Instead of buying new socks every time you run out of clean socks, you may want to learn how to wash clothes. Knowing how to wash clothes is an important life skill, especially if your clothes start to stink. If you don't know, you may have to increase your budget to buy new socks every week. Follow these steps and you'll be good at washing (and drying) clothes quickly.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Using the Washer and Dryer
Step 1. Sort the clothes into several piles
When washing clothes, there are two things that must be considered: what color the clothes are and what kind of material they are made of. Not all clothing materials can use the same amount of water pressure or drying rate.
- Separate light colored clothes from dark ones. When washing clothes, especially new clothes, some of the color on the fabric will fade (which is why old clothes are more faded than new light colored clothes). Shirts that are white, cream, or light pastel colors should be collected into a pile of “white” clothes. While the other colored clothes are collected into a pile of "dark" colored clothes. If you don't separate them, a new light blue shirt can fade white shirts into blue.
- Sort clothes by type of material. Some types of fabric, such as denim or heavy fabrics (such as towels) need to be washed on a heavier setting than silk underwear (which is washed on a gentle setting). You have to separate clothes based on the washing settings of the clothes to be washed.
- Remember, towels and bed sheets should not be washed together. Top load washing machine should be used for towels, while bed sheets should be washed in a front load washing machine (Front load washing machines are not very strong so the sheets are not too wrinkled).
Step 2. Read the 'care label' on the shirt
Labels on clothes are not meant to irritate the neck when they rub against the skin. The label is attached to help you in the washing process. If you're unsure how to wash a shirt, look at the label. The label provides information about the type of material the clothes are made of, how to wash them, and how to dry them.
Some clothes need to be dry cleaned or hand washed (see Method Two for how). The care label on the clothes will indicate whether one of these washing methods is necessary or not
Step 3. Know the temperature of the water to use
Washing machines have different temperature settings because different types of fabrics and colors require different levels of washing heat.
- Use hot water for light colored clothes, especially dirty ones. The heat will remove the stains on light colored clothes.
- Use cold water for dark colored clothes, because cold water reduces the color content of the clothes (so the clothes don't fade quickly when you use cold water). Cotton clothes should also be washed in cold water so they don't get too wrinkled.
Step 4. Know the payload size to choose
Most washing machines have a dial that must be turned to select the correct load size for the number of clothes to be washed (usually small, medium, or large). If some of your clothes take up one-third of the machine's tube, you should choose a smaller size. If the clothes fill two-thirds of the tube, then you should choose a medium size. If the entire cylinder of the machine is filled with clothes, you should choose a large size.
Do not push clothes in the washing machine tub so that it can fit more clothes. This can cause the washing machine to become stuck or damaged. You can do the second stage of washing with several clothes
Step 5. Know the washing step to choose
Like the temperature, washing machines also have different washing steps, because different types of clothes require different levels of washing.
- Normal/Normal Setting: Select this setting when washing white clothes. This setting will make the white shirt clean and fresh.
- Permanent pressure: Use this setting for colored clothes. Washing with this setting requires warm water and ends with cold water, so the color of the clothes looks bright.
- Soft: As you know, this wash is for anything relatively soft (bras, cotton sweaters, shirts, and so on). Make sure your delicates don't need to be dry-cleaned or hand washed (check the label to be sure).
Step 6. Add the washing liquid and close the washing machine cover
Washing fluids include detergent, bleach, and fabric softener. You can put the clothes in the washing machine and pour the washing up liquid. Or put the clothes outside the washing machine, fill the washing machine with one-third of the tub of water, add washing up liquid, then put the clothes in.
- Detergent: The amount of detergent you put in the washing machine depends on the load of the clothes to be washed. Usually, the detergent cap acts as a sized container. One third of the detergent bottle cap is for washing small quantities of clothes, two thirds for the medium quantity, and one full bottle cap is for large quantities. However, read the instructions for use on the detergent bottle. Some detergents are more concentrated than others, so you don't need to use too much detergent.
- Bleach: Bleach is used to remove stubborn stains on clothes or to make white clothes really white. There are two kinds of bleach. Chlorine bleach is great for making white clothes really white but should not be used for colored clothes. While bleach for all types of fabrics can be used for colored clothes.
- Fabric softener: This softener is used if you want your towels to be extra soft. Fabric softener must be added at the rinsing stage. Some washing machines have a dispenser for softener that you can pour out when you start washing. The softener will mix during the rinsing stage at the right time.
Step 7. Move the clothes to the dryer section and select the appropriate settings
Remember, there are some clothes that must be air-dried. Check clothes labels. If the shirt label instructs the shirt not to dry, hang it somewhere to dry. Like washing machines, dryers also have settings that must be run to dry clothes. Add a dryer sheet and close the dryer cover.
- Regular/heavy settings: White shirts are best dried on a regular/heavy setting. White shirts are usually pre-shrunk and are compatible with stronger, higher heat drying systems (unlike colored clothes which fade on high heat).
- Permanent pressure setting: This setting is suitable for regular colored clothes. Moderate heat and pressure will ensure that your clothes don't fade.
- Gentle Setting: Clothes that are washed on a gentle setting should be dried on a gentle setting. This setting uses an air temperature that is close to room temperature and slows down the drying process so that soft clothes are not damaged.
Method 2 of 2: Hand Washing
Step 1. Fill the water into the bucket
It usually takes a large bucket (which can hold 18.5 liters of water) to fill up to 7 liters of water.
If you don't have a bucket, you can use a sink tub. Make sure the sink is installed, then fill it with warm water
Step 2. Add mild detergent
This type of detergent is not the same as the detergent used for washing machines. Regular detergents are too concentrated and will make hand-washed clothes feel dirty. You can buy mild detergent in the same section as regular detergent at the grocery store. Check the bottle to make sure it is a mild detergent.
Step 3. Soak the clothes in the water
Place the shirt in the water so that it is completely submerged. You can let it sit for a while so it can fully absorb the detergent.
Step 4. Rinse the clothes
Rinse the clothes with warm clean water. You can rinse several clothes at once under the faucet you used to fill the bucket (or sink). Rinse the clothes until they are no longer foamy and the rinsing water is clean without foam.
Step 5. Allow the clothes to air dry
You do not need to hang clothes to dry, because hanging clothes will cause stretch. Place the clothes on the clothesline to dry. This method will not stretch and reduce creases due to the drying process.
Tips
- Check the shirt pocket before putting it in the washing machine.
- Do not leave clothes in the washing machine for more than 24 hours, as they will smell musty.
- If you live with other people in the apartment or live with other people you know, doing laundry together will help. This is especially true for red shirts. Because generally people have a collection of red clothes that are not much in their wardrobe. Washing together will save time and money and reduce the impact of environmental pollution.
- In the early days, new colored clothes had to be washed separately, unless you had clothes of the same color.
