Q&A for How to Sort Laundry

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  • Question
    How do you sort colors for laundry?
    Susan Stocker
    Professional Cleaner
    Susan Stocker runs and owns Susan’s Green Cleaning, the #1 Green Cleaning Company in Seattle. She is well known in the region for outstanding customer service protocols — winning the 2017 Better Business Torch Award for Ethics & Integrity —and her energetic support of green cleaning practices.
    Professional Cleaner
    Expert Answer
    Always wash like colors with like. You should also wash cold-water-only fabrics separately from hot water loads, or the garments may shrink or fade.
  • Question
    What colors can you wash together?
    Susan Stocker
    Professional Cleaner
    Susan Stocker runs and owns Susan’s Green Cleaning, the #1 Green Cleaning Company in Seattle. She is well known in the region for outstanding customer service protocols — winning the 2017 Better Business Torch Award for Ethics & Integrity —and her energetic support of green cleaning practices.
    Professional Cleaner
    Expert Answer
    When you're separating your laundry, your dark clothes should go in the wash together, whites go in a wash alone, and light colors go together.
  • Question
    Does separating laundry matter?
    Susan Stocker
    Professional Cleaner
    Susan Stocker runs and owns Susan’s Green Cleaning, the #1 Green Cleaning Company in Seattle. She is well known in the region for outstanding customer service protocols — winning the 2017 Better Business Torch Award for Ethics & Integrity —and her energetic support of green cleaning practices.
    Professional Cleaner
    Expert Answer
    Yes, it matters big time! If you don't, the colors could bleed. For instance, if you wash a brand new black shirt with your daisy-white bed sheets, your sheets are going to turn a dirty gray.
  • Question
    Do I add bleach with light colors?
    Community Answer
    No. You should only add bleach to a completely white load. If you add bleach to a load with any colors, then it will ruin them.
  • Question
    When washing delicate items such as bras, do I need to separate light colors from dark colors?
    Community Answer
    Generally, delicates do not color bleed, so it's not necessary to separate them.
  • Question
    I have a top that is white on one side and has light colors on the other. Which pile should I sort it into?
    Community Answer
    Choose either lights or delicates, since putting it with the whites would risk the colors bleeding onto the other clothes.
  • Question
    How do I wash a sweater that is black and white?
    Community Answer
    Wash it with similar fabrics and worry less about which color category it goes with. Avoid washing it with anything pink, orange, red or purple (they tend to bleed the most) and it also shouldn't go in a load of all whites, either (bleach will ruin the black in the shirt). Alternatively, you could consider hand washing it if it's the only item you have of that fabric.
  • Question
    Should a 50% black striped and 50% white striped item go into the dark, light or white load?
    Community Answer
    Try to wash it with like colors. However avoid washing it in whites. The black will most likely bleed onto the white and ruin your clothing.
  • Question
    Should underwear be washed separately from my other laundry?
    Community Answer
    Yes and no. Women's delicates are best placed in lingerie bags and thrown in with like colors. If you don't want to buy a lingerie bag (or you are washing men's undies), then you can just throw them in with like colors and fabrics. Take them out and hang dry, especially for lace and mesh fabrics. You can make a whole load of delicates or clothes that you would usually only hang dry to make remembering easier.
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