Many people unintentionally damage their clothes or waste laundry products because they were never taught the basics of laundry or how to do laundry correctly (yes, there’s a right way). In this video, I share three common laundry mistakes people make (including mistakes I’ve made) and I explain how to do laundry properly so your clothes can come out cleaner and last longer.
3 Common Laundry Mistakes
Welcome to “Laundry Lessons with Jessica” where we talk about common laundry mistakes—including the ones I’ve made.
Today I’m sharing three mistakes people often make when doing laundry and how to fix them.
Note: Below is the transcript of the video for those who prefer to read instead of watch.
Mistake #1: Using High Heat in the Dryer
When I didn’t have a washer and dryer, I used to go to the laundromat to do my laundry. Because I was using my own money to pay for the machines, I wanted to get the most bang for my buck, so I would choose the high heat setting on the dryer.
Like many people who use the laundromat, I wanted my clothes to dry fast and I didn’t want to have to pay for another cycle so I always chose high heat.
It’s interesting because this is the opposite of my childhood.
Growing up, my mom used to hang out clothes on a clothesline in our backyard during the spring and summertime. I would be the one who would have to go outside and get all the clothes from the clothesline, bring it back inside, and help fold them.
I did not like having to go outside to get the clothes, because I live in the south and it gets really hot and humid here, and there are bugs outside during spring and summer. Ugh! I hated dealing with that.
Because of that…because I did not like that experience growing up, I told myself that when I was able to get my own dryer, I would put everything in the dryer. I would not be hanging anything to dry. Everything is going in the dryer.
So this influenced how I ended up drying my own clothes when I would do my own laundry.
Let’s fast forward to the present.
I now have my own washer and dryer and instead of drying everything on high heat, I started drying everything on medium high which is a little better.
One day, I was in a rush to do laundry because I was trying to do three loads in the same day, and I ended up putting my sheets in the dryer and setting it to dry on high heat.
I had done this at the laundromat for over a year so it shouldn’t be a problem. Right?
Wrong!
Unfortunately, when I took my sheets out of the dryer, I noticed that one of my sheets was a little damaged. The fibers of the fabric were weakened and that little spot ended up turning into a big hole because my toe got stuck in it.
That experience changed how I dry my own laundry. Today I dry everything on low heat. I don’t even use medium heat. I use low heat for everything.
Now while it does take longer for my items to dry, I know that I am helping to preserve them.
Over to you: Are you someone who used to dry everything on high heat or do you still currently dry everything on high heat? Are you someone who likes to air dry everything either on a clothesline or a clothes rack in your home? What do you do when it’s time to dry your laundry? Let me know your answers in the comments below!
How to Dry Your Laundry While Reducing the Risk of Damage
Here are simple ways you can move away from high heat too even if you use a laundromat.
Tip #1: Use dryer balls
Dryer balls create space between clothes so air can circulate better which helps your clothes dry more efficiently even on lower heat settings. You can use two to six dryer balls depending on the size of the load
Tip #2: Add a dry towel
You can add a medium sized dry towel such as a hand towel to your load. The towel will help absorb some of the moisture so your clothes won’t need as much heat as usual to dry.
Tip #3: Shake your clothes before drying
Shaking out your clothes before putting them in the dryer helps to separate the fabrics which will help improve airflow and allow items to dry more evenly. It can also help reduce wrinkles.
Tip #4: Avoid overloading the dryer
When the dryer is too full, air can’t move through the clothes properly. Smaller loads allow better airflow and help items to dry more evenly and gently with less heat.
Tip #5: Air dry certain items
Some items benefit from air drying because heat can weaken the fibers and cause shrinkage. These items include microfiber towels, workout clothes, undergarments, and sweaters. You can air dry those items and put the rest of your load in the dryer on low or medium heat.
Tip #6: Remove items while slightly damp
Taking clothes out the dryer while they’re slightly damp and letting them finish air drying can reduce long-term wear on the fabrics.
Side note: if you have a clothes rack or a clothesline indoor, you can put those items on a hanger before you place them on the clothes rack or the clothesline so that when they’re finished drying, it’s easy to put them away in your closet.
Tip #7: Use free dry laundromats
If you still use a laundromat, look for one that offers free dry so you can have more flexibility to use lower heat without feeling rushed.
These small adjustments can help protect your items and make them last longer.
Over to you: Which of these drying tips are you going to try this week? Let me know in the comments below!
Mistake #2: Using Too Much Laundry Detergent
There’s no need to season your clothes the way you season your food.
We are using too much detergent when we are doing our laundry, and I’m including myself because I used to make this mistake.
When I started doing my own laundry, one person told me to use a cap full of liquid detergent while another person told me to use half a cap of powder detergent.
Each person was telling me to use way more detergent than I needed.
Let’s fast forward to when I started working at a laundromat.
My boss told us that we only need to use one to two tablespoons [of detergent] to process wash and fold orders.
Of course I didn’t believe him because I was used to using a half cap of detergent to do my laundry, and I was using a full cap before that.
That wasn’t what convinced me to stop using so much detergent though.
What finally convinced me to change my habit was watching my laundry being washed in a front load washing machine.
During the wash cycle, I saw a good amount of suds which I was used to so I thought it was normal.
During the rinse cycle, I still saw a good amount of suds but I thought hey, the washer is just getting all that detergent out so it’s not a big deal.
However, when I saw that there was still suds on the door and in the washer when the machine was moving from the rinse cycle to the spin cycle, that’s when it finally clicked. I used too much detergent.
Since then, I have started using two to three tablespoons of detergent when I do my laundry.
Now you might be thinking, what’s the big deal? So what if I see suds in the washing machine? I like to see suds. So what if I use a little bit more laundry detergent than what’s recommended? Does it really matter?
Yes, it does.
When you use too much laundry detergent, you’re going to have residue because the washing machine is not going to rinse out everything completely.
What does this residue do?
Detergent residue traps dirt, bacteria, and odors into your clothes which means your clothes were not cleaned. Another consequence of detergent residue is stiffness in the fabrics of your laundry items or your laundry items starting to look dull.
Not only does using too much detergent damage your laundry items in the long run, it will also damage your washing machine because all of that residue is going to build up and cause your machine to start having problems over time.
How Much Laundry Detergent to Use
Now you might be wondering, how much detergent should I use when I do my laundry?
Is one to two tablespoons really enough?
The answer is “it depends.”
There are several factors that go into determining how much detergent to use when you’re doing laundry.
These factors are load size, soil level, and water hardness or softness.
Let’s talk about them.
A small load fills about a quarter of the drum, a medium load fills about half of the drum, and a large load fills about three quarters of the drum.
Now when you put your items in the washing machine, do not push them down. Do not stuff your items into the washing machine because that is going to skew your load size.
So now that we know what a load size is, let’s talk about how much do you need.
For a small load, you can start with one tablespoon. For a medium load, you can start with two tablespoons. For a large load, you can start with three tablespoons.
Well that’s it right?
No. Then we have to take into consideration soil level and water hardness.
For soil level, we’re determining how grimy and dirty (and smelly) the items are. If there’s a lot of dirt buildup and if there are a lot of stains on the items, then you can increase the amount of detergent that you’re going to use.
The third factor that affects how much detergent to use is water hardness.
How can you tell if you have hard water? There are some signs you can look for.
One sign is if your soap doesn’t lather easily. I’m talking about your hand soap, body wash, shampoo, etc.
Other signs of hard water are seeing white or chalky spots on your dishes or glassware and seeing soap scum in your shower or in your sinks.
If you have hard water in your home or if the laundromat that you’re going to has hard water, you typically want to increase the amount of detergent that you use when you do your laundry.
If you don’t want to increase the amount of detergent that you use just based on the hardness of your water, something you can use is a laundry booster such as Borax or Super Washing Soda. Those products help to soften your water so that your detergent can work more effectively.
We want to use the right amount of detergent so our clothes and our laundry items can be cleaned efficiently.
If we use too much laundry detergent, our clothes are not going to get cleaned properly.
On the other hand, if we don’t use enough laundry detergent, our clothes also won’t get cleaned.
Have your range in mind (one to three tablespoons), then look at each of the factors I mentioned to determine if you should increase the detergent dose.
If your soil level is pretty high, you can increase the dose. If you have hard water, you can increase the dose.
Over to you: How much detergent do you typically use when you do laundry? Are you sticking to the rule of one to three tablespoons? Are you still not convinced that you don’t need a lot of detergent? Let me know your answers in the comments!
Mistake #3: Overusing Fabric Softener
A lot of people add this to their laundry without realizing what it actually does to their clothes.
What’s that? Fabric softener.
There are two main forms of fabric softener. We have liquid fabric softener which goes in the washing machine and is released during the rinse cycle. We also have solid fabric softener aka dryer sheets that go in the dryer drum.
When I was growing up, my family had a top load washing machine that didn’t have a specific compartment for fabric softener so my mom used to use one of those Downy balls. She would fill it with liquid fabric softener (and put it in the drum of the machine) so that it could be released during the rinse cycle.
When I started doing my own laundry, I used dryer sheets instead. However, I stopped using dryer sheets after I learned how fabric softener works.
How does fabric softener work?
Fabric softener contains lubricating chemicals called cationic surfactants. These chemicals coat the fibers of fabrics with a thin layer that reduces friction between them and causes them to repel water slightly.
Pros of Fabric Softener
Now what are the pros of fabric softener?
One pro is in the name itself. Fabric softener helps to make our clothes, towels, and bedding feel softer.
It also helps to reduce static in the dryer, and if you use scented products, it helps your laundry to smell fresh.
Because fabric softener helps to reduce friction between fibers, it can also help to reduce pilling aka those small fuzz balls that sometimes form on our clothes.
Cons of Fabric Softener
Now what are the cons of fabric softener?
Because fabric softener coats the fibers of fabrics, it can reduce absorbency which is not good for certain items such as towels, microfiber cloths, and athletic wear.
Over time, it can also create buildup on our clothes. That buildup can trap detergent residue, body oils, and odors in our fabrics.
It can also accumulate in our washing machines, dryer drums, and lint filters which may affect how efficiently our machines can perform over time.
Fabric softener is not recommended for flame-resistant fabrics such as children’s pajamas or certain work uniforms because it can interfere with how those fabrics were designed to perform.
That’s why it’s a good idea to check the care labels when doing laundry.
Fabric Softener Tips and Alternatives
If you would still like to use fabric softener when you do your laundry or if you want some alternatives for fabric softener, then here are some options.
If you’re team fabric softener, I recommend using traditional fabric softener less frequently. For example, if you do laundry on a weekly basis, instead of using fabric softener every week, you can use it every other week or once a month.
In addition to reducing the frequency, I recommend reducing the amount of fabric softener that you use. For example, if you use liquid fabric softener and you typically use a cap full, then you can reduce it to half a cap going forward. If you use dryer sheets and you typically use about four to five dryer sheets per load, then you can reduce that number to one to two dryer sheets per load.
Additionally, I recommend saving fabric softener for those items that you want to feel softer with the exception of items that need to absorb moisture such as your towels. So, you can use fabric softener for your sweaters, hoodies, and sweatpants, but avoid using it on your towels, bedding, athletic wear, kids’ clothes, and other items that need to be flame resistant or needs to absorb moisture.
Just remember to use it sparingly to help prevent buildup.
Now if you would like to replace traditional fabric softener with something else, then I recommend trying distilled white vinegar. This product helps to soften your fabrics, deodorize your laundry, and it helps to remove detergent residue on your laundry items.
For the dryer, you can swap out dryer sheets with dryer balls. You can use wool dryer balls or plastic dryer balls depending on your preference. Remember we talked about dryer balls in a previous lesson, and in it, I mentioned that dryer balls help to create space between your fabrics that air can circulate better which will help your items to dry more evenly and it will help to reduce static.
Speaking of static, if the main reason that you use fabric softener is to remove static, then another way you can do that is simply by avoiding over drying your clothes. If you tend to dry items that have different weights and fabrics, what you can do is pause your dryer after a certain amount of time and then remove those items that are more lightweight and don’t require a longer drying time so that way you can avoid over drying them. Once you take them out, you can resume the dryer so that your other items that do require more time can finish drying properly.
Now if one of the reasons you like to use fabric softener is for that scent—that fresh scent after your laundry is done—here are some options for you.
Instead of using dryer sheets or traditional liquid fabric softener, you can use scent booster beads in the drum of your washing machine. If you dry your items on low heat or if you air dry them, then that scent will last much longer compared to if you dry your items on high heat.
Another option is to use laundry sanitizer or a rinse aid in the fabric softener compartment of your washing machine. Those items help to remove odors and detergent residue which will in turn help your laundry to smell more fresh and be more clean overall.
Over to you: What do you like to use when you do your laundry in terms of fabric softener? Do you like to use liquid fabric softener, dryer sheets, or something else? Let me know your answers in the comments below!
Need Help With Laundry in the Decatur Area?
Doing laundry properly can take time, especially when you’re sorting loads, choosing the right detergent amount, and making sure clothes are dried correctly. For busy professionals, families, or anyone juggling a full schedule, laundry can quickly pile up.
If you’re located in Decatur, Georgia or nearby communities, Decatur Express Laundry LLC offers wash and fold pickup and delivery services to help save you time and make laundry day easier.
Your clothes, towels, bedding, and household items such as rugs are carefully washed, dried, and folded so they’re ready to put away when they’re returned to you.
If you ever need help catching up on laundry, you can schedule a pickup through my website anytime.
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