Laundry Tips, Tricks and Expert Advice: A Complete Guide

Whether you’re staring down a grisly stain or just doing a routine cleaning of the bedsheets, laundry can present a wide variety of challenges. Even the most savvy and confident laundry-doer can run up against seemingly formidable stains or an enigma of material care. Have no fear, WASH is here with expert laundry tricks and tips! We’ve got the essential laundry advice and resources to cover everything from helping you complete routine laundry tasks, to conquering dismal stains and complex materials.

Stain Removal
When it comes to stain removal, the first laundry tip is to act quickly. The second laundry trick is stop and think. Tending to a stain immediately after it occurs is your best chance of preventing lasting damage; however, acting too hastily can set a stain into the material with the heat of the water or dryer. Test all cleaning methods on an inconspicuous place to be sure the stain removal technique won’t harm the fabric. You can visit WASH’s stain treatment library for soil-specific laundry fixes, too!

What temperature do I wash this in?
As a quick temperature guide rule, you can usually use cold water with most modern detergents. Our expert laundry advice: Cold water uses less energy while providing a powerful clean, as most detergents are optimized for cold water washing. That’s not to say warm and hot temperatures don’t have their uses. As a general temperature guide, hot water is best left for removing very heavy soiling or sanitizing fabrics.

How to reduce wrinkles
Keeping clothing wrinkle free may seem like an absolute enigma to some, but proper laundry instructions and solutions can keep your clothing looking as crisp as they day you pulled it off the rack. There are two main pieces of laundry advice to follow when trying to reduce wrinkles. One, don’t overfill the drum – an overfull drum can not only decrease performance of the machine, but guarantees deep wrinkles. Two, to reduce wrinkles, remove clothing from the drum immediately after tumbling has completed for best results.

How often should you wash your sheets?
One of the most commonly asked questions regarding laundry is, “How often do I wash this?” And with good reason — who wants to sleep on a bacterial breeding ground? Our bed sheets see steady day-to-day use and soiling, especially if you sweat in your sleep. That said, bed sheets are best cleaned on a weekly basis to avoid dust mites or fungal growth. Staying on top of your bed linens is especially important to those with sensitive skin issues. Follow this expert laundry tip: Try not to ever allow more than two weeks between cleaning sheets for sanitary reasons.

How do I wash delicate items?
Laundering delicate items without compromising the material can feel like an impossible challenge for the uninitiated. Sure, silk is still best left to the dry cleaners, but that doesn’t mean all delicates must be dry cleaned. Checking the material care tag is best laundry advice you receive!

For washing delicate items, a mesh bag is a great investment to protect items from the mechanical trauma of the washing machine. If you find your wardrobe is littered with delicate items, a mesh bag offers an instant decrease in wear and tear during washing.

When preparing to dry delicate items, seek the manufacturer’s material care tags for input first and foremost. Many synthetics can lose their elasticity or shrink dramatically if exposed to excessive heat. Generally, delicate fabrics should not be placed in the dryer. Instead, hang these items to dry or even lay them flat. In a pinch, try this laundry trick: use multiple dry towels to expedite the drying process on delicate items.

Should I wash new clothes before wearing them?
You’ve just pulled an absolutely fabulous top off the rack, and a quick trip to the fitting room confirms your suspicions — it’s perfect! And just in time for your night out… right? Well, as it turns out, you should really wash new clothing before wearing them for any extended period of time. In fact, studies have shown that new clothing is actually much dirtier than they look, and it absolutely warrants at least one wash before wearing it.

According to Phillip Tierno, Professor of Microbiology and Pathology at New York University, clothes grabbed off the rack regularly tested positive for bacteria, viruses and even fecal germs. As if that wasn’t gross enough, many articles of clothing are treated with chemical finishes or dyes that are highly irritating to the skin. Those with sensitive skin may even have allergic reactions due to the chemicals present in unwashed clothing.

How do I best care for my white clothes and linens?
Our brightest whites can become dingy over time, and our most loved linens become stained with the side-effects of life. While many modern detergents are formulated to clean best in cold water, there are specific use cases where hot water is still king. Linens and white clothing are one of those excellent use cases. As always, check your material care tag before attempting any cleaning technique.

Linens have many paths to cleanliness, depending on material content and dyes. If you’re attempting to wash linens that have been soiled heavily, you should pre-wash them in cool water first to avoid setting the stain, followed by a hot water cycle. Linens from a sick person should always be handled minimally and washed with hot water to help disinfect them.

Getting bright whites is a bit of a different pony. Hot water can lead to expedited wear and tear, so you should opt for warm water on your favorite white clothing. Many laundry-doers are also using pods these days, which usually contain brighteners for glowing whites – and pods work best in warm or cold water too!

We hope you find these laundry tricks and tips useful. Visit wash.com for more expert laundry advice and connect with our socials to get the latest laundry hacks and a hamper full of laundry inspiration.