Does the water temp during the washing of clothes really matter? If so why use, cold, warm or hot?
Question:It seems like more and more of a push toward the sole use of cold is becoming common place, does it really matter?
Answers:
Cold water is good if you are washing colors. It is also good if you dont want to shrink your clothing. Warm water is basically the same as cold water, except it cleans clothing a bit better. Hot water is good for whites. If you were to use hot water on other clothing, it could possibly shrink your clothes, or the dye could bleed out. It will fade your clothing faster. Thats why it is very good for whites.
To me it doesn't really matter. To use cold water
is an energy saver. I always use warm or hot water
when washing whites.
It matters for a few kinds of material. You never want to put wool in hot water...and even in warm water it will shrink a little. You always want to put something that will run in cold water and use vinegar or salt in the water to lock the dye before you wash it with something else...especially if it's a silk.
Personally, I wash most things in warm water. The result is better than in cold water. I only use hot when I wash socks/underwear...or my bedding because my kids and I have asthma and we are very sensitive to dust mites.
WARM OF CORSE !!!
Yes, it matters.
Cold water is better for colors, as the colors will last longer without fading. Also prevents shrinkage.
Hot is good for whites, for sanitation and softness.
Dye is mated to or removed from the fabric by boiling water. The hotter the water, the more of a possibility of removing any dye, thus the fading.
In the case of whites, hot water helps remove dye that was deposited on the fabric.
Years ago, there was a laundry soap powder on the market, called "Cold Power." I used it a few times, but went back to my all time favorite, which is Tide. Cold water detergents save hot water, but I don't know how cold water can kill the germs properly. Tide has just come out with a laundry detergent that is used in cold water, but I'll stick to using my regular Tide (liquid) & hot water when necessary. I still believe in using hot water for certain whites, along with some Clorox for added disinfecting.
Personally I do see a difference when I wash white clothes with hot water. It doenst seem to matter too much with colored clothes but white just seems to need the hot more.
I would always wash my darks,jeans and delicates in cold water. Sheets,blankets and towels I use warm water and I always use clorox color-safe bleach to disinfect my clothing
For my whites,I use hot water
Everyone is different how they launder clothing.
Generally I use cold water on my clothes but bath towels I use hot water to kill germs and get them real clean.
I use cold on most clothes, because it helps to keep them from fading and shrinking. I use liquid detergent, because I've never had much luck dissolving powders in cold water.
Most clothes aren't very dirty, so cold water is fine. If we have clothes that are noticeably dirty or sweaty, I might use warm water (or use cold but allow some soaking time at the start).
The exception is that I always wash sheets, towels, and other whites in hot water. It does make a difference with those whites. And who doesn't want whiter whites? :)
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