Washing woes - how to solve those laundry mysteries. Photo / 123rf
The truth about why these things happen, and expert tips on what to do about them.
When you do laundry, you expect your clothes to come out cleaner and fresher, looking and feeling good. But that doesn’t always happen, and what you end up with is a load of frustrations.
Maybe some of your clothes emerge with mysterious spots or smells, or a strange texture. Maybe some (like socks) don’t come out at all. These things happen to everyone – even laundry pros.
Here’s a look at seven common laundry mysteries, the truth about what causes them, and what to do about them.
This can happen if you leave tissues in your pockets or you have a dirty lint filter (if your machine has one). Be sure to check pockets and remove tissues before running a cycle and clean the washer’s lint filter – which may be along the rim of the drum, or inside the centre agitator in top-loading machines – after each use, says Kristin DiNicolantonio, senior director of stakeholder communications at the American Cleaning Institute in Washington, DC. You can use a small brush or paper towel to remove the lint from the filter. (Also, make sure to clean your dryer’s lint screen after each cycle so lint doesn’t cling to clothes while they are drying.)
Another possibility is that you are mixing lint-shedding fabrics (such as terry cloth, fleece, flannel and chenille) and lint-attracting fabrics (such as polyester, nylon, microfiber and darker cotton clothing) in a load, says Emily Adams, manager at NW Maids House Cleaning Service in Seattle. “Lint-shedding fabrics release fibres during washing, [whereas] lint-attracting fabrics tend to hold on to loose fibres.” The solution: wash lint-shedding and lint-attracting items in separate loads.
This could be a sign of mildew or mould in your washing machine. “If my laundry is stinky when it gets out of the wash, it’s usually due to a combination of detergent residue buildup, mildew growth and a dirty washing machine,” says Barbara Stern, a textile and fabric expert at Ottoman Textiles in Manchester in the UK. “In high-efficiency washing machines, the small amount of water causes detergent and softener residues to build up in both the clothes and the washer drum. This buildup traps bacteria and mould spores and is responsible for that sour, musty odour.”
To remedy the problem, Stern recommends running a monthly cycle of hot water and two cups of white vinegar in the drum, without any clothes; then run a cycle with hot water and ½ cup of baking soda, put directly in the drum, to neutralise lingering odours.
A strange smell can also develop if you leave damp clothes in the washer too long, so “always remove clothes promptly and leave the [washer] door open to air it out,” Adams says.
“Holes, tears and snags could be caused by unfastened zippers, hooks and belt buckles that snag synthetic knits,” DiNicolantonio says. “To prevent this from happening, fasten zippers, buckles, hooks and eyes [on clothes] before adding them to the washer, and turn synthetic knits inside out to wash them.”
For particularly fragile fabrics, you may want to take the extra step of placing them in mesh wash bags and washing them in a gentle cycle without rough items, Stern says.
No, there isn’t a sock-eating monster in your machine. First, check to see if missing socks are trapped in other pieces of clothing or fitted sheets. If there’s no sign of them there, they may have become stuck between the drum and the rubber door seal in a front-loading washing machine or under the centre agitator in a top-loading machine, Stern says.
To prevent this, use a mesh laundry bag to keep socks corralled in the wash, DiNicolantonio says.
When this happens, the culprit is usually detergent residue combined with hard-water mineral deposits. “Hard water contains calcium and magnesium ions that attach to detergent molecules and leave a rough, chalky deposit on fabrics,” Stern says. “Too much detergent exacerbates the problem because the excess cannot be completely rinsed away.”
To get rid of stiffness, soak clean clothes in a solution of one gallon of warm water and one cup of white vinegar to dissolve the deposits, Stern suggests. Then, rinse them with clean water or put them through a rinse cycle in the machine.
To prevent this in the future: if you live in an area with hard water, “use the appropriate amount of detergent, consider adding a water softener [for laundry], and run an extra rinse cycle,” Adams says. Using a liquid detergent also can help because it may dissolve more easily, DiNicolantonio says.
White spots or streaks that are particularly noticeable on dark- or bright-coloured clothes could be from undissolved detergent, DiNicolantonio says. To prevent this, “make sure you add your detergent to the washer first, then add clothes and start the washer,” she says. “Also, make sure to use the right amount of detergent for the load size.”
Keep in mind that some powder detergents can combine with minerals in hard water to form a residue. “If this happens, add one cup of white vinegar to a gallon of warm water in a plastic container - soak the item and rinse it,” DiNicolantonio says. That should remove any spots.
“Athletic clothes can require a little more TLC,” DiNicolantonio says, because they can continue to harbour bacteria even after being washed. The persistent odour is most likely due to sweat, body oils and bacteria trapped within synthetic fabrics such as polyester, nylon and spandex.
A wash cycle with regular detergent may not break them down, Adams says. It helps to presoak smelly items for 30 minutes in a one-to-four solution of white vinegar to cool water to deodorise them; then wash them in warm water with an enzyme-based laundry detergent, Stern says.
If just part of a clean workout top – such as the underarm area – still stinks after it’s been washed, Patric Richardson, a laundry and cleaning expert based in Minnesota, recommends spraying the underarm areas with vodka and letting the shirt air-dry. “The vodka works because it is antibacterial and kills the germs that cause odour,” says Richardson, author of the book House Love: A Joyful Guide to Cleaning, Organizing, and Loving the Home You’re In. After spritzing the shirt with vodka, let it dry and you can wear it again – no rewashing required.