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4 Laundry Myths to Ditch Today

LAUNDRY TIPS

Clean clothes are important to everybody, so you would think that by now everyone would be basically in agreement on how best to get their clothes clean. The reality is that there are persistent myths about cleaning clothes that are like stubborn stains; they just don’t seem to go away. Are you still being fooled by persistent laundry myths? Take a look at the truth about some common laundry myths so that you can keep your clothes in great shape.

Myth One: Adding Coffee to the Wash Prevents Black Clothes From Fading

Depending on your job and schedule, both laundry and coffee might be very important parts of your day. That doesn’t mean that you should mix the two.

A persistent laundry myth that keeps making the rounds is the idea that adding a cup of coffee to your load of black clothing will help keep your black clothes from becoming faded. Coffee can be used in dyes, but dumping coffee in the washing machine won’t have any real effects on your black jeans.

Truth One: Instead, keep your black clothes from fading by washing them in cool water and choosing a detergent that’s made for dark colors.

Myth Two: Hot Water Gets Clothes Cleaner

There are some specific reasons to use hot water when you’re doing laundry. Use hot water on things like sheets and pillowcases, on very soiled items like gym clothes, and on clothing that specifies that it needs to be washed in hot water. For everything else, cold or warm water is fine.

Today’s washing machines are designed to get clothes clean in cooler water, and in many cases, hot water doesn’t make any difference to the laundry itself. However, it does make a difference to your electric bill, and to anyone in the house who is trying to take a hot shower while you’re doing the laundry.

Truth Two: Save your money and your hot water and wash your clothes in cold or warm water.

Myth Three: Scrub Stains From the Outside

When you pre-treat stains before washing, it makes intuitive sense to scrub the stains from the outside, where the spill occurred. However, this is a mistake. You’re actually rubbing the stain into the fabric fibers.

Truth Three: You should scrub the stain from the inside of the garment. That way, you push the stain out of the fabric fibers, making it easier for the wash cycle to lift the stain out.

Myth Four: Hairspray Takes Out Ink Stains

This is a myth that had some basis in fact at one time. Alcohol-based hairsprays could help lift ink out of fabrics.

Truth Four: Today’s hairsprays are made differently, and many don’t even contain alcohol at all. The chemicals that they do contain can actually make the stain worse instead of helping to remove it.

If you’re tired of trying to sort out myth from fact when it comes to your laundry, why not let the professionals at Tide Cleaners take some of it off of your hands? To find out more about how Tide Cleaners can help you get your laundry done the right way, download the Tide Cleaners app an get your first order started today.