Doing laundry seems simple enough on the surface, but believe it or not, there are right and wrong ways to wash and dry your clothes. And not knowing the right way might leave you with shrunken, stained, torn-up garments, or even worse, a horrible house fire (no, this is just a joke :D)
Millions of people wash their clothes and commit mistakes daily. So today, The Dutchman’s Laundry will look at the seven of the most common and detrimental laundry mistakes and show you how to avoid them.
Running the Washer and Dryer Too Cold (or Hot)
It happens to everyone; you’ve just washed and machined dried your clothes, and you reach into the dryer expecting a reward of warm, spotless garments only to find they’re still damp.
Unfortunately, correcting this common laundry mistake isn’t as straightforward as cranking your washer and dryer to their hottest settings. Washing and drying your clothes at the machine’s warmest temperatures will melt some sensitive fabric fibers, shrinking and damaging your clothes.
You can avoid those pesky problems by cleaning your clothes on the washer’s coldest settings, sorting your clothes by fabric type, adjusting your dryer settings accordingly, and hanging-drying garments whenever possible.
Pouring Laundry Detergent onto Dry Clothes
You’re not effectively cleaning your clothes when you dump a cup of laundry detergent onto them and let the wash cycle run. Rather, that detergent will soak into the fabric you pour it on rather than circling and reaching all the washer’s contents.
To ensure all your garments receive equal amounts of detergent, add the clothes and water first. The soap will then mix with the water rather than settle into one spot.
Leaving Zippers Undone Before Washing
Open zippers can snag on the rest of your clothes while the washer and dryer violently toss them around and tear holes in your delicate fabrics.
Though tedious, closing your zippers before running the clothes through the washer and dryer will protect all your garments.
Leaving Buttons Done Up
Though it might sound counter to zipping your clothes zippers, unbuttoning your shirts before washing and drying them will increase their longevity.
Buttons and buttonholes are too delicate for the vigorous machine washing and drying process. When you leave them buttoned together, the buttons will toss around and loosen the threads of the holes. This eventually leads to buttons falling off shirts completely, so don’t skip this step if you want to keep your shirts intact.
Letting Stains Settle Before Washing
Many laundry beginners suffer from permanently stained clothes because they don’t act quick enough to wash out the imperfections. While powerful washers and detergents go a long way in stain removal, you’ll need to lend a helping hand to clean your clothes completely.
Acting quickly is the most critical part of stain removal. Soak your clothes from five minutes to an hour as soon as possible after staining them, and then put them through the washer to finish the job.
Not Cleaning the Lint Trap and Filter
Most people know that ignoring your dryer’s lint trap can have devastating consequences, but still either refuse to clean it or do it improperly. However, you should be cleaning your lint trap and dryer duct at least once per year to minimize the risk of a house fire.
Not cleaning your washing machine’s filter presents problems as well. If the filter backs up with dirt and bacteria, it won’t have the power to wash your clothes properly. Additionally, those contaminants will mix with the water while you run your washer, and your clothes will remain dirty even after washing and drying.
Not Following Instructions
Most apparel items and cleaning supplies provide exact directions. If you take the time to read the tags on your clothes and the instructions on the back of your detergent, you’ll know precisely how long and hot to wash and dry your garments and how much soap you’ll need to use.
When you enter a laundromat without knowing the directions, you risk shrinking your clothes, tearing holes in them, and not washing them properly.
Contact The Dutchman’s Laundry Today!
The Dutchman’s Laundry has brought state-of-the-art washers and dryers and affordable service to Clarksville residents since 2015. Our facilities take the added pressure of cleaning your equipment and buying at-home laundry machines out of your hands so that you can focus on avoiding those common laundry mistakes.
Call us today at (931) 896-2600 to learn more about our customer rewards program or schedule a drop-off laundry service.
