I'm shit at laundry- help me out!

[BearCubX]

I've somehow made it to 30 without ever becoming one of those people who just know all sorts of tricks re laundry. Throw a toddler into the mix and I now need serious guidance to ensure we're not all walking around in clothes covered in sand/dairylea/pombears all the time.

In an attempt to not be totally hopeless, I've put my general washing routine below and got some questions. Someone please come along and help me out!

I split colours and whites. Put washing powder (generally whichever is on offer- is there a specific brand that's best?) in the drawer. Wash at 30. The cycle lasts 1hr15, then I do a spin cycle that I assumed essentially rung out most of the water? That's 10m or so.

Everything comes out smelling lovely and feeling clean. But general grubbiness (dirty knees on toddlers clothes for example) don't come out anything like spotless and the marks are still there.

I wash towels at a higher temp but do all clothes at 30 as I'm always worried of shrinking.

Where am I going wrong?!

It sounds like your washing machine must be quite old if you’re doing a separate spin cycle.

I split mine into coloureds (40), whites (40) and delicates (30). Delicates are mainly mine and DH’s tops and shirts. All of DD’s stuff is washed at 40. Towels and bedding at 60. A cycle on my machine, which is brand new, is at least 2 hours, short cycles don’t rinse very well and are less economical.

I use Fairy powder as DD can be sensitive to washing detergents, but our bedding and towels are done with sainsbos biological.

I wash at 40 using bio powder, never liquid. Nothing shrinks at that temperature. I rub neat washing up liquid into any stains or greasy marks beforehand as I don't believe any washing powder gets them out, despite what the TV ads say. It all comes out nice & clean. I do towels & sheets at 60.

One thing that has changed my laundry life since having a baby is Vanish Platinum powder. It’s a bit pricey so get when on offer.
It helps get any bits that are grubby really clean. I don’t use it every wash but for with work clothes/gym bits etc. Just stick a scoop in the detergent drawer.

Do you need an extra spin cycle? My regular washes have soon built into each wash.
I also was at 40 usually, especially if dirty or has food dirt on. Never suffer shrinkage but always check labels (its boring but saves clothes!)

One MUST is a good clean of the washing machine every month - 3 months. You can buy special cleaner, or just use something like weak bleach/bicarbonate and vinegar mix. Take drawer out, clean inside really well (the bit the water comes through gets really clogged up and mouldy sometimes.) Clean drawer and Give the door and inside seal a good wipe. Then run on the hottest cycle possible to kill germs etc. You’ll be so surprised how much difference this makes to how clean your clothes get.

I’m not laundry expert but it’s what works for me and my constant daily laundry cycles

@RiverTam it's only 2 years old, but is a fairly budget brand I think (Zanussi). We bought a new build and it was part of the white goods included.

I've always assumed I need to do a separate spin just because it's listed on the programmes. Maybe I should just ignore that. It's the 'synthetics' 30 degrees cycle I've been using. There's also a cottons one, and a hand wash one.

I don't think washing at 30 cleans anything properly tbh, it's ok for a freshen up but not much else.

Also your wash cycle sounds quite short, are you using quick cycles all the time?

I generally wash on 40 except for towels, bedding or anything particularly stained. They go on a 60 wash.

I use powder and softener and for any stains on the kids clothes I give it a spray with elbow grease spray first. It's £1 in home bargains and works much better than anything else I've tried.

@Bananacentral helpful, thank you! Have appallingly never washed any part of it out. Absolute cretin!

So after cleaning out the drawer, then you put in the bicarb etc mix, in place of powder? Then just run on the hottest with nothing in the machine?

Realise I sound unbelievably ignorant...

No, you don’t need to use the spin cycle, it will be included. I wash everything apart from delicates on a cottons cycle, I can select what temp I like.

The separate spin cycle would be for if your clean dry washing fell into the bath or something - so you’d just want to spin it.

I split my clothes out into whites, colours, towels and blacks.

I use Persil liquid and comfort fabric softener. I go through the clothes as I put them in the washing machine and pre treat anything grubby with a wilko stain remover spray. Do up zips and undo buttons, turn clothes the right way round..

It's important not to overload your washing machine, the clothes need room to move freely around the drum. I always wash everything at 40, despite what the manufacturers say, 30 just doesn't seem to get things properly clean. I choose a program that washes, rinses 3 times and spins as high as possible. It takes 1 hour 15 for a standard wash on my machine. If anything is REALLY dirty I choose a program that washes for longer.

If you have got anything that has a bad stain you can always pre soak in bio powder and warm water for a couple of hours before washing in the normal way.

When you take things out of the washing machine, give them a really good shake before hanging them out to dry or bunging them in the tumble.

@Mumashark I'm not knowingly using short cycles!

My cycle options are basically three categories- cottons, synthetics and delicates, with a range of temperatures under each.

I've just always gone for synthetics 30, with no real reason as to why.

Will definitely ramp it up to 40. Would you recommend going for the cotton cycle over synthetics at all? We don't generate enough washing to start splitting between fabric types other than anything like linen/things that will definitely shrink if treated like the rest.

@RiverTam now you've spelled it out for me, it seems ridiculously obvious. Thank you for the help!

I rarely ever split colours unless I can do a full load of whites or colours! Too much effort imo and never had a problem with colour run.
Everything at 30 on the daily wash setting (about 45mins, in this weather I can get at least two full loads washed and dried by end of day) towels go in with other stuff unless I have a few to wash at once in which case I'll do them on 50/60 again daily wash setting. Never had a problem with any washing, always comes out clean and smelling nice
And anything that doesn't come out clean (as you say dirt marks on knees etc) goes back in the basket and next time it goes in I add vanish and put on 40 - does the trick. I buy supermarket own brand non bio liquid and fabric softener (used to work for a shop that gives you money back for buying own brand products and a discount so usually get from there) all the same to me though.
I do buy washing machine cleaner every other month too as my machine is second hand and quite old/prone to getting smelly. I'm too busy lazy to care about settings and times, darks and lights, separating towels and sheets - but then again I'm just waiting for an excuse to buy a new machine!

I would use the cotton cycle at 40 for everything except special stuff that you’re more concerned about. But everyday stuff should be OK. And I would still split between coloureds and whites - not because colours will run but because whites tend to look a bit grey after a while if you mix, in my experience anyway.

And you don’t need anything fancy to wash the machine, just do a hot wash with powder every so often. I never bother myself as I always use powder and I do a boil wash for my tea towels and napkins every few weeks anyway.

Cotton's cycle will give a more thorough wash.

40 is better than 30 regardless of what the various washing companies say about their powder working on low temp washes.

The fact you use powder is good.

Powder brand is personal - I like daz and only use that, but other people will prefer other brands. Do you notice any difference in cleaning power of one brand to another? You may find that when you are using X brand there are less problems with stains than Y brand.

With stained things buy some liquid detergent too and rub a small amount directly into stains. Then put in with the rest of your load and powder in tray as normal. It depends on how good your machine is on how minor or severe the stains need to be for you to do this - learn by trial & error (for example all but the most severe stains will come out without pretreating in my Samsung but even very minor stains needed pre-treating in my budget washing machine I had previously).

Also make sure towels and bedding go through their own wash and not with clothes. Clothes never come out as clean if they have been in the machine at the same time as towels and bedding.

Also soda crystals are great for adding to your whites wash, for extra stain removing power and to keep whites super white.

I'm a freak with my washing

RULES
Whites only washed with whites. Add a scoop of that whites powder stuff. Cheap one not Vanish.

Darks.

Lights.

All washed on cotton cycle at 40. I have a 3 hour or 1.5 hour. Usually do shorter and leave the longer for towels and bedding. (60 for these)

Spin speed - the higher you spin the harder you iron. 1200 - 1400 is fine. Do the towels highest at 1600. They don't need ironing.

Shake your clothes hard when you get them out. And get them out fast to avoid creases. Dry shirts and dresses and delicates on hangers.

Delicate stuff - viscose, cheap primark stuff, lacey etc then wash at 30. Cheap clothes shrink. Fact.

Bras. Buy a laundry bag. Keep your delicates in a separate bag. Especially tights. I hate them twisted in the washing.

Softener - never used on 'elastic' clothes. Stuff with elastane so tights, sports clothes. Otherwise a capful in every wash.

Wool - wash on hand wash cycle with dreft.

Scuttling off now to empty my washing machine

I have a 40 degree wash, when my basket is full, it all goes in.

All the work shirts and linen, go on at the end of the work week for my OH to iron on a friday.

The only time i split coloured from whites is if i have bought some new coloured stuff.

Towels, go in the main wash.

Only work stuff gets ironed. And not by me.

I only use bio washing powder or liquid

White- 40 plus I add napisan, helps to keep them bright and stain free

Coloureds- 40
Towels and sheets -60

Vanish spray every stain and leave for 10
Mins before washing

Napisan is an oxygen based bleach like vanish, just much cheaper. Good for soaking badly stained stuff I find. Usually with the baby stuff in the supermarket.

Try the cottons 40 degrees wash - that will clean your clothes more.

Check all labels. I do darks, whites and delicates. Delicates is all my work tops, which get put on 30. Everything else gets 40, or if I want it really clean (towels, bedding sometimes), 60.

Separate whites from other (otherwise they become sludge rather than white).

You don’t need to spin separately. I think Spin is there in case you have used some of the very wet non-spinny cycles.

Oh and any major stains get rubbed with laundry soap before going in.

I love a laundry thread!
I separate whited&lights, darks , brights and towels.
Wash everything at 40, apart from bedding at 60, towels at 90.
Don’t use fab cond on towels but add a few drops of Zoflora instead - which also freshens the drum.
Tumble dry towels for fluffiness

Yes a longer wash st 40 if stuff is grubby to give the powder a chance to work, delicates though may need a short 30 wash

Only thing I can add is that knickers, boxers etc should be washed at 60 to kill any bacteria etc.

I never use 30 or delicate except for my hand wash only stuff
40 cotton on a 1400 wash is best and I use for most stuff.
Bedding and towels I do on a 95 cotton wash
1800 spin.
White cotton shirts and socks I wash on a 60 cotton wash

I love this thread! I am also rubbish! I manage to still shrink stuff on a 40 wash! Or is this because I'm tumble drying everything?