To massively reduce how often I wash clothes?

[MyOtherProfile]

I'm always thinking of ways to lessen our impact on the planet and have recently started wearing clothes many more times than I used to. Previously I would wear things probably twice (undies excepted!) before washing but I've been thinking that even that might be too much. I look for dirt and I smell check but now I'm only washing clothes when they fail either of those checks. I'm now on the 5th day of the top I'm wearing (not consecutive so nobody would know). Sid anyone else doing this? I don't really want to hear from people who are just going to say ewww I have to wash clothes after every wear.

stuff gets washed when it needs it - anyone of reasonable intelligence and with a functioning nose/eyes can work that out.

yes, it would be lovely to have a clean towel and clean sheets every day but most of us have more to do than that and we allegedly care about limiting energy and water use.

although I'm not convinced on the latter, I think many on here couldn't care less despite posturing and protesting.

am over 50 and I don’t leak urine so what a bunch of ageist twaddle.

According to the incontinence is a feminist issue thread, 33% of women and 10% of men will become incontinent as they age or due to childbirth.

It never got through to her that the simple fact the buyer could tell the item was dirty was a massive clue that it really couldn't be considered clean by any standard.

Its pretty obvious on here that some people have very low standards !

Yes so only 33% of older women might have a reason for only wearing something once. The other 67% can quite happily rewear a skirt without smelling of piss.

The type of fabrics you wear really matter. Synthetic fabrics don’t breath in the same way natural fabrics do. I’ve worn merino wool cycle tops for days on end without washing but a synthetic one would smell after a couple of hours. There’s no way I’d wash a cashmere jumper after every wear but a polyester top - definitely.

Sadly there will always be people who don't care about what damage they do to the environment.
Who waste their lives washing clothes, rather than doing something useful.

Who waste their lives washing clothes, rather than doing something useful.

useful like talking about it on MN

Sadly there will always be people who don't care about what damage they do to the environment.

Yep. All those people having children, driving cars, travelling abroad, buying new clothes, eating meat, going out for drinks, buying iPhones and tablets and dash cams and chargers etc from China.

Scratch n sniff household here. Also we live in a sunny country so everything goes outside to dry. We know people here vwith tumble dryers who swore we needed one,cespecually with a baby, but we have never found we needed to use one.

In summer it is wear once ---> wash it, because the heat is nuts! But winter, no.

Who waste their lives washing clothes, rather than doing something useful.

I don't wash them, the machine does. I just load them in with Daz and Comfort Blue and then turn on the machine, takes about a minute. Then I sling them all straight into the condenser dryer.

Thanks for the thread, very interesting. I am also in the wear it 3 times at least before it goes in the wash, except pants, camp.

You canwear clothes several days on the trot inc undies as we all do to reduce pressureon climate.

You canwear clothes several days on the trot inc undies as we all do to reduce pressureon climate.

I feel sorry for your work colleagues and people who have to interact you. Oh, the honk!

We dont have more than one car ,and DH cycles to work . we dont buy lots of consumer goods either .So I think we can be clean with a clean conscience ! Only fly long haul sparingly!

We stayed in a holiday cottage not long ago and the smell of fabric conditioner on the bed linen actually kept me awake, I haven’t used the stuff for over 20 years. I hate it when people smell of it.

In this house pants and socks get washed after one wear. Everything else when it’s dirty so tshirts and pyjamas after a couple of wears, bottoms every three or four, jumpers (which don’t touch the skin) go on for ages. Sheets and towels once a week, why a towel needs washing after one use on a clean body is beyond me.

Any top next to my skin smells awful after one wear, but jeans/trousers get worn a few times.

Try skipping laundry detergent. Washing machines are so much better now that you really don't need it to get clothes clean. Unless clothes are actually dirty with dirt, a splash of bleach is really enough to get them clean.

Plain water doesn't get clothes clean . Who uses bleach on coloured clothes?

Now I know where all the whiffy people out in public are.

Omg my adult dd puts things in the wash like jeans hoody's after 1 wash sometimes not even worn all day just a few hours. She does a lot of her own washing but I moan about the extra use of washing machine for a couple of things and it drying round the house so a lot if hers goes in with our wash . I tend to look and fold put back in room if I don't think it needs washing . Pyjamas underwear, t shirts etc wash after 1 wear but everything else no and jeans god I wear loads before I wash .
I often change when I get home into my comfys and my dd does the same .
Towels after a few uses then I wash .
Dc get his school uniform filthy so every day clean uniform .
My washing machine is on every day and there is 4 of us .

Water alone does not clean clothes. You need a soap/detergent of some description. That doesn’t mean you need Daz or surf or whatever. There are soap nuts, eco balls etc which are much more environmentally friendly. I use an eco ball and white vinegar. The internet is brimming full of ways to get your clothes clean in a more earth friendly way.

Soap nuts don't get clothes clean, either, nor do eco balls. Hope none of you has teen boys who do a lot of sport and use soap nuts or eco balls, your kid's sports kit will still be humming! I use Halo on sports kit and DH's work uniforms (he works a physical job). Life is way too short to go round stinking through useless eco worry.

nor do eco balls.

Mine does. Maybe your clothes are very dirty?

Hope none of you has teen boys who do a lot of sport

I do

and use soap nuts or eco balls, your kid's sports kit will still be humming!

They’re not.

"I don't really want to hear from people who are just going to say ewww I have to wash clothes after every wear."

So you actually just want people to agree with you?

Sorry, but no, not for me - I would feel dirty. I like clean clothes - dont care how tatty they are but they have to be clean.

At the end of the day i look at clothes, smell them and decide whether it’s laundry bin or wardrobe.
Otherwise my washing machine will be on every day followed by the dryer, very wasteful.
YANBU

Eco balls get DH's work clothes clean and he often gets them quite dirty.

I hang clothes I have only worn once or twice back in the wardrobe and put jumpers back in the drawers!

I have a good sense of smell and definitely would know if an item of clothing smelt. DH wears his out of work clothes several times and they don't smell. If in the summer he sweats more then if I sniff his top it will most likely need washing.

Such a waste of electric and water to be washing all the time. Also makes me laugh that so many people wash clothes all the time but only at 30. I always wash them at 40 and towels and bedding at 60.

Also how do you all get all this washing dry? In good weather I hang it on the line but in the winter I almost always use my tumble dryer. No way am I having wet washing hanging on an airer in the house. Looks awful and makes loads of condensation. I know next door neighbour dries her washing indoors (she has 3 children so I expect has a lot of washing) as her windows are always all steamed up even if she has one slightly open.

Using less water and electric must make some difference even if only slightly. We chose not to have children, are vegetarian (I am almost vegan but do eat eggs), rarely fly (5 return journeys in 40 years and all short flights), use the car as little as possible.

By all means do as you want but don't then say you are worried about climate change and the likely future for your children/grandchildren.