Want to learn how to do laundry in 10 easy steps? We’ve got you covered!
In this simple and no-fuss laundry guide, we’ll take you through a step-by-step guide of cleaning your clothes in the machine — from helpful laundry tips down to time-saving techniques.
Before you even toss your clothes inside the laundry machine, inspect the label or washing instructions first to find out how to properly care for these fabrics. This is extremely important as it can let you know whether a piece of shirt or a pair of pants are suitable for machine washing or not.
Reading the label will also help you find out the right washing temperature, cycle and drying option for your clothes. For clothes labeled as “hand wash” or “dry clean only,” make sure to place them in a separate container and follow the cleaning instructions.
After going through every care label, it’s time to do some sorting! Group your clothes by fabric color by following this simple rule of thumb:
Now that you’ve sorted every clothing item by color, it’s time to do another round — this time by fabric type. For example, separate your towels and bedsheets from your apparel such as t-shirts, tank tops, and polo shirts. For the dark-colored garments, make sure to separate the t-shirts and jeans from lighter fabrics such as dresses and other delicate items and delicate fabrics.
Doing careful sorting will help you wash and perform laundry on each fabric type properly — from specific water temperatures all the way to wash and drying cycles.
A pro tip: never wash or perform laundry on lint-producing fabrics and lint-attracting fabrics in the same cycle to avoid a big headache! Items like wool sweaters and suede fabrics are the common culprits.
Once you’ve completed steps 1-3, it’s almost time to do the actual washing! But first, you will need to pick a cleaning detergent that will be compatible with all your sorted clothes and fabrics. Afterwards, put a few scoops of the laundry detergent powder on the dispenser or actual washing load.
For stained and extremely dirty laundry clothes, it’s always recommended to already have them pre-treated before even tossing them inside the laundry washing machine. You can do this by simply putting detergent powder or stain remover on the stained area. Rub the detergent into the affected area with your fingers to help break away the stains.
While it’s always recommended to check the best water temperature for your clothes, using cold water should always be your default. This temperature is ideal for almost every washing need and can prevent the most dreaded laundry screw-ups.
But if you’re dealing with deep-seated dirt and pesky stains — body oil, blood, or ink — then you can use hot water. Bed linens and towels, in particular, need the highest washing temperature to fully disinfect them of germs and bacteria.
For rinsing, it’s always ideal to use cold water.
When it comes to choosing the best washing cycle, always start with “gentle” or “normal.” You can always adjust and increase this to the next level when necessary. Heavy-duty items such as jeans and towels, on the other hand, will need to be washed in the highest cycle possible.
Take the time to double check every setting and temperature before you even load the machine with your clothes. This also includes checking your clothes for any stains that you can pre-treat first rather than wash.
But perhaps the most important tip when checking? Inspecting pockets for spare change, bills or tissue papers! Do this for every pocket and you can save yourself from a big washing disaster — we know you can relate!
Load your clothes inside the washer one at a time and make sure they’re not lumped and tangled together. If you feel like there’s too much of them inside already, then go with your gut and separate the excess items for another washing cycle.
Once everything’s a-okay, you can start the washing cycle.
After the washing cycle, make sure to remove your wet laundry and rinse them right away with clean water inside the machine.
Once you’re done doing the laundry, simply take them out and put them inside the dryer for some good spinning — and drying — action. Make sure to group everything properly to avoid lints and shrinkages.
As soon as you take your clothes out of the dryer, either hang them up under the sun or let them air-dry completely. Taking your clothes outside the dryer right away will help prevent cases of shrinking and wrinkling.
Once dry, fold your clothes and store them inside your drawer or in a dry and clean container for ironing.
If you’re looking for a professional home cleaning service to spruce up your home, then give us a call here at Luce! Leave it to our friendly cleaners to bring back your bedroom, kitchen or bathroom in its former glory in no time.
Contact us today for a free consultation or to book your appointment.
