Tips to Slay Those Laundry Demons Forever
Who doesn’t have a few laundry demons that need slaying? Whether it is dirty clothes cluttering bedrooms, garments with funky odors from sitting too long in the washer, shrinking items, turning whites pink, setting-in stains or having a perennial ‘picking basket’ of slightly rumpled laundry that never gets put away, you’re in the right place! We have an end-to-end plan for getting the laundry done efficiently and effectively every time:
1. Catch and carry: Prevent dirty laundry from ever hitting the floor by having an adequate and strategically located supply of easy-to-carry hampers or baskets to catch dirty garments when they are removed.
2. Sort, sort, then sort again: Laundry needs three basic sorting systems:
- The first sort is for the wash cycle — regular, heavy-duty or delicate. Women’s undergarments, loosely woven sweaters and so forth typically need delicate cycles. Many dry clean-only items can be safely added to these loads as long as you hang or lay them flat to dry. Sturdier fabrics — denims, cottons and most synthetics can typically withstand regular- or heavy-duty cycles, depending on fabric weight.
- The second sort is for color, mainly to guard against bleeding of fabric dyes from darker to lighter clothes. Sort into three piles: dark, medium (which includes white/color mixes), and pure white. Some dark clothes will cease to bleed after many washes, at which time they can be safely mixed with your medium pile (but never with the pure white pile).
- The third sort is for temperature, which often (but not always) follows color lines, with pure whites typically using hot water, mediums taking warm and darks preferring cold.
3. If you are doing laundry for multiple people, you might also consider sorting by person as this greatly eases folding- and putting-away tasks at the far end of the laundry cycle.
4. Load items one at a time into the washer. As you go, turn things right side out to ensure the dirtiest parts get maximum exposure to detergent (unless concerned about fading, in which case, turn or leave inside out), unroll sleeves/cuffs, check and empty pockets, inspect for and pre-treat stains, zip-up zippers (to cut down on noise and potential for damage to your washer basin) and ensure that each sock has a mate going into the washer. These actions not only save time when folding and putting away but also ensure that each item swishes or tumbles freely throughout the wash cycle, maximizing clean.
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