To not understand the 60 degree Covid19 wash

[Trolltoes]

Sorry if this is really obvious but I haven’t found an answer yet so hoping the hive mind can help. I understand that soap, washing up liquid, bleach break down the fatty membrane of Covid 19 band that we need to wash hands for 20 secs + so why are experts saying to do a 60 degree laundry wash? Surely the soapy detergent has things in it that will break down the fatty membrane? Am thinking that a 60 degree wash will wreck most of my clothes!

I agree as an ex HCP I was always required to wash my uniform at 60 and iron it to be sure it was properly clean.

Husband is going to collect our click and collect Tesco order tomorrow, first time he will have been anywhere for over 3 weeks, I will was his clothes as hot as possible and with laundry cleaner and iron it.

We are both vulnerable and have a vulnerable child so may be being a bit precious.

I would not wash clothes worn round the house in any unusual way.

My nurse friend was her her uniform at 60 degrees.

I would guess that when washing your hands, you scrub a lot. In a washing machine there's nothing physically scrubbing at each item, it's just sort of tumbling around in warm bubbly water ... so hotter is better? Or is that nonsense?

I work in a patient facing role in the NHS.

We have to change into uniform at work and before we come home - as we have always had to do.

We now have to bring our uniform home in a pillow case every day and wash it by itself immediately (5 extra washes a week).

The maximum temperature that my uniform can be washed at (according the the labels) is 40 degrees Celsius. If I did it at 60 degrees, I think it would disintegrate very quickly!

if I wash towels at 40 or lower they start to smell if I use them more than once.
I think it's certain bacteria causing the smell.

I think I have read though that viruses generally are less tough than bacteria or fungi.

Have no problem with doing it to be on the safe side where I can, it just seems bizarre that a 30 sec hand wash will kill it but a full wash on 30 with lots of bubbles wouldn’t

I agree as an ex HCP I was always required to wash my uniform at 60 and iron it to be sure it was properly clean

Yep. And the GPs in surgeries are wearing scrubs at the moment so they can wash at 60 rather than ruining their clothes. Nurses always wash at 60.

Nurses always wash at 60
I mean those I work with

Maybe if you are worried just wear things that will cope with a 60 wash outside the house and stuff that you wear at home wash at your normal temperature

If you’re not wearing uniforms within a hospital or care setting for instance, I don’t think you should worry too much. I also watched that programme and it suggested that after a day the virus is pretty much enacted (spelling?) on porous items, such as clothes. Just a stick them on the washing basket for a day or two after eating and wash as per care instructions :)

Wearing not eating*

I've read that the virus is killed at 56 degrees, hence 60 wash.
But I'm hoping that the vigorous soapy action helps break it down in another way. I can wash sheets and towels at 60 but everything ruse is designed for 30/40 degree washes!

Thanks all. Fortunately I’m not especially bothered so not stressed, it’s just bugging me! Maybe it is to do the scrubbing action (though I hope not as my poor shredded hands are very delicate at the moment!)

Anything yuck gets washed at 60. If it’s wool or delicate it’s gets maximum washing time, extra liquid/ rinse and hung outside to dry. Even if it’s not drying weather, I’m hopeful the UV kills something.

Won't the fibres of clothes trap the virus in a way your skin wouldn't, so it's harder work to remove?. Just suggestion, no idea really

60 degrees is standard temp to kill bacteria/viruses. Unfortunately it's also scalding temperature so if you washed your hands at that temp you'd scald yourself.

It's probably sensible if you have a known infected person in the house who is trying to self isolate from other household members, I tend to wash clothing and bedding and so on at 60 if someone in my household has a tummy bug that seems to be viral.

I wouldn't wash properly delicate stuff at 60, but you'd be surprised what survives it TBH. I've put stuff in at 60 that I thought wouldn't come out OK but it was cheap/old/wrecked/stinky (after several normal washes) so I thought oh well, if it gets ruined, it was ruined anyway. Socks, t-shirts (with prints), leggings, all fine. Underwear not great - it tends to ruin the elastic and/or make them grey, although I buy cheap pants, so they might do that anyway. I've got a primark fluffy dressing gown that I am pretty sure is all polyester, that goes in at 60 because it absolutely reeks if done at 40 for some reason. Always been fine.

The 30 second hand wash is not so much killing the virus as it is washing it away down the sink.

Well, it makes sense for hospital workers to wash their clothes at 60c, because it’s not just covid 19 they’ll be needing to kill. Antibiotic resistant bacteria aren’t going to help covid 19 patients recover, are they! As for anyone else: washing everything at at least 60c is not official advice, so I shall just ignore that particular bit of lunacy unless and until it is proven to make the slightest bit of difference, as I don’t want to shrink all my clothes. Bedsheets and towels I have always washed at 60c anyway, though, and dishcloths at 90c. That’s to kill more bacteria, though, not because of viruses.

And yes, I agree, 40 is fine for normal purposes.

What about adding vinegar, would that help to kill the bastards?

No, vinegar doesn't kill viruses.

I think that at 60 it would kill the virus without any washing product at all.

With detergent I can't see that it is necessary, unless you have an item of clothing that has been hugely immersed in CV.

No but will it not help break down the fatty membrane?

I do towels and bed linens at 60 as standard, usually DP’s work shirts in with one of those. Mist things are done at 40, then a weekly wool wash.

The virus definitely won’t die at anything less than 40 degrees, because the average human body temperature would kill it, which is usually around 37 degrees. So theoritically you would need way higher than that, but because you use soap, 40 degrees would suffice.