Laundry.......do you sort? Favorite detergent? Fighting stains, what's your secret?

[Caribou]

K broke our first washing machine the first time he used it! He jammed 4 handmade heavy quilts into it then wondered why the tub fell off the struts when it spun.

K is brilliant, no more laundry duty, EVER.

 

[Grimm]

K is brilliant, no more laundry duty, EVER.

Actually, I make him wash his own work clothes since I do the rest of the laundry. Roo helps but K has no one to blame if he doesn't have clothes. He learned to do laundry correctly after having the washer fixed a few times.

 

[dademoss]

Of course I sort, clean or dirty . The DW likes powdered tide, and we use some Kirkland dryer sheet. Pretreat is a spray bottle with "Shout"

 

[SheepDog]

Sort; Whites, if it is white it goes there.
Dark and colored, if its mine it goes there.
Wife's; If it is my wife's it goes there and she sorts further and washes and dries it. Some hangs to dry others in the drier.

Before marriage I had three bins. white; colored; dark. Bedding was washed with linens and towels.
Compromise comes with company - it's all good.

 

[Camalot]

I'm a single man 20 of the last 25 years. Everything goes in regular. No whites as I don't oe very rarely even wear socks. People will say "I like that shirt. Where did you get it?" I say "On top of the dirty clothes."

 

[DodgesMamMaw]

My 43 year old son does all the laundry for his family. I was over sitting with grandson while they went grocery shopping. He had laundry going so I figured I would help him out. Could not believe what I saw when I opened washer. So many pairs of jeans I had to separate them into two loads to dry them. Every kind of color and fabric. I also separated out everything not jeans and dried them separate. So took me 3 loads to dry.

 

[Wyatt]

Sort?

What's that?

I'm of the sniff test when to do laundry type.

Other than that, I tamp it all together down into the washing machine, whites, darks, towels, underwear etc.

I am a very equal opportunity launderer.

 

[dademoss]

What is this sort you speak of? My DW likes Tide, so I use what is there. "IF" i see a stain, I spray with "Shout", then toss it in the washer. I do watch for new "RED" things, I had pink underwear for a while

 

[Magus]

I sort after I wash. everything is black, camoflage or khaki, why bother?

 

[Pearl]

What is this sort you speak of? My DW likes Tide, so I use what is there. "IF" i see a stain, I spray with "Shout", then toss it in the washer. I do watch for new "RED" things, I had pink underwear for a while

I've tried shouting at stains, never works!!

 

[dademoss]

I've tried shouting at stains, never works!!

You have to yell louder, you are too nice to your stains

 

[ABR]

Sort into work/chore, town/church, sheets, and towels. Undergarments and socks go in whichever category they get worn in. If I don't have a whole load of towels they get thrown in with whatever is next load. Town/church clothes get worn several times before washing. I use a powder detergent that my friend makes and Lysol sanitizer. Everything washed on cold. When I use a dryer it's only ever on Low. Certain items always get hung to dry. Dryer is broke now anyway so back to line dry for everything.

 

[Morgan101]

Stain: noun - a colored patch or dirty mark that is difficult to remove: Such a dirty word (no pun intended).

If you get one on work clothes you wear it like a badge of honor. Shows you are really working. If you get one on good clothes they either get demoted to the work clothes category or to the rag bag. If you get one on really good clothes you pitch them and get new.

Stains are not something I lose sleep over.

 

[SheepDog]

I automatically sort my cloths. I have four bins and clothes have two conditions.
The two conditions are dirty and clean. Clean clothes are in my chest of drawers or closet. Dirty clothes are in a bin. A white bin, a colored bin, a dark bin and a linen and towel bin. When a bin is full I empty it in the washer - set the appropriate cycle - enter soap, softener, whitener as needed and wash and dry, fold or hang and put them away. Put the bin back.

 

[Heartbroken]

The changeover to working from home full time has really cut down on the laundry. Unterhosen is only needed if leaving the house, so just small occasional loads of that, with bleach. I have an older washer that lets me use as much water as I want, to which I add a half cup of the home made detergent. Chore clothes don't get washed until they stand up by themselves; daily in house wear (read that as tshirts and pajama pants or shorts) gets washed more often. I use a downy ball to add vinegar to the rinse cycle. I sort by unterhosen, towels, linens, jeans, and then everything else. All of it gets hung out on the line year round unless the weather just isn't cooperating, then it gets hung on wooden drying racks in the spare bedroom. The towels turn out a bit stiff but soften right up after the first use. Towels and linens get used multiple times before washing. Using the home made detergent (the typical blend of washing soda, fels naptha and borax) and the vinegar makes laundry really cheap. I don't stress too much about stains but will use a stain stick if I notice something on a going ta town shirt. If I don't notice, it becomes a chore shirt. I have fairly severe chemical sensitivities, so there are very few commercial detergents that I can tolerate. I can't even walk down that aisle in the store without feeling sick, and get very ill if I'm exposed to Tide or Gain. That stuff is poison.

 

[bamadeb48]

I wash everything together, I use Pyrex, I haven’t bought new clothes in ages, never go anywhere so never dress up, old clothes are the most comfortable anyway. I’ve had some of my clothes for years lol

 

[Pearl]

The changeover to working from home full time has really cut down on the laundry. Unterhosen is only needed if leaving the house, so just small occasional loads of that, with bleach. I have an older washer that lets me use as much water as I want, to which I add a half cup of the home made detergent. Chore clothes don't get washed until they stand up by themselves; daily in house wear (read that as tshirts and pajama pants or shorts) gets washed more often. I use a downy ball to add vinegar to the rinse cycle. I sort by unterhosen, towels, linens, jeans, and then everything else. All of it gets hung out on the line year round unless the weather just isn't cooperating, then it gets hung on wooden drying racks in the spare bedroom. The towels turn out a bit stiff but soften right up after the first use. Towels and linens get used multiple times before washing. Using the home made detergent (the typical blend of washing soda, fels naptha and borax) and the vinegar makes laundry really cheap. I don't stress too much about stains but will use a stain stick if I notice something on a going ta town shirt. If I don't notice, it becomes a chore shirt. I have fairly severe chemical sensitivities, so there are very few commercial detergents that I can tolerate. I can't even walk down that aisle in the store without feeling sick, and get very ill if I'm exposed to Tide or Gain. That stuff is poison.

Especially Gain!! PU!

 

[Rick]

I sort whites so I can bleach them (which for me is socks t shirts and some towels)
Thats it

 

[Haertig]

For clothes, I cram everything together and set the washer to cold/cold/high_spin. I used to be able to cram about a months worth of clothes into our old top load washer. With the front load (we've had it for a decade now) I can cram a good 4 months worth in there! You can pack those front-load machines tight. Everything comes out tied into one gigantic knot. I feel like a referee at a fabric orgy trying to untangle all the participants at the end. I use Tide powder. And OxiClean powder. Probably split 50/50, or maybe even a bit more Oxi than Tide. Everything then gets crammed into the dryer on low with an antistatic dryer sheet. The dryer sheets are retained after drying - we use them for scrubbing things. Way stronger than paper towels, with better scouring capabilities too (great for cleaning soap scum in the bathtub, or dried spaghetti sauce on a ceramic tile kitchen counter). But not absorbent at all. Do all the hard-core cleaning with the old dryer sheet, then finish up with a paper towel at the end.

I do bedding separately.

 

[Balletomane]

I sort whites/lights from darks. I use Fels Naptha bar on stains or Super Clean (in purple container) degreaser. For soap, I use whatever I get on sale, usually All. Clothes are hung out on line when possible.

 

[Camalot]

So, what is the best prescribed detergent? Serious question.

 

[Wyatt]

I've tried shouting at stains, never works!!

Well, there goes a lot of money in advertising.

 

[Hooch]

The only sorting I do is bedding ,towels stuff n regular clothes only, rug n rag stuff only and work cloths only.
I tried pinesol recently to my work clothes in an attempt to degrease my work shirt a tad. It helped and everything smelled like my job minus the sweat n hydraulic fluid n grease smells.
I used to make my own detergent for laundry . It smelled good , plus I didnt need fabric softener. It consisted of water, fel nampa or another type of cheap bar laundry soap I'd grate, borax n washing soda. Scented oil could be added to it but I thought it smelled fresh just as it was.
It made a 5 gal bucket of semi gelatinous soap n it worked good. I'll try n find the instructions..
I guess I got lazy n started buying store type. It's pretty pricy n ok w tho..a hug of detergent like tide iui s 15 bucks. The super cheap stuff doesn't work good or smell hardly. The cheapest I've bought that works well is the arm n hammer kind but that's getting up in price too.
If the sun is out I hang dry..heavy stuff regardless gets hung. In winter i have a rack by the stove n it dries everything pretty quick.

 

[Magpie]

I made my own once, but it's hard to get borax here. Now I use one of those egg things for light stuff, and I buy an eco-friendly liquid in bulk for everything else. Occasionally I use vinegar as a softener. I have my washing machine diverted to a barrel so I can use the water in the garden during the summer, (we are on our own well) and in the winter just pour it around the field, or use it to wash car or something.

 

[Hooch]

I made my own once, but it's hard to get borax here. Now I use one of those egg things for light stuff, and I buy an eco-friendly liquid in bulk for everything else. Occasionally I use vinegar as a softener. I have my washing machine diverted to a barrel so I can use the water in the garden during the summer, (we are on our own well) and in the winter just pour it around the field, or use it to wash car or something.

Does the laundry smell like vinegar after? I didnt know it could be used as a softener! That's good to know !

 

[Magpie]

Does the laundry smell like vinegar after? I didnt know it could be used as a softener! That's good to know !

No, not at all- and it helps clean the machine- apparently! I use vinegar for cleaning around the house also.

 

[Hooch]

I'll have to try it. I used vinigar as a cleaner , but I didnt like the smell after a week or so. About how much do you put in a average load?

 

[Magpie]

I'll have to try it. I used vinigar as a cleaner , but I didnt like the smell after a week or so. About how much do you put in a average load?

Gosh I dont measure anything unless it's dangerous or I'm paying at the pump. Um... a good slosh? Half a cup I guess. I do a short quick wash. And for a cleaner, I save my orange peels into a large jar, cover with vinegar and leave for a week or so before removing the peel, so that the oils are in it. I also add a few drops of tea tree oil if I'm wiping around one of the windows (dampness is an issue here) I don't notice any smell after its dried.

 

[Heartbroken]

I use an old downy ball and fill it with vinegar to the line just like I did with downy. The clothes don't smell like vinegar after. I have hard water, so the vinegar even helps keep the minerals out of the washer. I like to use home made essential oil sugar scrubs in the shower, so sometimes it seems the towels don't quite come clean but retain some of the oils. I'll often wash them twice and add a full cup of vinegar to the second wash. That seems to do the trick of getting them soft and absorbent again.

 

[Weedygarden]

These threads are always interesting to read through. I use Felsnaptha for a stain remover. I keep a bar by the bathroom sink and an old toothbrush. I scrub the stains with it before I put clothes in the washing machine. Washer and dryer are in the bathroom.

I don't have a clothesline, but hanging clothes on the line was one of my many jobs as a child.