30 minute wash?

bundly

I've always used a long wash in my laundry machine, about 2 hours or more, but the other day I wondered whether I could use just the 30 minute wash cycle.

There are no kids in the house, jusr four adults whose laundry consists of underwear worn once and outer clothes worn two or three times, bedding etc all only lightly used by clean people.

Is there any reason not to use the 30 minute cycle? Seems it could save me a lot of money.

Hintza

Easiest thing to do is give it a go and then adjust as required.

happy35

i wash nearly all our clothes on the 45 minute cycle apart from white stuff, i find it fine and our clothes are always clean

I do have a 15 minute cycle on the machine but rarely use this as it spins at a lower level so clothes take longer to dry, they do look clean but I would use this more for freshening than washing clothes

VfM4meplse

bundly wrote: »

Is there any reason not to use the 30 minute cycle? Seems it could save me a lot of money.

Depends whether it is the same, or a more aggressive wash to compensate for the time saving?

TimBuckTeeth

I assume it is similar on most machines but a 30 minute cycle on mine only uses 30C wash temperature, less rinsing and a slow spin speed to save time. It might be OK for freshening up clothes but I would not use it as the clothes will need more drying.
Even clean people are covered in bacteria. I like to wash towels, bedding and underwear at 60C to kill bacteria, and as modern washing machines use less water I use an a extra rinse to remove detergent residue.
As most washing machines are cold fill only now, heating the water from cold uses the most power during a wash, so choosing a lower temperature does save energy. The spin uses some power, but the slow agitating of the washing uses relatively little power.

cattie

I tend to use the shorter 'economy' wash setting on my machine the most as there is just me in the house now & clothes are changed regularly, showers taken every day, so I don't see the need to use a long & high temperature cycle on every wash. Probably once a month I ensure I give the bedding & towels a wash on a longer cycle with higher temperature, and if there is a stain on clothing it will go in for the longer cycle also. I can't say I've noticed my clothes or linens are any less clean since choosing to use the economy setting rather than the longer cycles on each & every wash. It helps to keep my electricity bills down without sacrificing cleanliness is how I see it.

I can select the spin speed on my machine for all cycles, so no problems about clothes coming out too wet on the economy setting.

Norman_Castle

On my washing machine the 30 min quick wash plus a long spin costs 6p and a 40 degree wash which includes the long spin costs 10p.

Brallaqueen

thnaks for the post, I haven't even thought of using this cycle for my T-shirts and over layers that don't get too mucky - I will try this next time.

Miss_Ratty

I always use the 30 minute "quick wash" setting on all of our clothes. Even when my jeans get really mucky from walking the dog I find it is fine. . I just use the other settings for towels and bedding to get a higher temperature wash and occasionally use the other settings if my hubby gets the old grubby stains around the neck of his shirts - but usually I find this setting is fine. Just try it out for a few washes and see how it is as everyone's machine is probably different. Its so handy though as I often find that if I do a long wash I forget about the clothes and end up having to wash them again...if its the half hour one I can do it when I'm making dinner or getting ready for work and I tend not to forget!

elsien

I use the thirty minute wash for most things. My washing machine gives the option of setting whatever temperature I like, so I do things like my whites on the 30 minutes but put them at 40 or 60 degrees, whereas things that I've only worn once I do at 30 degrees.
The only time I use the longer wash is if something is seriously festering, like my gardening clothes.

lollipopsarah

Yep a 30 min wash is fine, (Ihate to think how much it cost me over the years before trying the shorter wash) just use less detergent (and lets be honest here, you only need a full dose if your washing is really dirty).
The only time I use a long wash is for sheets/whites if really mucky.
What I can't figure out is how I seem to be washing every day now, when I don't remember so often when the kids were young, or am I just getting old? hey ho!
xx