Cold Washing your Laundry

xnatalie81x

I have a hotpoint one too and it does a 25 degree wash as the coldest. Am going to try the soapnuts this week

Sunnyday

After reading this thread i went to have a look at my washing machine - guess what- there is a cold wash option that i never noticed before :eek:

I couldn`t resist, the nasty muddy dogs towels are in there now with MrM value washing powder and vinegar.
I`ll see how they fare, if it gets that lot clean there will be no looking back for me

SD

A_fiend_for_life

Greenwash? - sorry!

Sunnyday

Well the verdict is thumbs up, the towels are all perfectly clean with the exception of a small towelling cloth that i keep especially for paws.
The heated wash dosent always get that clean either.

I won`t be washing everything on a cold wash but shall start washing some things this way. The whites i shall keep to a hot wash but i shall start coldwashing some of the dark clothes.

Better in our pockets that the electricity companys

SD

chivers1977

Just found my Bosch has a Cold Delicates wash so can put the rinse hold on and then spin at a proper speed. Test to be carried out in the morning with Aldi non-bio liquid

MadMonkey

I slowly switched to 30 over time - initially i did the dark stuff, then after a few months tried the whites as any bad stains were not removed wih a 40 or 60 anyway.

I now wash everything at 30 - including bedding.

I use Aldi colour liquid or Daz powder for whites.

All my washing is clean - the only things that i get stains on are baby vests which need bleaching anyway regardless of the temperature !

We must be saving a fair bit on electricity as we used to wash at 40 for clothes and 60 for bedding.

My take on bedding is it gets washed every weeks and is never really dirty as we all have a shower before bed.

Only time bedding gets a 60 wash is if the kids have been sick or wet the bed.

champys

MadMonkey wrote: »

I slowly switched to 30 over time - initially i did the dark stuff, then after a few months tried the whites as any bad stains were not removed wih a 40 or 60 anyway.

I now wash everything at 30 - including bedding.

MadMonkey I have done exactly the same as you. Before I mostly washed on 40, and switching down another 10° does not make any difference at all. I may have a go at using soap nuts next.

HelenYorkshire

I use the 30 degree washing gel - but only because I'm convinced our washing machine is tempermental if not broken - and washing in cold water regardless of programme! Before that I only ever used 40 degrees with no problems.
Mr T's own brand powder doesn't dissolve in my current washer, so that's why I went for the gel.

blueberrypie

I wash most stuff at 30 degrees, and I've six sons, so it's not like my laundry pile is genteel, if you see what I mean...

I wash most towels at 30 too - but I only leave handtowels out in the bathrooms, so the big towels only get used after baths and showers when people are clean anyway - the hand-towels do get washed in a warm/hot wash. If something comes out of a cold wash with a stain still on it, I just put it back in again, or save it for the next time I wash nappies, which go through a cold pre-wash and then a hot wash. I very rarely need to use any kind of stain remover.

hazel_dewhurst

recently had to get a new washer and had been washing on a cold wash with the liquid detergent
the engineer told me that the liquid detergent sticks to the pipes and if you are only ever using a cold wash you can sometimes get a smelly washer (which i had been getting) as a build up of bacteria happens
he suggested using powder or tablets (and one one tablet for a full load if you are in a soft water area )and running a 60 degree wash to frsehen everything through occasionally

this seems to be working really well for us
also how dirty can most clothes be really?
most of the time they must be washed much too often

have not used my tumble dryer since november i bought a couple of big airing racks and am hoping to save on the bill