Washing clothes at 20 degrees

[smashthesigns]

Should I change to washing our clothes at 20? Looking to save some money. I normally wash everything at 30 on a half wash (still 2 hours on our machine), but am wondering if it would be better to drop to 20. None of us are that grotty so I'm not worried about stains. My mum thinks I'm mad and everything will come out dirty, but then she washes everything at 60 and doesn't seem to be worried about her electricity bill.

Also if anyone does this what detergent do they use? Do some not work at low temperatures?

I’ve just started using the eco cycle on mine after reading MN posts about it - uses less electric and is not too bad at 2h20mins.

The school polo shirts actually seemed cleaner and less powder left on so much kinder for my eczema sufferers.

Keen to make money and eco savings where I can even if I only manage to do one eco wash a week.

I think it would be OK if you use a laundry disinfectant in the rinse. I don't think 20 would get bacteria out of pants etc.

@Cabinfever10

Stop doing 1/2 loads as that wastes more energy than doing a full load. Ariel works at 15°C or above

Sorry if I wasn't clear, I meant by a half wash that it was half the time of a normal (by my machine) wash, not that it was only half a load.

That products like Ariel say they work at 15°C was what made me think this might be worthwhile, but it seems very few people agree.

@smashthesigns sorry I misread the 1/2 load bit. I use the eco wash on my machine it is a 20°c wash but takes just over 3 hours I use ariel and everything comes out clean

@Hellocatshome

Do quicker cycles not usually use MORE electric?

No

Yes

Because they ajitate instead of soak, so use more energy. They also often are for smaller loads.

OP it's probably most efficient to do a full load on the eco cycle at 30 or 40 C instead of lots of small loads on the short ones. But check the manual for your machine.

@smashthesigns I’d definitely give it a try. I was quite surprised that things came out much cleaner from the eco wash than when I’ve been using the daily quick wash.

I’m keen to reduce our electricity bill. If I’m in a rush I’ll still use other programmes but will try and use eco more and more.

I run eco cycles overnight so the time doesn't matter. I line dry too which helps with sanitising stuff. Eco cycles are usually lower energy and water use but check the manual.

I don't think the energy saving from 30 to 20 would be loads though.

@Hellocatshome you may want to educate yourself before commenting ...

Op, I wouldn't wash on 20. I rarely go lower than 40 degrees and always wash sheets and towels on 60. Focus on the longer eco cycles

Yes, quicker cycles have a convenience penalty, which is higher water and electricity usage. Eco modes use less power and water but take significantly longer. Given the way gas and electricity prices are sky-rocketing, I think it's a good thing to know!

At one stage up until recently all washing was at 60 or 40 or the v occasional hand-wash cycle. Now I have recently had to incorporate 30 washes as clothes have such lable. My machine has quick wash cycles which can do 60, 40 or 30 or a short wash at 20 . It depends on what I am washing and how much there is.

From the Uswitch website:

Top tips for energy-efficient washing
Wash clothes on the shortest cycle (often referred to as "quick wash") that's practical for your needs. This means less water, heated to a lower temperature and a shorter spin cycle to save water and energy. Bonus - this cycle causes less damage to your clothes over time so helps them last longer.

Use a cold water or 30°C cycle where possible. It's only for particularly dirty clothes, bad stains or underwear that you are likely to need warmer temperatures.

Soak heavily soiled items before washing, and rub collars or other stains with household soap. There's nothing worse than having to repeat a wash because stains didn't come out.

Wait until you have a full load before washing. Naturally if you're running out of socks you might have to put a load on (in which case you can use the quick wash mode as recommended), but otherwise it's best to wait for a full basket to avoid wasting water.

Similarly, bath sheets are typically heavyweight cotton and excessively large, so consider choosing standard lightweight bath towels to save on energy.

Where possible, use a high spin speed so clothes come out of the washing machine almost dry, with little need for tumble drying. And, of course, when it comes to drying where possible hang your clothes up rather than using a dryer.

Include occasional hot washes if you mainly do low temperature ones. This will get rid of bacteria and prevent the build up of odours in your machine.

Our usual cycle is 40° for 2h45m, drives me mad that it takes so long. I tried a 20 wash recently after reading the energy cost difference with my washing machine, can't remember how long the cycle is but quite a bit less. I added an antibacterial laundry liquid and everything came out clean and smelling fresh, I'll definitely be doing more washing at 20.

Yuck- no. Washed at 30, it's still dirty so washed at 20 is even worse. If you're going to wash at low temperatures you should probably use antibacterial laundry wash.

I wash clothing at 40 on a 30min cycle.
Bedding and towels 60, 30mins

@KT727

Yuck- no. Washed at 30, it's still dirty so washed at 20 is even worse. If you're going to wash at low temperatures you should probably use antibacterial laundry wash.

What’s your evidence for this, please? Have you become ill from your laundry? I never have.

If there are visible marks or stains then use a specialist product to tackle them. If the clothes are visibly clean and smell fresh, how are you judging them still to be dirty?

Cold washes aren’t very good for your machine, you’ll get a build up of detergent etc.

Have you got a smart meter? If so, keep an eye on it while you try a couple of different cycles. My machine does have an eco cycle but it takes ages.

We wash clothes at 40 degrees, bedding and towels usually at 60, and towels at 90 if they need a really good clean. We use cloth nappies for our LO and follow the washing principles of Clean Cloth Nappies (they have a website) and it's been really helpful for our washing overall. they recommend 40 or 60 degrees for bio detergent or 60 degrees for non bio to get the best clean.

Wouldn't be great for us. I have grotty kids and Dp's grotty work clothes. Most things are done on a 40, but I do odd things on a 20 or 30. Towels and bedding on 60!

@Littleduck83

Cold washes aren’t very good for your machine, you’ll get a build up of detergent etc.

Have you got a smart meter? If so, keep an eye on it while you try a couple of different cycles. My machine does have an eco cycle but it takes ages.

I wash my sheets at 60, so the machine gets a good workout each time I do that. It’s going strong after 8 years even in a very hard water area.

@DramaAlpaca

Washing at 20° isn't going to get anything clean, and I only use 30° for very delicate things.

I wash towels, tea towels and bed linen at 60° and everything else at 40°.

You are doing it right

How to test your washing is actually clean, leave it for a while when the wash is finished! If it starts to smell there's bacteria left that's started to grow, if it smells fine you're good.

40/60° for every wash and at least an hour here. I worked out the saving of using 40 over 60° and it really wasn't much.

Thought the Eco washes were better, hence the reason they are Eco. Also the quick wash cycles are designed for small loads not a full load of washing

@olderthanyouthink

How to test your washing is actually clean, leave it for a while when the wash is finished! If it starts to smell there's bacteria left that's started to grow, if it smells fine you're good.

40/60° for every wash and at least an hour here. I worked out the saving of using 40 over 60° and it really wasn't much.

But surely there will always be bacteria left? Unless you wash your clothes in an autoclave?

Many laundry detergents are specifically for cold water washes- Ariel for instance. In many countries cold water washing is the norm- most parts of Europe and the US.
Unless someone is ill in the house or fabrics very soiled I think we are too hung up on germs.
Line drying kills bugs anyway.
Maybe if we moved away from tumble drier use and hung outside we could all wash in cold water.
Saving energy all round.

I do sheets and towels on a 40c .clothes 30c .any less than this is risky I think .I also use persil laundry cleanser as well.