Washing all laundry in cold water

[floridapalmtree]

My 2 year old washing machine has stopped using hot water so I'm having to wash everything in cold water including bedding, underwear, tea cloths etc and have been doing so for a couple of months.

We have the house up for sale, have a buyer lined up, so don't want to buy a new machine unnecessarily. However, we can't find anywhere else to move to so there's a possibility we might stay.

The clothes and bedding 'seem' to look clean, sometimes I soak things in Vanish to get rid of stains.

AIBU to think that it's ok to wash everything in cold water or will things not get properly clean?

It'll be clean enough!

It’s fine, that’s what bio washing powder is for. I wash most of mine in cold water, or 30 at most.

Stick some laundry disinfectant in, if it makes you feel better. Unless someone in the house has a bug, it isn't going to be harmful. If it looks and smells clean, that would be good enough for me.

Can you take bedding and stuff to the laundrette every so often and give it a hot wash?

You can smell if your washing isn't getting properly clean. So sounds like you are all good.

I guess you could read my first sentence two ways! But if you have normal sense of smell and it seems okay then you are probably fine.

Good idea to rake bedding and towels to the laundrette. I’d take underwear too tbh.

I suppose I could go to the launderette but we are a family of 5 adults so quite a lot of bedding and washing weekly.

Glad to see that the general consensus is that the washing should be clean enough.

Our washing machine stopped heating water (took a while to notice) and around the seal got all gunged up with grease from daughters kitchen whites and aprons. It was disgusting so I would say warm water makes a difference.

Just boil a kettle and pour it over the bedding in a bowl or bath before putting in cold wash if you’re worried about germs, no need to take it to laundrette when you have a washing machine.

I didn't think they still sold machines with hot and cold connections!

Do you mean it's stopped heating the water as modern machines are cold fill only and heat their own water. Can you not get it fixed rather than think about getting a new one?

@floridapalmtree

I suppose I could go to the launderette but we are a family of 5 adults so quite a lot of bedding and washing weekly.

Glad to see that the general consensus is that the washing should be clean enough.

Yeah not every week. Just maybe once a month or so. Just in case there's lice or worms or nits.

Same with pants. You need to give them a decent wash every now and again

They get gunged up if you only ever use even a cool wash, over time. I speak from experience!

The detergent doesn't dissolve properly and prob doesn't rinse out that well so could be a prob for anyone with sensitive skin.

Apparently everyone in Australia does all their laundry in cold water. I find it mind boggling. But they say their laundry powder/liquid has extra special chemicals in it to make it clean.

I'm not convinced.

I’m confused. If you’re in the uk washing machines have been cold fill only for quite some time. Do you mean instead that it doesn’t heat up water properly? 2 years isn’t very old! have you double checked the guarantee that it isn’t still covered? And if it is out of guarantee worth calling up the manufacturer for goodwill.

I would add some laundry disinfectant to the conditioning draw for some of those loads (e.g. for washing pants, sheets and towels) if washing at a temperature, which is too low for the detergent.

It’ll be fine. Millions do their washing in rivers without detergent.

@Chicchicchicchiclana

Apparently everyone in Australia does all their laundry in cold water. I find it mind boggling. But they say their laundry powder/liquid has extra special chemicals in it to make it clean.

I'm not convinced.

It's chemically different, oxygen bleach added for a start. Industrial laundries use it now, so your hotel linen is done this way

@Mareofwesttown

It’ll be fine. Millions do their washing in rivers without detergent.

Having had my washing done that way in east Africa, the women do a significantly better job than my washing machine. Hardly comparable!

I notice the smell with socks and tea towels. If you hang clothes out to dry in the sun, that's good.

Has it stopped heating the water up? Does it not have some kind of warranty you could get it fixed under if its only two years old?

I don't wash anything under 40 degrees. I learned the hard way that it bungs the machine up with gunk. I went back to powder and hot washes!

Why haven't you had someone out to repair it?

I find clothes start to smell eventually if not washed hot enough.

I'm a minimum 40 degree wash with bio powder kind of person
If it can't be fixed, I'd be looking at buying a cheap replacement to tide me over.

If it's integrated, just take it out and put in a non-integrated one.

For all. The detergent claims, cold water is shit.