At what temperature do you wash towels?

lobbyludd

Spider_In_The_Bath wrote: »

Yeap - same for us. Everything goes in on 30 degrees.

The thing I always wonder about when questions like this are asked is 'salad'.

I have heard people say that they would not eat off a plate that was not blasted clean in a dishwasher, or that towels are dirty if not washed at 10000 oC, but what do these people do with salad? It grows in mucky soil (and probably chemicals), but it just get rinsed in cold water before eating. Surely if the salad is normally safe when washed in cold water (I know people have died from food poisoning from salad items before, but thankfully this is quite rare) then my knickers must be OK when washed at 30? :cool:

entirely different sorts of bacteria - the ones in soil thrive at soil temperatures, our bodies have evolved to cope with eating, the ones in our faeces thrive at body temperature (37 degrees) and are usually entirely viable in the range between 30 and 40 degrees.

warby68

missbiggles1 wrote: »

If you hang them up with the window open (summer) or on a heated towel rail/radiator (winter) they dry pretty quickly.

You are preaching to the converted

Unfortunately I live in a house of males who love bath sheets, showers and sport and strangely enough haven't mastered sensible towel hanging despite my best efforts and numerous rants. I fold in half lengthways which fits all 3 towel radiators in the house and hang up - when I demonstrate, I get puzzled frowns as if I was trying to get them to make an origami flamingo with the things. They certainly know how to raid the airing cupboard for fresh ones though when they don't fancy the crumpled stinky example they left earlier :mad:

Grr, can you tell its the end of the hols - had enough of teenage boys for one summer lol

Any

Bed sheets and occassional towel gets washed on 60C. Everything else goes on 40C (including towels most of the time).
Unless it's my fine stuff (blouses etc), which go on 30C.

Toomuchdebt

I was towels and bedding on 60 and sometimes on 90. Clothes on 40. My washing machine is old and I found washing at 30 made the clothes and washing machine smell.

aaroncaz

I try to do my towels on a 60 wash at least every couple of weeks, it's a longer cycle. I do this now after getting a new washing machine last year and the guy who delivered said a 60 wash would stop the rubber ring from going black/mouldy etc..... like my old machine, so far it has worked.

Dill

aaroncaz wrote: »

I try to do my towels on a 60 wash at least every couple of weeks, it's a longer cycle. I do this now after getting a new washing machine last year and the guy who delivered said a 60 wash would stop the rubber ring from going black/mouldy etc..... like my old machine, so far it has worked.

Yes, it is much better for the machine to do regular hot washes. (Also better to use washing powder instead of gel, which can gunk the machine up!)

I had my old machine for 6 years, and it never got mouldy.

Bogof_Babe

Don't you hot washers end up with a load of shrunken stuff?

I will now stop worrying when I accidentally wash an item at 40 when I meant to do it at 30.

We have had a couple of towels go "bow shaped" because the decorative band a few inches in from the edges shrank in the tumble dryer. I can't imagine a tumble dryer gets as hot as 90 degrees!

aaroncaz

Dill wrote: »

Yes, it is much better for the machine to do regular hot washes. (Also better to use washing powder instead of gel, which can gunk the machine up!)

I had my old machine for 6 years, and it never got mouldy.

That's right my delivery man also suggested this and I only use powder now and I don't bother with fabric conditioner either.

Dill

Bogof_Babe wrote: »

Don't you hot washers end up with a load of shrunken stuff?

I will now stop worrying when I accidentally wash an item at 40 when I meant to do it at 30.

We have had a couple of towels go "bow shaped" because the decorative band a few inches in from the edges shrank in the tumble dryer. I can't imagine a tumble dryer gets as hot as 90 degrees!

I rarely use the 30 degree cycle, I usually run the 40 for clothes. Maybe 30 for delicates or woollens.

I buy bedding that will take a 60 degree wash and tumble dry (I live in a flat, so can't dry them outside on the line). I also tend to buy the white towels that will take a hot wash rather than the more decorative ones :rotfl: I was given a microfibre towel and it washes ok at 60, but I don't bother tumble drying it as it dries so quickly just hanging up.

purpleybat

40 degrees. I have a skin condition so I shower lots, every 3 days they go throo.
bedding on the other hand goes throo on a 60wash every 3-4 days to shift greasy gloop I have to use