed even in very cold water, so always sort your washing into light colors, dark colors, whites, and delicates.
To compensate for washing at lower temperatures, try using a Cotton (most agitation) or Synthetic cycle, if the garment care label allows. There are also detergents specially designed to work in cold water.
Whenever possible, dry your clothes outside on a line; you could see significant energy savings.
Make sure to close all zippers, fasteners, and hooks to prevent and reduce abrasion of fabric and consider placing delicate items into mesh laundry bags.
To pre-treat stains, apply undiluted laundry detergent directly onto stained areas. For best results, allow product to sit on stain for a few minutes, scrub product into stain, then wash.
When adding chlorine bleach, always use the bleach dispenser on your washer to ensure that it is added at the right time in the wash cycle. If your machine does not have a dispenser, add chlorine bleach at the end of the wash cycle.
Check garment care labels for recommended wash temperature.
For all HE washers, make sure to use a low-sudsing HE detergent.
Use the right amount of detergent. Follow package directions carefully. For heavily soiled and/or large loads, use more detergent.
If you do not have a detergent dispenser on your machine, add the detergent while the washer fills with water, ensure the detergent has dissolved, then add the clothes.
Keep your washing machine free of residues by running a monthly wash cycle with Tide Washing Machine Cleaner.
