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8 Common Mistakes People Make When Doing Laundry

Laundry is a daily chore that we all engage in. However, even though it has become a habit, many of us still go about it the wrong way without even realizing it.

Administrator

29 October, 2023

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Luckily, just by making a few simple changes to how you wash and dry your clothes, all the mistakes will improve and disappear.

According to that, pay attention to these 8 common but harmful washing and drying mistakes. More importantly, you can also know how to fix them.

1. Over-drying clothes

After the laundry cycle is complete, most people transfer their clothes to the dryer and then wait for the machine to signal that their clothes are completely dry and fresh. But it turns out that is a mistake.

Wayne Edelman, the owner of Meurice Garment Care, said that drying your clothes in a completely dry cycle can damage the natural fibers in the fabric. Instead, Edelman advises you to dry them only about 80%, then hang them up until they are completely dry.

2. Drying certain clothing items

Edelman suggests always air drying delicate items like lingerie to avoid stretching/tearing/gaining fabric.

Activewear also agrees with this idea and advises that you should never put it in the dryer.

Meanwhile, Rechelle Balanzat, the founder and CEO of Juliette Cleaners, said, “The high heat will weaken the fabric fibers in your clothes and cause them to lose elasticity.”

3. Not using a laundry bag

For underwear and other delicate items, when washing, an extra protective layer is needed to prevent their structure from being damaged. That’s why Edelman always advises you to use a laundry bag.

4. Not separating heavy and light clothing

Edelman says another common mistake is not separating heavy clothing from light clothing when washing.

He said, “These items require different degrees of attention in the washing machine and dryer, so it’s important to stack the heavier clothing together to separate the washing environment. If you wash them together at the same time, larger and heavier clothing can damage your smaller and more delicate items.”

5. Choosing the wrong water temperature

If you haven’t thought about the temperature of your washing machine, now is the time to start. Excessive exposure to hot water can cause colors to fade over time and even cause fabrics to shrink, which is why reading your laundry care tag is so important. Balanzat says, “If you’re not sure which temperature to choose, the colder the better.”

6. Not removing buttons or fastenings before washing

Who knew that leaving buttons and fastenings on your clothes when washing could damage buttons and fasteners? The reason is that when the buttons are not fastened, they can come loose and be subjected to the strong impact of the washing machine’s rotation.

Balanzat says, “You can avoid this early wear and tear by taking one more step, removing clothing buttons before washing. Do this before washing shirts, pants…”.

7. Not sorting by color

This is really a habit to maintain. Because when you don’t sort clothes properly by color, the dye can easily transfer and mix with other clothes, potentially making your bright color and grey color darker than you want or fading.

Before washing the next batch of clothes, Balanzat advises you to sort your clothes into light, medium, and dark shades and wash accordingly.

8. Forgetting to check the materials of clothes before washing

Finally, Balanzat said that people throwing their clothes into the washing machine without checking the “dry clean only” label is now too common.

While at-home washing machine technology has developed over the years to protect clothes from damage, some items such as suede or silk need a little more attention. When in doubt, take these items to a dry cleaner if you want to protect them for many years to come.

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