10 Common Laundry Mistakes That’ll Ruin Your Clothes: Don’t Make These Mistakes!
Washing machines and dryers make it easier for us to clean clothes and other fabric items easier. You may think you can just toss them in the machines, and they’ll come out sparkling clean and perfectly dry every time.
However, there are certain things everyone must follow when putting fabric items in these machines. Neglecting these essential instructions can cause damage to your clothes and other items and make your machines smelly, sometimes causing breakages too.
Some of these common laundry mistakes that’ll ruin your clothes are using too much detergent, not sorting out your laundry, and using high temperatures. Don’t forget to read the washing instructions on the label of your clothing and fabric items!
10 Common Laundry Mistakes You Need to Avoid
1. Closing Doors of Front-Loader Washing Machines
One of the most common laundry mistakes that’ll ruin your clothes is closing the front loader door immediately after washing clothes. Doing this will keep the internal environment of the washing machine wet, garnering bacteria and smell over time as it couldn’t dry properly.
This brings us to the next common mistake people make: not cleaning the washing machine properly, frequently, or at all.
2. Not Cleaning the Washing Machine Properly
Another common and crucial mistake is not cleaning the parts of your washing machine properly. This also includes the lint filter, which gathers lint after every wash, making it a fire hazard. The washing machine also collects dirt, molds, and soap over time, which can develop a rotten smell.
You may also get damp or burning smells, and your washing machine may smell like sewage sometimes. When a washing machine stinks, you should take it as an indicator to thoroughly clean it with DIY remedies and expert help.
3. Pouring the Wrong Amount of Detergent
or excess detergent can do more harm than good. Instead of cleaning the clothes thoroughly, it makes them sticky from the extra soapy froth, thus attracting more dirt and bacteria.
If the detergent loader has measurement marks on it, follow it for proper measurements. This will ensure you always use the right amount of detergent for your laundry.
4. Not Unbuttoning and Unzipping the Clothes
People often forget to zip up clothes before tossing them in for washing. Due to the jagged shape of zippers, they can tug on other clothes, essentially ruining them. The same reason applies to clothing items with hooks, such as bras.
You may think you must button up shirts for the same reason; however, it’s the opposite. Not unbuttoning the shirts before tossing them in for washing can significantly damage the button sewing and the buttonholes.
Being careful about these will ensure you take proper care of your clothes, especially your must-have fashion items.
5. Not Sorting Out the Laundry
Not sorting out the laundry is another big misstep, creating issues like friction of heavy clothes with delicate materials or static by woolen clothes. Sometimes, colors can bleed while washing, ruining light-colored items.
Group your laundry by fabric type and color to ensure proper washing, such as sorting out bedsheets, towels, sweaters, jeans, cotton materials, etc. It’ll also save you drying time. Also, avoid putting delicate materials, athletic wear, and elastic materials in the dryer.
6. Not Emptying the Pockets of the Clothes
Many of us forget we have something in our pockets and toss our pants or shirts with filled-up pockets in laundry baskets. One of the most common issues this creates is ink stains on the fabrics, and it may even damage any valuable item you may have left in your pockets. If you have abrasive items in your pockets, they can tear your clothes too.
7. Not Reading the Laundry Label on Clothes
Most clothes come with instructions on how to wash and dry them and what to avoid. Sometimes, people assume they know how to wash and dry a particular fabric, thus avoiding reading the label.
The label can contain washing and drying instructions based on the type of color, the material, the elements used, decorations, etc. These can create certain limitations, and not reading the label can severely damage the fabrics and the machine.
8. Using High-Temperature
Fabrics can require different washing temperatures depending on the material. For some, cold or room-temperature water is perfect, such as beach-fashion attires, while for others, lukewarm water is ideal for washing.
However, some people mistakenly wash clothes in very high temperatures, damaging the fabric’s texture. Clothes and other items can shrink, fade, roughen up, or lose elasticity in high-temperature water, making them unusable.
9. Overstuffing the Machine
You’re making a huge mistake if you try to wash too many clothes at once to cut down on the washing time. Washing machines have a specific capacity that they can take at a time. Overstuffing them will give you poor performance and may even break while trying to wash all the items using the normal washing cycles.
This is one of the reasons you must not overfill your dryer as well. Besides, too many items in the dryer won’t dry the clothes properly, leaving you with a damp mess.
10. Not Treating Stains Timely and Properly
If you want to clean stained clothes or other fabric items in the washing machine, don’t just toss them in the washing machine and hope to be clean. You must first treat the stain to soften it up. Also, don’t let the stain sit untreated for too long. Otherwise, it’ll be difficult to clean it properly.
Final Thoughts
Remembering this list will help you avoid common laundry mistakes that’ll ruin your clothes otherwise. Follow them carefully, and you’ll be able to care for your clothes, bedding, towels, and other fabric items properly and make them last longer.
Clean your washing machine and dryer timely, segment washing items according to fabric, and ensure the proper amount of detergent and washing temperature.
This was it for today. Hope you will find the article worth reading. Excited to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
Have a Good Day!
