Laundry Issues

[Joe]

Not sure that this is the right place to post this, but I wanted to have a thread dealing with laundry issues.

One question that I have deals with washing laundry in "cold" water*, and the use of coldwater detergents.
The thing is that there is only one detergent that promotes itself as being formulated for cold water--Coldwater Tide.

I asked my friend Karen, a retired chemist, if there is anything "special" about Coldwater Tide making it better for use in cold water than any other liquid laundry detergent. She replied:

No, Tide is trying to backpedal on its historical image of hot water + detergent = cleaner laundry. IF they have changed anything, they may have added more "brighteners" (adds a modicum of uv-reflection, makes whites look whiter)...or perhaps increase the amount of water softener to counteract hard water in areas afflicted with a lot of limestone. I suspect all they have done is reduce the particle size, so more gets dissolved. Heat is not a factor for sodium and calcium carbonate dissolution, and phosphates would "like" smaller particle size as well.

I do find it odd that while there is Coldwater Tide, there is no Coldwater [Any-Other-Brand], at least not that I know of.

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*I believe that cold water is defined for this purpose as water in the 70-85 degree F range [21-30 degrees C] (which is more like lukewarm water).

 

[Joe]

Found a good article with more information, so I need to revise some of the statements in my earlier post.

Cold-Water Detergents Get a Cold Shoulder

The article says that coldwater detergents are quite good, objectively speaking, but consumers are still very skeptical.
Of Coldwater Tide it says:

So the company[Procter & Gamble] set its scientists loose to find new chemicals to compensate, and what they came up with was a detergent, Tide Coldwater, with different enzymes and surfactants that work better in cold water.

And there are other brands of coldwater detergent: Purex, Persil, Wisk and Biokleen.

Consumer Reports rated Coldwater Tide highly, but its competitors less so.

 

[Amy SF]

All I know is that using cold water (and less heat in the dryer) is supposed to be better than hot water and more heat in the dryer because it protects clothes better. I've always been concerned that cold water doesn't clean as well as hot water, but now I'm not so sure.

(My mother always insisted that regardless of whether I use cold or hot water for clothing, whenever I wash dirty sheets, towels and rags, I must use hot water because it disinfects better than cold water.)

 

[shyvas]

I only ever use cold water plus liquid detergent to wash clothes. Not only do they come up very clean but the colours always stay bright.

 

[Joe]

All I know is that using cold water (and less heat in the dryer) is supposed to be better than hot water and more heat in the dryer because it protects clothes better. I've always been concerned that cold water doesn't clean as well as hot water, but now I'm not so sure.

I looked in the supermarket at liquid detergents, and some of them supposedly designed for cold water were not there, or at least said nothing on the bottle about use in cold water. Wisk had one sentence on the bottle in small type that said "cleans effectively, even in cold water." OxyClean liquid said something like, for normal loads, fill to level 1 in cap, but fill to level 3 if washing in cold water. In other words, use three times as much detergent if washing in cold.

Purex and Persil were on the shelves, but said nothing about cold water washing. Biokleen was not stocked.

 

[Joe]

(My mother always insisted that regardless of whether I use cold or hot water for clothing, whenever I wash dirty sheets, towels and rags, I must use hot water because it disinfects better than cold water.)

An interesting point. I never really thought of that.

 

[Moll Flanders]

I usually use the hot wash, maybe that is why my clothes always get so faded.

 

[Joe]

I usually use the hot wash, maybe that is why my clothes always get so faded.

I typically follow the "use and care" instructions on the clothing tag. But I've only used cold water when the tag so instructed.
I am rethinking that habit now.

Most of my clothing tags say wash in warm water, which I have been doing. I almost never wash clothes in actual hot water.

 

[Chryssie]

I wash pretty much everything in cold water except cat "accidents" towels! I have been using standard detergents; I have never bought special cold water detergent. I try to get the most environmentally friendly brands that I can afford.

 

[Joe]

Here's another question: most of my shoes are athletic type shoes and are all man made materials. I was thinking I might put them in the washing machine. Good idea? Bad idea? My chemist friend Karen says she thinks there is probably a lot of glue in the shoes. Maybe I should just wash them by hand in the sink. What do you think?

 

[Chryssie]

I have washed numerous sneakers in the washer in cold water. If you are unsure, maybe the manufacturer has guidelines.

 

[Joe]

I have washed numerous sneakers in the washer in cold water.

Thanks for the info.

 

[KLS52]

I also have washed sneakers numerous times but I'm not sure as to what materials they are made out of. I usually throw them in with a couple of towels so they don't bang around so much.

 

[Joe]

I also have washed sneakers numerous times but I'm not sure as to what materials they are made out of. I usually throw them in with a couple of towels so they don't bang around so much.

The towels are a good idea to cut down on noise. However, if the towels are dirty and need washing, I would tend to wash them in warm water, regular cycle. The sneakers/athletic shoes I would tend to wash in cold water, gentle cycle. So these two components don't quite "jibe." Unless you mean throwing in clean towels simply for the purpose of noise reduction.

 

[KLS52]

The towels are a good idea to cut down on noise. However, if the towels are dirty and need washing, I would tend to wash them in warm water, regular cycle. The sneakers/athletic shoes I would tend to wash in cold water, gentle cycle. So these two components don't quite "jibe." Unless you mean throwing in clean towels simply for the purpose of noise reduction.

Yes, clean towels for just that purpose.

 

[Joe]

Some other odds and ends of my nutty ways of doing laundry.

I have condiment bottles--plastic squeezable bottles that come to conical points. These are usually used for squirting ketchup or mustard on a hot dog/veggie dog. But I fill these with liquid detergent and squirt it on stain spots that need treating. I let these sit or soak for ten minutes or so before washing.

Another product I like is Clorox Precision Pour Gel Bleach. Again, just squirt it where it is needed. Less bleach is used than if you tried to do the same thing with liquid bleach, and this is better for the environment IMO.

I do use powdered detergent, especially when washing in warm (or hot) water, but I find the boxes too heavy to handle. So I use these Tupperware containers to store the detergent, the kind that are mostly designed and used for storing and pouring breakfast cereal. I use a fairly large flour scoop to shovel the powdered detergent from the box to the Tupperware container.

 

[Joe]

Yes, clean towels for just that purpose.

Very smart.

 

[Mischief]

I use cold water to wash everything except kitchen dishcloths. Those I soak for a while in a bleach solution and then wash hot.

I get pretty grungy on a regular basis, what with taking care of outdoor animals in all weathers, and I've never had an issue getting clothes clean in cold water. I do pre-treat stains, and I use a soak/wash cycle.

I pre-treat blood stains with hydrogen peroxide. For ink stains, I use hairspray. For most other stains I use Resolve Laundry Stain Remover Pre Treat, Stain Stick.

For just regular dirt (caked mud, etc., ) I find that using the soak/wash cycle is sufficient.

 

[Joe]

I get pretty grungy on a regular basis, what with taking care of outdoor animals in all weathers, and I've never had an issue getting clothes clean in cold water. I do pre-treat stains, and I use a soak/wash cycle.

...

For just regular dirt (caked mud, etc., ) I find that using the soak/wash cycle is sufficient.

Unfortunately, my washing machine does not have a soak/wash cycle. It's my understanding that this is a premium feature on washing machines. Also, from what I've read, these soak/wash cycles can run from an hour and fifteen minutes to over two hours. I think if I were faced with a situation that would need this, I would just wash the same load twice.

 

[Calliegirl]

I use the normal cycle for just about everything; I think it's a warm wash and cold rinse. I only use the hot settings when I wash the dog blankets because one of them pees/marks on them constantly. I try not to use hot water on my clothes as they are already showing signs of wear.

I use a powdered, scent free, dye free, detergent for everything.