Washing at 30 degrees centigrade

[Digby]

Does anyone here, like me, disbelieve polyester & cotton clothes can be properly washed (in that, they are made clean) at 30 degrees centigrade? There has been a big push over here for people to wash at 30, but for anything that gets even remotely dirty/sweaty, I don't believe anything under 50 degrees works at cleaning.

Smells can be masked by using huge amounts of washing powder, but it is somewhat revolting and overpowering smelling someone who has used 3 times the washing powder to wash their clothes. I believe some of this must be a result of low temperature washes.

Any chemists want to weigh in with the science on this?

 

[Digby]

By the way, this isn't exactly a fun topic, but as I'm no longer 'addicted to fun and learning' and am instead a 'major contributor', I thought it was high time I took my position on this forum a bit more seriously.

 

[Doodski]

Does anyone here, like me, disbelieve polyester & cotton clothes can be properly washed (in that, they are made clean) at 30 degrees centigrade? There has been a big push over here for people to wash at 30, but for anything that gets even remotely dirty/sweaty, I don't believe anything under 50 degrees works at cleaning.

Smells can be masked by using huge amounts of washing powder, but it is somewhat revolting and overpowering smelling someone who has used 3 times the washing powder to wash their clothes. I believe some of this must be a result of low temperature washes.

Any chemists want to weigh in with the science on this?

I use Tide Cold Wash in warm water for my poly clothes (Most of my clothing is poly for longevity, a short drying cycle and for the comfort.) and then very hot for the socks and underwear. The Tide Cold wash is very good for deodorizing without reeking of flowers or apples etc. I tried maybe 8 different clothes detergents and settled on Tide Cold wash.

 

[TheBatsEar]

It's nothing but left wing pinko talk, trying to stifle the free markets.

Wash at high temps as you wish! This planet can take it far longer than you are alive, so whats the problem?

 

[Digby]

Can't tell if serious, do you wash your dishes in cold water too?

 

[TheBatsEar]

Can't tell if serious

 

[TheBatsEar]

But seriously, wash at low temps, if you think the clothes aren't clean after, wash at high temps.
It shouldn't be harder than that, but maybe it's an oversimplification.

 

[Digby]

I've done that many times already, so i skip the first step and just wash higher. Two washes would wear my clothes out faster and wastes water and electric too. You see, who said I don't think about sustainability

 

[Piere]

Quite simple. It needs 60 degC to kill the bacterial material. Washing chemicals by itself don't do that. So if you want to be hygienic when washing your sporting clothes, underwear, towels, etc......

 

[jae]

I'm not sure what microbial superstrains you guys are cultivating over there. For many years I used standard, run-of-the-mill concentrate liquid detergents (with surfactants and enzymes) with relatively cold water for cotton and synthetics, never really had issues with stains and odours with a standard length cotton/mixed wash cycle. Everything was always spun down quite thoroughly and then tumble- or air-dried outdoors immediately which obviously helps.

These days I am very particular about my textiles, my wardrobe is very minimalist and everything is mostly linen or merino wool/or their nylon-reinforced variants, so I guess overall odours are much less of a problem for me. I do still have some activewear/underwear which is synthetic and a few pieces of clothing that are cotton. I more or less chuck everything together in the washer using scent and additive-free liquid baby castile soap in cold water on the most basic and gentle quick 30-minute cycle. The woolens are air dried flat to keep shape and everything else is tumble dried. If in the rare case I feel my towels/bedding is particularly soiled or not washed properly I will use some benzalkonium chloride additive which acts as a surfactant and broad antimicrobial and that never fails to eliminate any problems, even with the cotton and poly.

Remember to always leave your washer door and detergent drawer ajar when not in use and use washer cleaner, bleach, or ammonia on the highest temperature/clean cycle every 2-3 months, clean/drain the filter 1-2 times a year at least.

 

[TheBatsEar]

extra rinse

I use that as well. I think the manufacturers are regulated into using less water and energy in their defaults.
While using less heat can be exchanged with longer agitation cycles to a degree, rinsing can not.

 

[Blumlein 88]

I worked in one of the smelliest businesses you will ever find for a few years. Washed work clothes on warm with regular detergents like Gain or Tide etc. No problems no smells. I did have an older washer not one of these modern ones that use almost no water. Clothes were either cotton or cotton/polyester mix.

Don't over complicate things.

 

[Piere]

Keeping your washing machine clean and free of bad odors is not so difficult: Once in a month do a full dummy "cooking wash" at 95 degC with a cheap white-wash-powder. You can do that without actually washing anything of coarse.

 

[Digby]

I did have an older washer not one of these modern ones that use almost no water.

I think most everyone in Europe has the modern ones that use no water.

I don't use liquid detergents, they seem to leave a coating on the clothes (probably what Jim was referring to earlier), so that's a no go for me - I use a powder instead. I also use a quick wash, so 30 mins, perhaps this is not adequate, but I feel like life is too short to wait a couple of hours for clothes to wash.

 

[restorer-john]

I use front loaders (we have 3) all have 95 degree C max settings and we only use powder- never liquid.

As all our bed linen is white cotton, the machines regularly get 95 degree washes. I don’t wear anything poly- it’s all natural fibre, but all my partner's poly/cotton dresses etc. get 40 degrees C.

Never do a cold wash here.

 

[TheBatsEar]

I also use a quick wash, so 30 mins, perhaps this is not adequate, but I feel like life is too short to wait a couple of hours for clothes to wash.

It's a myth that you have to look into the washing machine while it does it's thing. You might as well go do something else.
You can thank me later. ;-)

 

[Doodski]

I used this stuff for a month and my laundry started smelling yucky. So I stopped and ran all my clothes through on hot and that fixed the issue. Avoid this stuff!

https://www.lysol.ca/en/our-products/laundry-disinfectant/crisp-linen/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAz9ieBhCIARIsACB0oGISSLh01oMLgObzBZrQBCA0WCPkkOkWs2gTEvAf3M_dDslsis1zKgcaAp84EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds