Since everyone (except Donald Trump) does laundry, tips and techniques have been passed around for generations. Some of the tips are pure myth. Here are ten laundry myths debunked.
Specific questions? Just ask here.
1. Use Hair Spray to Remove Ink
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2. Add Coffee to Rinse Water to Keep Clothes Black
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I had not heard this myth until recently but a reader was convinced that adding a cup of black coffee to the rinse water would prevent black jeans from fading. It would take a washer-full of espresso to make a difference in the color of black jeans. Coffee can color fabric and I've used it to dye some white or off-white fabric. But add one cup will not keep your black clothes from fading.
3. Use More Detergent to Get Cleaner Clothes
More is not better when it comes to laundry detergent. We are all quite guilty of using too much detergent and creating suds that actually redeposit soil onto our clothing when they don't get rinsed away efficiently.
Many detergent caps make it difficult to see measuring lines. Take time to use a permanent marker to enhance those lines. You'll save money and get cleaner laundry. It is also a good idea to use half as much detergent as recommended and see if you are pleased with the results. You can always add more but you can never pull it out.
4. Treat All Stains From the Front
As tempting as it is to tackle the stain on the front of your garment, turn it inside out and start there. By treating a stain from the back of the fabric, you are pushing the stain out of the fabric fibers rather than rubbing it in deeper.
5. Chlorine Bleach Boosts Detergent Power
Chlorine bleach and detergents can actually cancel each other out. To allow the enzymes in the laundry detergents time to do their job of whitening and brightening, wait about 5 minutes after the wash cycle begins to add your diluted bleach. Chlorine bleach can also be added to the rinse cycle.
Want to boost bleach's whitening power? Add baking soda!
6. Hot Water Kills All Laundry Germs
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Unfortunately, hot water does not kill all germs and bacteria. Washing clothing or linens of someone who is ill can spread the germs throughout the entire washer whether you use hot water or cold. Only a disinfectant like chlorine bleach will sanitize the laundry and the washer.
7. High Dryer Heat Causes Shrinking
This is a bit of the which came first, the chicken or the egg myth. Fabric shrinkage is most often caused by the lack of moisture in fibers. Lack of moisture comes from overdrying. Clothing should be removed from the dryer while still slightly damp if shrinkage is a concern.
8. Dryer Lint is No Big Deal
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The only problems with never cleaning out the dryer lint filter is that lint blocks air flow and prevents clothing from drying quickly, ruins energy efficiency and can cause a fire. Other than these things, it really is no big deal. You can always use the lint to create paper one day!
9. Dry Cleaning is 100% Dry
Dry cleaning is a bit of misnomer. Water isn't used but other fluids are. Traditional dry cleaning used perchlorethylene and other solvents. Even Green Dry Cleaners use silicone fluids and liquid carbon dioxide in their processes.
10. The Sock Monster is Real
Have you ever met the Sock Monster? Most missing socks are not even "eaten" by the washer or dryer. (You would know if a sock got into the motor of either one pretty quickly.)
Most socks disappear between leaving the foot and the hamper. Check behind your machines for a stash that has fallen. Check also the inside of pant legs for those secret clingers.
Keep a basket or bin or mesh bag in the laundry for all those extra socks. Have a sorting and matching party once per month. Or just do what I did, buy your children only one kind of socks so they all match!
