How to Choose the Water Temperature When Doing Laundry
Posted By Houston Decorator on September 19, 2010
If you’ve ever looked at all the knobs and buttons on your washing machine it can be a bit confusing to choose between so many different options. One of the options you will need to choose is the water temperature when washing your clothes. Learn how to choose the water temperature when doing laundry here, to get your clothes clean, without damaging them.
There are some preliminary matters you should understand when trying to make a decision about what temperature water to use when washing your clothes. There are some advantages and disadvantages to using either hot or cold water. Here are the pros and cons of using hot water while doing laundry:
- Pro – generally, hot water cleans and removes stains better from clothing than cold water. (The exception to this is protein based stains, such as blood, which are set by hot water.)
- Con – hot water is tougher on your clothes, making them wear and fade faster.
- Con – hot water costs more, because of the energy costs to heat it, than using cold water for laundry, meaning it also less environmentally friendly.
The pros and cons of cold water are basically just the opposite of the pros and cons of using hot water for washing your clothes. You will save money by using cold water because of lower energy bills and from less wear and tear on your clothing, but some of this savings may be offset by your need to buy special detergent formulated to dissolve and work well in cold water, especially if you have hard water in your area. In addition, your clothes will most likely not come out quite as clean, and may retain more stains than if you use hot water to wash.
Once you understand these pros and cons the main thing you need to consider when determining what water temperature to use when doing your laundry is what the clothing tags on the items you are washing say. Remember, you can always wash something in colder water than allowed, but I do not recommend washing any garment in hotter water than the care label says is safe.
On older tags the label might say something like “machine wash.” This statement, since it did not mention a specific temperature, means you can wash the clothing in whatever temperature you want, including hot. However, if the tag says something like “machine wash warm,” then the tag is saying the hottest water you should use is warm water, but not hot water.
Further, newer tags don’t always use words, but instead use symbols. Three dots inside the washing machine symbol means you can wash with hot water, which is defined as water that is 120 degrees Fahrenheit (or 50 degrees Celsius). Two dots inside the washing machine symbol means you can wash in warm water, which is defined as water that is 105 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius). Finally, one dot in the washing machine symbol means you should only wash this garment in cold water, which is defined as water that is 85 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius).
I hope that with this information you will be able to choose the water temperature when doing laundry, to effectively clean your clothes, save money and energy, and keep the clothing undamaged in the process.
Taylor Flanery writes at Household-Management-101.com where she discusses all the ins and outs of doing the laundry. You can learn even more about how to interpret and read laundry symbols and care labels on her website. In addition, you can also learn more tips and tricks for how to wash clothes in the washing machine, to get your clothes clean and stain free.
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