Laundry Tips

The first step to knowing how your garments should be cleaned is to read the international laundry care symbol on the tag of every garment.

Separate whites and light colours from darks and bright colours. Each colour group requires a different temperature. Separating them will ensure that colours do not ‘bleed’.

Your colour groups should include:

• Whites
• Pastels
• Dark and like colours
• Bright colours
• Multi-coloured items

Furthermore, it is important to sort clothing based on fabric type. Therefore, lint givers such as towels should be washed separately from lint catchers such as corduroy or wrinkle-free fabrics.

More importantly, wash new dark coloured fabrics in a separate load to prevent ‘bleeding’ or running of colours.

Cotton items such as undershirts and underwear require hot water and fairly vigorous washing while more delicate items require a gentle, short wash cycle to prevent damaging the fabrics. Therefore, delicate items will last much longer if washed and dried in a mesh laundry bag to keep them from getting wrapped around other items.

• Always check the pockets and remove all items.
• Remove dirt caught in cuffs.
• Inspect clothes to see if there are any rips or tears that might get worse in the wash.
• Check for pins, belts or accessories you don’t want washed.

It is important to check for and treat any stains as quickly as possible to increase the chance of successfully removing the stain. A variety of stain removal products are available that can be applied directly to the stain. Above all, always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Please check our “Stain Removal Guide” for specific stain removal instructions.

There are two types of washers – top loading and front loading and there are many different types of laundry detergents available. If you are using a front-loading washing machine, you should be using ‘high efficiency’ or HE detergent. It is specially formulated with a low sudsing formula that consequently allows for excellent wash quality with little suds. Therefore, look for this symbol on your detergent container:

Regardless of the type of detergent you choose, always follow the manufacturer’s measurement directions. Remember – more is not better! Detergent comes in regular, concentrated and 2X or 3X concentrated form. Therefore, it is very important to note the difference and adjust the amount of detergent used. Too more detergent causes poorly rinsed clothes that can cause skin irritation as a result. Additionally, oversudsing can also cause the washer to shut down.

For best results, use the automatic dispenser provided on the machine. If you are using a top-loading washer, add the detergent and/or bleach directly into the tub and let it agitate for a few minutes before you add the clothes.

Please check our “Choosing and Using the Right Products” area for more detail.

Hot Water Wash Warm Water Rinse	Whites, cottons, linens, t-shirts, underwear, and heavily soiled items.
Cold Water Wash Cold Water Rinse	Lightly soiled or bright colours that you don’t want to fade or bleed into other colours.
Warm Water Wash Cold Water Rinse	Pastels, light colours, and some delicates.

• Firstly, always check and clean the lint filter to maximize air flow.
• Shake clothes loosely before placing in dryer.
• However, do not overload the dryer. The clothes need to tumble. One wash load usually equals one dryer load.
• Check to ensure stains were removed prior to drying the item. If a stain remains, retreat the stain and rewash.
• Always check the labels. Certain articles should not be put in a dryer.
• Never put rubber, vinyl, leather or any kind of shoes in a dryer.
• Finally, remove clothes promptly from dryer to reduce wrinkles.