Laundry and electricity

[Leigh625]

Good afternoon,

We'd like to know what the best way to launder bedsheets. We have been washing in hot, but with the rising cost of electricity we were wondering if we can wash in cold. Is that enough to certain the linens are clean?

Please advise when you can.

Thanks so much!

—Leigh

[Leigh625]

Thanks so much! @Evie351 

[Elisabeth40]

@Leigh625 Maybe bringing to the laundromat would be cheaper for you? In New York we must pay every machine $3,50 and dryer $2,70. 

[Dana184]

@Leigh625 I use warm, and the lightest cycle.  I think you could use cold as long as they are coming out clean.  As mentioned above, most detergents are made to work in cold water.   Every once in a while, someone gets some kind of oil on the sheets, which I  assume is body lotion or hair conditioner, and that can be very hard to get out.  

[Elyce1]

@Leigh625 I use hot for whites, cold for colors. I have recently added black towels as a guest option as many of my white towels were getting unremoveable stains from beachgoers. I was having to throw away a lot of white towels.

[Elwood5]

Use a quality brand cold water detergent.  

Presoak cycle helps too.

Use a detergent with beach alternative for whites if you're not on public sewage. 

Hot water has other inherent risks, such as scalding a guest in shower and fading clothes.

There are sanitize settings on most machines, however the highest temperature setting would unlikely be hot enough to kill mold and viruses. 

You can't always use the highest dryer settings either less risking damage to delicates and fading.

[Christina1877]

yes always

[Denise6]

washing sheets with a good detergent is important enought to sanitize.  I don't use hot water.  warm is ok.  My sheets are colored & patterned, so hot water is not good for them.

[Christine615]

Hi.

I'm in the states and my daughter and I wash in warm water. I know many people use cold (and of course there are communities that wash in local streams). But I wanted to make sure we were managing any germs. I have not had issues with the condition of the linens when I'm done. We have rotating sets but so far, the three sets per bedroom we use have been fine.

I think hot water would be overkill and would set stains. So warm seemed like the compromise. We also steam iron our pillow cases because I like having them look crisp when guests check in.

But I guess is depends. Our electric bills are manageable. But you should do what is best. If you have rotating linens available - then wash in cold, then fold and they should be fine next time they are needed.