Help with white sheets

honeythewitch

DigForVictory wrote: »

Weather permitting, get them washed however you usually do, then out in the sunlight.
Which is remarkable potent stuff for cleaning, & smells glorious, & is distinctly MSE, just a bit rare....

I wonder if mine are brilliant white because I keep forgetting to bring them in?

audigex

pollypenny wrote: »

It really annoys me when washing instructions on cotton items say '40 degrees'.

Wash them at 60 regularly.

The problem there being (from a money saving point of view) that the cost of washing the sheets regularly at 60 is going to be higher than just replacing the sheets a little more often.

Using 60c over 40c is around a 50% increase in running cost - that adds up!

honeythewitch

audigex wrote: »

The problem there being (from a money saving point of view) that the cost of washing the sheets regularly at 60 is going to be higher than just replacing the sheets a little more often.

Using 60c over 40c is around a 50% increase in running cost - that adds up!

It is a huge difference, but house dust mites survive if the temperature is below sixty degrees.

audigex

honeythewitch wrote: »

It is a huge difference, but house dust mites survive if the temperature is below sixty degrees.

Sure, but dust mites themselves aren't actually a problem:

The bottom of this article says it better than I could, but essentially we don't care about a small number of dust mites (they're literally unavoidable), we care about some of the things they produce: those things are removed at 40 with detergent

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6669551.stm

The real solution is to wash at 60 occasionally and 40 the majority of the time. Also, if you don't wash then immediately re-use your sheets (like most of us, who will rotate through several sets), the dust mites will die off anyway due to lack of food.

honeythewitch

audigex wrote: »

Sure, but dust mites themselves aren't actually a problem:

The bottom of this article says it better than I could, but essentially we don't care about a small number of dust mites (they're literally unavoidable), we care about some of the things they produce: those things are removed at 40 with detergent

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6669551.stm

The real solution is to wash at 60 occasionally and 40 the majority of the time. Also, if you don't wash then immediately re-use your sheets (like most of us, who will rotate through several sets), the dust mites will die off anyway due to lack of food.

We could certainly take advantage of the freezing weather and kill the mites off on the washing line.

mardatha

I wasn't sure about washing them at 60 as it said 40 but am going to do this with bleach, as I have bleach here. I should have washed them today as its below zero and sunny but we were out! lol

janb5

Personally I wouldnt use bleach as it can rot the fabric.

carriebradshaw

bleach can make some whites go yellow-ish so I wouldn't risk it hen

WLITC

I have a similar issue. I have some lovely 600 thread count Cotten sheets from House of Fraser but they have gone really grubby but mainly at the head of the duvet. Sounds gross but I think it's sweat and grease (sebum). I was going to just buy new ones but they cost me around £130. What's the best way to clean them? I tried 60c wash once but it didn't do much (although not sure I used enough washing gel). Any thoughts on what to soak them in? Could leave them in the bath overnight soaked in something?

mardatha

Ok no bleach then ...ta !!