Boil a t-shirt to kill viruses?

Spoonie_Turtle

cj2011 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

cj2011 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

I think your towels (or T-shirt?) have not been exposed to anything as potentially awful as medical linen has!

Probably not but some of my clothes are second hand and I do have asthma.

Most of my clothes are second-hand a normal wash should be fine, it's only really if you have any specific concerns (I dunno, worn around a farm?) or have come into contact with anything particularly grubby. Saying that, I think a 60℃ wash has always done us fine, even with blood, chicken poop, poisonous plant debris, etc.!

It was for specific concerns. I've been fine at 40 or 60 too so far, but seeing what's been happening in Italy, makes you wonder whether you may have had contaminated droplets from other people that have landed on some of your clothes (not that they would have landed directly on my towels but there's definitely other stuff on those). I guess I should wash my outdoor jacket more frequently but I think the waterproof coating can't really take much more than 40.

Yes, I guess the specific concern was the current corona virus? In which case, you're fine with soap I meant other specific concerns like having been directly contaminated by the results of food poisoning (bacteria) or something like that. But seriously, with this particular virus (because it's an enveloped virus - hence, 'corona') soap really is all you need

hollydays

Tumble dryer will kill viruses, whatever temperature you wash at.

John_

cj2011 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Just wash it in soapy water - washing up liquid will do it. Hot water will kill any bacteria, but for this virus in particular soap is best because it dismantles the virus and 'kills' it. The constituent parts can do nothing, but rinsing will wash them away anyway.

"Because the soap molecules are so similar to the ones making up the outer layer of the virus, the molecules in the lipid bilayer are as strongly attracted to soap molecules as they are to each other.

This disrupts the neatly-ordered shell around the virus, dissolving it in the running water and killing the virus."

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sciencefocus.com/news/coronavirus-can-hand-washing-really-stop-the-spread-of-covid-19

Doesn't laundry liquid contain soap? The towels in question have already been washed with laundry liquid but I've read quite a few articles saying that washing at 60 doesn't get rid of all bacteria and viruses even if they look clean to the naked eye (some of my towels also start to smell slightly as soon as I start using them). Are you saying hand soap or washing up liquid should work better than laundry liquid?
"Hot water will kill any bacteria". Depends on how hot! Tap water never gets hot enough.

This is true, but presumably you don’t care about “all” viruses and bacteria, you care about Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, the virus which causes COVID-19, which is killed with warm soapy water.

hollydays

John_ said:

cj2011 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Just wash it in soapy water - washing up liquid will do it. Hot water will kill any bacteria, but for this virus in particular soap is best because it dismantles the virus and 'kills' it. The constituent parts can do nothing, but rinsing will wash them away anyway.

"Because the soap molecules are so similar to the ones making up the outer layer of the virus, the molecules in the lipid bilayer are as strongly attracted to soap molecules as they are to each other.

This disrupts the neatly-ordered shell around the virus, dissolving it in the running water and killing the virus."

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sciencefocus.com/news/coronavirus-can-hand-washing-really-stop-the-spread-of-covid-19

Doesn't laundry liquid contain soap? The towels in question have already been washed with laundry liquid but I've read quite a few articles saying that washing at 60 doesn't get rid of all bacteria and viruses even if they look clean to the naked eye (some of my towels also start to smell slightly as soon as I start using them). Are you saying hand soap or washing up liquid should work better than laundry liquid?
"Hot water will kill any bacteria". Depends on how hot! Tap water never gets hot enough.

This is true, but presumably you don’t care about “all” viruses and bacteria, you care about Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, the virus which causes COVID-19, which is killed with warm soapy water.

Washing your clothes at 30 will not kill viruses

Spoonie_Turtle

hollydays said:

John_ said:

cj2011 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Just wash it in soapy water - washing up liquid will do it. Hot water will kill any bacteria, but for this virus in particular soap is best because it dismantles the virus and 'kills' it. The constituent parts can do nothing, but rinsing will wash them away anyway.

"Because the soap molecules are so similar to the ones making up the outer layer of the virus, the molecules in the lipid bilayer are as strongly attracted to soap molecules as they are to each other.

This disrupts the neatly-ordered shell around the virus, dissolving it in the running water and killing the virus."

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sciencefocus.com/news/coronavirus-can-hand-washing-really-stop-the-spread-of-covid-19

Doesn't laundry liquid contain soap? The towels in question have already been washed with laundry liquid but I've read quite a few articles saying that washing at 60 doesn't get rid of all bacteria and viruses even if they look clean to the naked eye (some of my towels also start to smell slightly as soon as I start using them). Are you saying hand soap or washing up liquid should work better than laundry liquid?
"Hot water will kill any bacteria". Depends on how hot! Tap water never gets hot enough.

This is true, but presumably you don’t care about “all” viruses and bacteria, you care about Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, the virus which causes COVID-19, which is killed with warm soapy water.

Washing your clothes at 30 will not kill viruses

But washing it with soap at any temperature will dismantle the virus everyone's currently worried about ...

silverwhistle

Soap should be enough (hence the advice on hand washing) but the other advantage of  60 a degree wash is that the t-shirt will shrink so much you won't be able to get it on again anyway..

couriervanman

cj2011 said:

Martin_the_Unjust said:

If you fill your sink full of hot water from the tap then put your washing up bowl in the water before pouring your boiling water into it then it will stay hotter longer.

Manxmans suggestion is the better option though.

Isn't it rare to find a washing machine that does boil wash? I haven't come across one in the last 10 years for sure. I use a laundrette and the machines are less than 5 years old and definitely don't have that programme.

Just bought a new Bosch couple of months ago and it has 90 degree wash on it

hollydays

Yes I've got a miele it's the same. I use that setting for white cotton bedding

avoidtheupsidedownbottles

cj2011 said:

Manxman_in_exile said:

Can't you do what they call a "boil wash" (probably 90 degrees C) in a washing machine?  I would have thought that would be hot enough.

Is it really necessary?

I use a laundrette and if they had a boil wash programme, I would have used that for towels and sheets occasionally (not each time I washed them, but probably after a cold). But anything over 60 degrees seems rare nowadays.

Launderette machines don't have heaters - they rely on hot water being fed to them.  For a 'hot wash' they take in just from the hot supply; for 'warm wash' they take in hot and cold, and obviously just cold for the cold wash.

cj2011

hollydays said:

Tumble dryer will kill viruses, whatever temperature you wash at.

I don't have one. Would have to be the hottest setting in that case.