Cold water washing in a front loader

[gadgetgary]

Gave a friend of mine a box of Sears detergent.  A bit later, she complained that she did not like it since it did not dissolve in the dispenser(told her she could add it to the tub before adding the clothes).  She told me it was not effective in stain removal.

Found out this weekend that she washes exclusively in COLD water.

Is Sears detergent good for cold water washes?

Will she be having a problem with her washer in the future using cold water only?

 

[maytagbear]

In my experience,

and just my experience, the Sears detergent has performed decently in cold water, but, I have a top loader. I think that might be a big difference. Would adding it directly to the drum make sense? I would really not know- only experience with front loading washers is at coin-ops.

As for cold water washing of everything, I have this to say: YUCK!
I would not want to be anywhere near her kitchen towels, for example. My kitchen towels I wash in at least tank hot (145F), and sometimes add boiling water to the machine.

I do make an effort to be green, but I green in other ways....cloth bags to the supermarket, CFL lighting, ---you get the idea.....

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[hunter]

Lawrence...

...I think being clean is also being green, and using hot water to wash things takes the filth away, making you less likely to spread disease.

There do you feel better about washing in hotter water?

(I wash my gym clothes on 60C/140F, because not to do so means they'll not get clean and THAT is a crime LOL. )

 

[dirtybuck]

Two Times So Far

I went to my favorite laundromat again last week. This now makes the second visit where I had no choice but to do a cold water wash when I chose either hot and warm. As the washer filled, I put my hand in to feel the temperature of the water. I immediately started cussing up a storm.

I asked the attendant if there had been a rush of people earlier and was told no. I then asked if there was something wrong with their heaters. I received the same answer.

However, in calling the manager of the establishment the next day, I DID find that there was a problem with the heater that the attendant wasn't aware of. They told me the part had been ordered and the situation would be solved by the end of the week.

Although the problem has been solved (hopefully), I'm giving them one last chance. There's a laundromat down the street from where I live which I can start taking my stuff to. I'm sure they'd appreciate my business as well.

 

[cehalstead]

cold water/Sears Ultra powder

I have problems with the Sears powder dissolving in cold water. It simply won't...not even in "summer" cold. I have found a way around this by dissolving it in a container of hot and then adding it to the wash water. It's a great cleaner, so it is worth the extra effort. I don't wash often in cold, so I don't have to do it much. Most of my laundry is done in hot or warm....in my Speed Queen toploader.

 

[combo52]

Cold Water Washing In a FL Washer

Nothing should ever be washed in anything less than 100 Degree water, this is only body temperature. I have never heard of any clothing that can not stand 100 degrees.

 

This causes big problems in FL washers as often they are located too far from the water heater so even if set for a hot wash you may not even get a 100 degrees in the tub. I suggest to all my customers that they use nothing but the hot setting on their Hi Efficiency washer and to push the pause button and take a thermometer and actually check the water temperature in the washers tub after it finished filling. You would be surprised how cool the wash water often is.

 

[whirlcool]

Over the years I have discovered that LOTs of people wash everything in cold water.
Even undies. Yuck, I don't know how they can stand it. Nothing in this house gets washed in cold water, either warm or hot. And our hot water tank is set for 150F.

My sister has a Kenmore 2T FL washer. She always uses cold water, uses Tide liquid detergent(the salesman at Sears told her she would void the warranty by using anything else) by the cupful and fabric softener to the max. She keeps the door on this machine shut all the time so the cats don't potty in there and yet she has no mold or other of odors from the machine. And it's been in use for 6 years!

 

[sudsmaster]

Wash in cold water?

Just don't.

 

[roscoe62]

I have tried the Sears detergent and it worked great until the formula was changed.I do not now as a rule wash in cold water.
I spoke to a service man who worked with dishwahing and laundry equipment and told him about the problem I had getting the smell of sweat out of fitness clothes and he said that to use cold water would be to freshen something.
Warm to hot water was highly recommended to clean clothes, especially when doing underwear and other articles of clothes to rid of odours and of all things bacteria.So after he told me this I returned to warm water cleaning. I found using hot water ruins the elastic in clothes and linen. I also discovered that the water heater in the house was not up high enough and I did notice a big difference in my white clothes after raising the temp on the heater and using Persil Universal powder while washing in warm water.
That is my experience with cold water washing.Anyone who's choice to use cold water is their choice

 

[qsd-dan]

The question is, how cold was her water?

This is why I rank a temper valve right next to laundry soap as the most important ingredient in getting clothes clean. No temper valve? You're doing it WRONG!

Last week when outside temps were peaked at 106F, I did a load of darks in cold water. The 806 didn't fill even 40% full when my 50 gallon water heater fired up due to the amount of hot (155F) water the temper valve was adding to the incoming tap cold water. Temper valve is set at 83F.

Water heater fires up almost instantly for cold fills during winter months. Keep in mind it doesn't get very cold at all where I live.

Get a temper valve, folks! It does its job year-round, stabilizing cold and warm wash temperatures.

 

[vintagekitchen]

Temper Valve

Much as I love the looks and styling of vintage machines, one of the best things to ever happen to washing machines is the built in tempering valve, better known as the Auto Temp setting. On the Neptune, it is totally built in, on other machines I have used it is an option to be selected. (Unfortunately not many people use it when they have to push a button for it, just crank the knob over to cold/cold, ugh). Love the built in tempering valves.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I wash dark slacks in cold water, but it is 80F in the summer when that is tap cold and in the winter the tempering valve that John found for me keeps cold water at 80F. The hydrogen peroxide in the Cheer color guard keeps the chlorine in the tap water from attacking the colors so the dark navy or black slacks do not develop that faded whitish cast on the surface. The slacks are about the only things I wash in cold water.

People who wash kitchen linens in cold water have had dryer fires from the buildup of grease in the fabrics. Decades ago we used to eat at a very nice Chinese restaurant with pink napkins. Unfortunately, they were made from the sisters, Poly & Ester, which holds greasy soil and were washed in cold water so they absolutely stunk of builtup grease. It made us wonder about their concepts of cleaning. The last time we dined there a woman, possibly the chef's wife, ran from the kitchen into the dining room and the chef followed brandishing a knife. A screaming match ensured and, while we were at the other end of the room, we decided the factors in favor of returning were outweighed by the nagative ones.

 

[qsd-dan]

One of the best things to ever happen to washing machines is the built in tempering valve, better known as the Auto Temp setting.

It depends on the design.

My grandmothers TOL top loading Kenmore washer alternately cycles hot and cold water for the so-called auto temp setting. Don't care for that design AT ALL! While I was up helping her last winter, I watched a dark shirt of mine bleed like crazy 'cause it was cycling hot water directly on the shirt.

I prefer my external temper valve. It provides a rock solid temperature and I put a "Y" connection on it with a shutoff valve to supply tempered water for wringer use.

 

[danemodsandy]

Oy!

Cold water washing in a machine design that dips the clothes into a puddle?

Just be sure to use Arm & Hammer with that -

*ducks and runs*

 

[vintagekitchen]

Cold washing in a puddle..

The Neptune does use less than a top loader, but more than any other modern front loader. It has yet to fail me as far as cleaning goes, even though I havent had it long. It is a HUGE improvement over the Daewoo twin tub I was using.

The Daewoo is a modern reversing impeller machine, and I have come to realize that the impeller machines (with the exception of the old Hoovers), are a joke. They dont agitate heavily enough to actually clean things on their own. Socks always required pre-soaking and hand scrubbing before washing to get the bottoms clean in the Daewoo. Not so in the Neptune. Chuck them in, load the detergent, bleach, and softener dispenser, hot/cold setting, stain cycle, heavy wash whites, they come out perfect and just like new.

If they would ever so slightly increase other front loaders water usage, more in line with what the Neptune uses, there would be no more of this washing in a puddle business. Clothes would come nice and clean, and people would still save water over using a top loader. (No I'm not anti top loader. I love the vintage ones, and generally they do awesome jobs of washing. But all front loaders are not evil either. A lot of guys on here have vintage Westy front loaders and always seem happy with their performance as well.)

Temp wise, I use warm for nearly everything, (hot for whites, cold for delicates), and I like that the water is always actually warm. In winter here without the tempering valve set up, the warm setting isnt actually warm, just slightly less cold, lol.