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Original poster

Do you wash towels separately in their own load?

269 replies

JacknDiane · 18/01/2026 09:40

I've always bunged them in with the rest of the washing, am I doing it wrong?

OP posts:
Judystilldreamsofhorses · 18/01/2026 10:21

I do towels once a week on their own, on a “cotton” cycle. There’s only two of us so it’s two big bath sheets and two hand towels which is a decent load. If there are odd bits waiting like my nightshirts or face cloths I bung them in too. I never use fabric conditioner on anything.

Cakeandcardio · 18/01/2026 10:20

Yes because I use fabric conditioner on clothes and obviously this makes towels hard and isn't recommended for them.

BlueandWhitePorcelain · 18/01/2026 10:20

My washing machine broke down one day. The engineer told me to put it on a hot wash at 60 degrees every so often. I decided to do my towels, tea towels and dish cloths every week at 60, to fulfill that requirement!

Sometimes, I put a cup of white vinegar in with them, as it’s supposed to make them softer?

bluedancingtwiglet · 18/01/2026 10:20

Yes I do separately as they fill up the washing machine when I do them.

Chataigne · 18/01/2026 10:18

No, why separate them? They aren't inherently dirty. Dishcloths (especially) and tea towels are much dirtier. I mean who hasn't smelt pseudomonas on a dishcloth?

Alittlefrustrated · 18/01/2026 10:18

Yanbu, I swim, so those towels go straight in the machine with clothes, and barh towels too. It's bathmats that go seperately.

LilyCanna · 18/01/2026 10:16

Needtosoundoffandbreathe · 18/01/2026 10:06

Because damp towels are a breeding ground for bacteria in a way clothing isn't. A 60 degree wash will also kill viruses so worth remembering if anyone has been ill.

Show quote history

Do you really think that the bacteria that would survive a normal lower temperature washing machine cycle (assuming the towel looks and smells clean at the end of it) would be a threat to human health?
We have bacteria all over our skin, and loads of essential bacteria in our gut. Our bodies are ecosystems with about the same number of bacteria as human cells (because the bacteria are 1/100 - 1/1000 as big).
Unless someone in the family has a bug and you’re sharing towels you will be just fine with non-sterile towels.

Vaxtable · 18/01/2026 10:16

Sometimes depends on what else is being washed

intrepidpanda · 18/01/2026 10:15

Towels don't need a higher temperature. They are the only things that don't touch anything dirty.

Deadringer · 18/01/2026 10:15

With 6 of us in the house the hand towels seem to only last day or two before they get damp so I throw them in the regular 40° wash. Every now and then I will do all the towels together on a hot wash, but not regularly. I have never used fabric conditioner and don't like pods, i find the old fashioned powder (daz) the best, we do have soft water though.

MumOfTheMoos · 18/01/2026 10:14

I wash them separately because I wash them at a higher temperature and I also tumble dry them which I don’t really do for anything else.

intrepidpanda · 18/01/2026 10:13

I only wash 1 bath towel and 2 tea towls a week so not worth a separate wash

Meadowfinch · 18/01/2026 10:13

Towels go against all skin so need to go on a hot wash to kill any nasties. But they don't need to go in a separate wash. Mine often go in with pillowcases or undies which also need a hot wash.

Original poster
JacknDiane · 18/01/2026 10:13

Interesting! I see I've been very lax and thrown everything in together, I dont even separate whites and darks. I like the thought of washing towels on a 60 degree wash but my machine would take forever for that and I dont have the patience.
I didn't realise not to use fabric conditioner with towels. I've never noticed the difference. I like older rougher towels anyway, fluffy towels that fluff over you are a pain.

OP posts:
RanchRat · 18/01/2026 10:13

Separtely at 60 degrees to kill bacteria.

WimbyAce · 18/01/2026 10:12

Shudacudawuda · 18/01/2026 09:45

I do them separately with bed sheets and tea towels etc on a hot wash.

I do the same.

skyeisthelimit · 18/01/2026 10:11

I tend to do them separately because then I have one easy load to wash dry and fold up.

Also, my washing machine repair man, told me to run a 90 cycle regularly in order to help keep the machine clean and not mouldy, and to do that with towels or bedding , so I tend to do the towels on a really hot wash.

PinkiOcelot · 18/01/2026 10:11

Yes. Because I wash them on a 60 degree wash and always have enough for a full load. Same with bedding.

ReinsOfBucephalus · 18/01/2026 10:11

Yes. 3 people, 2 bathrooms plus dishcloths and tea towels makes a whole load a week.

Wash at 60 with no fabric softener and a cup of white vinegar.

CatsSleepFatandWalkThin · 18/01/2026 10:11

Yes. They’re a big load of their own and they go on at 60 degrees, usually with ‘oxy’ powder added as they’re all white.

Isobel201 · 18/01/2026 10:11

No, I usually chuck in with other things at 40 degrees. I don't think towels need a hotter wash, and I don't wash my towel for a shower very often.

Dagda · 18/01/2026 10:10

Sahara123 · 18/01/2026 10:01

Just out of interest why do people feel towels need a hotter wash ? They’ve just been used to dry clean bodies. I just wash mine with anything else that needs doing on my normal 40 wash .

They are get covered in skin cells and tiny hairs and are a magnet for dust mites. Also bacteria, fungi and mold can thrive on them because they get damp and warm. If someone is ill in particular it would be important.

60 kills all that. 40 won’t catch it all.

Needtosoundoffandbreathe · 18/01/2026 10:09

I also remember Which? stating you should use less detergent, but a higher temperature when washing towels as detergent residue makes them hard and less absorbent.

LilyCanna · 18/01/2026 10:08

Sahara123 · 18/01/2026 10:01

Just out of interest why do people feel towels need a hotter wash ? They’ve just been used to dry clean bodies. I just wash mine with anything else that needs doing on my normal 40 wash .

Just what I was wondering. I usually wash on 30C 2hr cycle and if anything needs an extra cleaning boost it will be t shirts with sweat and deodorant, maybe the odd food stain on clothes, not towels that have only been used to dry my clean body after a shower!
I suppose damp towels hanging around can get a bit musty but we have a heated towel rail which seems to prevent that as they dry quicker.

SusanChurchouse · 18/01/2026 10:07

Separate hotter wash. Rarely use fabric conditioner at all, never on towels. maybe on bedsheets at a push if I have some. Don’t like tumble drying towels either, I like them a bit stiff. Feel they dry much better like that.

My parents never separated washing at all. I had a lot of grey pants and fluff covered clothes as a child as a result.

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