Do You Really Need To Separate Whites And Colors In The Laundry?

Love it or hate it, doing laundry is a necessary chore that needs to be accomplished. But, even if you take the time to read the washing directions on every piece of garment you own, can you be expected to cater to the exact cleaning needs of every item of clothing you have? That is why it might help to know a little bit more about how to properly wash your clothes in order to get the best results.

The washing machine you use has three main settings where you can personalize how to wash your clothing. First, you can set the cycle length to match how long you need your items to spend in the washing machine. For regular washes, The New York Times recommends choosing the shortest setting. This will ensure that your clothing doesn't undergo any unnecessary wear and tear. Next, the speed of your cycle determines how fast the washing cycle should spin. From "delicate" to "regular," you will find that a slower spin can help reduce the number of wrinkles in your clothes.

Generally, sticking with a "fast or slow" can give you a quick wash with a slow spin cycle. Last is the setting that regulates the temperature of the water. Washing at colder temperatures can help extend the life of your items by not fading the materials. Higher temperatures are reserved for more powerful cleaning and can be more beneficial for white clothing or heavily soiled garments.

Doing laundry can be frustrating and time-consuming for a simple task. In addition, with so many different types of clothing made from various fabrics in every color on the spectrum, it could leave you scratching your head as to how to clean each item properly. One big question is whether it's necessary to separate white clothing from your dark garments when washing them? The answer varies depending on the materials.

With regards to colorful clothing made from more natural materials such as cotton, silk, or linen, they might need to be washed with other dyed clothing. This is because the color may bleed while being washed, and if you don't want your white clothes to take on pinkish shades of a red shirt, it would be wise to wash in separate loads.

However, according to The Washington Post, newer synthetic materials like polyester, nylon, and acrylic may not have the same effect when going through the wash cycle. That means they may be perfectly fine to wash alongside your white laundry.

So if you are dealing with more natural fibers, splitting your loads into lights and darks could be safer. However, if your closet consists of synthetic materials, amalgamating your laundry loads could be perfectly safe; just be sure to stick to washes in colder water on a shorter cycle to get the most wear out of your clothing.