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8.7

Doing a load of laundry

Read the care label, sort by colour, and wash in cold water unless the label says otherwise.

A woman sorting a pile of clothes from a laundry basket next to a front-loading washing machine
Photo: Sarah Chai / Pexels
Area: HomeFrom age 13Time to learn: 30 minutes to learn; one full load to practise

You will be able to wash and dry a load of laundry without shrinking it or transferring dye.

SafetyStore detergent pods and packets up high, out of children's reach; Health Canada lists liquid laundry detergent packets among household products that can cause poisonings. Never mix bleach with other laundry or cleaning products.

Why it matters

Shrinking and dye transfer usually come from too much heat or from mixing colours. In the US, the FTC's Care Labeling Rule requires care instructions on most clothing, including warnings against any washing, bleaching or drying method that would harm it. Heating water uses about 90% of the energy a washer consumes, so cold water saves money as well as clothes.

How to do it

  1. Read the care label on each item. It tells you machine or hand wash, the safe water temperature, whether bleach is allowed, and how to dry. Symbols are common: a tub for washing, a triangle for bleach, a square for drying, an iron for ironing, and a circle for dry cleaning. More dots means more heat.
  2. Sort into whites, light colours and darks. Wash new dark or bright items, especially reds and dark denim, separately the first few times.
  3. Empty pockets, close zippers, and turn dark clothes and printed T-shirts inside out.
  4. Treat stains before washing by rubbing in a little liquid detergent.
  5. Load loosely so the clothes can move freely in the water.
  6. Add detergent as the package directs for your load size. More is not better.
  7. Choose cold water and a normal cycle for most loads, and the delicate cycle for thin fabrics. Use hot water only for heavily soiled whites, towels or bedding when the labels allow. If someone in the home is sick, CDC advises the warmest water the labels allow, and drying items completely.
  8. Dry carefully. Use low or medium heat for cotton and everyday clothes. Air-dry wool, anything labelled 'lay flat' or 'line dry', and anything you are unsure about.
  9. Clean the dryer's lint filter before every load.
  10. Take clothes out promptly and fold or hang them to reduce wrinkles.

Common mistakes

  • Washing a new red or dark item with whites.
  • Drying cotton or wool on high heat.
  • Using too much detergent, which leaves residue.
  • Ignoring 'hand wash' or 'dry clean' labels.
You can do this when …you wash and dry a mixed basket, correctly sorted, with nothing changing colour or size, and you can explain the symbols on three of your care labels.

Sources

  1. FTC: Clothes Captioning, Complying with the Care Labeling Rule
  2. ENERGY STAR: Clothes Washers
  3. Health Canada: Household chemical safety
  4. CDC: When and How to Clean and Disinfect Your Home (laundry)

Sources and numbers last checked . How we check

Topic: Cleaning and laundry

All lessons

← 8.6 previous lesson: Laundry symbols: how to read a care label · 8.8 → next lesson: Cleaners you must never mix
1Body16 lessons
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3People17 lessons
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  10. 3.10How to burp a newborn
  11. 3.11Asking for consent
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  6. 8.6Laundry symbols: how to read a care label
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