Washing at 30*C.

[lavamat_jon]

Well, after all this recent campaigning Ariel have been doing about 30*C washes this weekend I decided I would switch all my 40*C washes down to 30*C - though I still insist on doing towels/whites, and bedlinen at 60*C. Anyway, although I haven't been using Ariel but Persil Colour Gel Tablets instead, I have noticed that the laundry that usually gets a 40*C wash doesn't come out any dirtier from a 30*C wash at least when using Persil Colour. I imagine the differences would be the same for any detergent, but anyway to the point it's nice to save what is probably a miniscule difference of energy whilst doing my wash and I will probably use 30*C for most of my "warm wash" laundry from now on.

Whites, towels, and bedlinen, however, will still get a 60*C wash.

Jon

 

[nickuk]

LOL

and just this weekend I took the decision to raise my `light' colourfast washes to 50, because there was still some muck left on luke's pale socks (ground in mud and stuff) at 40. Spotless at 50! What a bad environmentalist I am - or perhaps just a mentalist.

Anyway glad you got good results Jon, keep us informed as to how this goes - am all for saving energy if it doesn't compromise the cleaning on lightly soiled laundry.

 

[robm]

Less ironing

Nick, Jon hope you are both well.

I guess one other advantage of lower temps is fewer creases. 30 does sound low but then when you change your clothes everyday do we need anything hotter? I can understand 50 for children because they play but for a clean adult 30 is probably OK.

Rob

 

[lavamat_jon]

Results

Well, I have to say that again despite the mentality that anything below 40*C couldn't clean, that I got sterling results on all 4 loads I washed today using Cottons Universal 30*C - colours, darks, blue jeans and dark jeans. There was pasta sauce stains on a cream top that came out (I'm amazed that the Colour Care gel tablets got it out because sometimes even the Colour powder struggles with pasta sauce stains), acrylic paint and pastels came out of some quite light coloured jeans (and the stains had been left to sit since Tuesday's Art lesson at college), plus all the mucky stains I usually get on the bottom of jeans all got washed out (some detergents *cough*Ecover*cough* can't manage with that), with sterling results. I folded all my laundry at the end of my washday, and I have to say my laundry is cleaner if not cleaner than usual and I never raised the temperature above 30*C. I can't say I'll stick to this as old habits die hard, but this definitely goes to show that providing you used a decent detergent (in today's case those new Persil Colour Care Gel Tablets) that wash temperature really isn't important when it comes to cleaning.

But, as I said earlier, I'm still going to be washing my whites and bedlinen at 60*C, just for hygiene sake .

Rob - I think actually for some synthetic fabrics warmer water is supposed to help relax creases, provided that the wash water is cooled down accordingly (hence the cooldown rinse before rinse 1 on Hotpoints, and the quite extended step down cooling phase on the Miele Minimum Iron and Delicates Easy Care cycles). But then I do iron t shirts and that anyway so creasing doesn't really matter for me, but there are some things I folded out the dryer which weren't creased at all. There is a video lurking about somewhere about Whirlpool's wash and wear cycle in the 1950s-1960s which explains the process better than I could.

Take care all,

Jon

 

[panthera]

question - water hardness?

Jon,
I think 30° makes environmental sense, even tho' I have never been able to get anything clean with it here in Munich. Hence my question - do you folks have soft water? Our water is so hard, when you drop a glass, it is even odds which will break first - the glass or the water...

 

[lavamat_jon]

I'm not sure how hard it is exactly, but we do get limescale everywhere. EVen builds up on the door seals of the washer... :-(.

Jon

 

[nickuk]

Here in Chelmsford

I'm pretty sure water is 32 degrees clarke. It's probably slightly softer where Jon lives but not much.

 

[aquarius1984]

Im just glad to say the 94 Hotpoint only goes as low as 40 degrees so no chance their lmao. 30 degree stuff has to have a 40 acrylic wash. I donated the left over gel tabs i bought to Ange. They been playin havoc on my work shirts. Chest and back been itching like ****! Light cotton such as pastel colour t shirts get a 50 wash anyway. I couldnt hack doing them on 40 synth and non bio always does a great job on pasta sauce and splashes from standing at the stove. Well best be on me way to work. Grr! nick

 

[nickuk]

Nick, if your Hotpoint has an economy switch this would reduce the temp to about 30 on any 40 cycle I believe (it shuts the heater off and washes `Americana' - with a hot and cold fill mix, typically about 32 degrees but varies with household hot water temps..... on the older Hotpoints this button only worked with programs 1,2 amd 3 but with yours I think it should work across the board.

Nick

 

[newwave1]

yikes....i dont think i cud wash at 30 on a regular basis. i may try and see though.

D

 

[aquarius1984]

yeah we have economy wash

but i dont really use it every day. It works on all programmes which is good i suppose. I like it when i put the door mat in and trainers etc etc. Yes i know trainers are not meant to go in but once in a while is ok lol. I only have 1 pair and they are only for knocking about in cutting the lawn. Not that i use the gym anymore lol. But back to 30 degress lets keep it to silks and delicates. Waits for Persil to start 95.c campaign . . . . . . . . . . . Nick

 

[lavamat_jon]

But back to 30 degress lets keep it to silks and delicates

Well, maybe, but today I did actually find out that a higher cleaning temperature doesn't necessarily do a better job... as I said before old habits die hard and I doubt I'll use 30*C for long but it does actually work.

Jon

 

[kirk280980]

Hi all,

Usually when camping I'll make use of the onsite laundry facilities, which nine times out of ten is a Speed Queen or Maytag TL hooked up to mains pressure cold water and a rather pathetic gravity fed hot water supply. The result is somewhat iffy "warm" wash, tepid if you're lucky, but things do still get perfectly clean regardless. My point is, while temperature is an important factor, you can still get away with an awful lot if you apply a bit of know-how and common sense when laundering. Sort properly, use an appropriate amount of detergent and don't overload, and your chances of success are better from the start. On the other hand, if you overstuff the machine with a mixed load and use too much or too little detergent, the results are going to be disappointing no matter which temperature you select.

At home I tend to use 40*C-60*C for most things, but as Jon mentioned, this is out of habit more than anything. Those are the temperatures I've always used from the beginning, and after a while you get set in a particular routine and don't tend to think about it.

Hotpoint did use cooler wash temps on many models over the years, both front and top load. Machines fitted with a Heavy Soil button actually ran 10*C cooler than the stated programme temperature, giving a non-colourfast wash at 30*C, unless the user physically selected this option. The idea was to save energy for everday normally soiled loads, and only use the "standard" temperatures for dirtier washing.

Nick, 32 degrees Clarke is extremely hard water, does it cause you many problems? Mine is 18.26 degrees Clarke according to the water board, which I would consider to be medium-hard. Having experienced both extremes over the years while moving around the country, it doesn't seem too bad in comparison.

Cheers,

Kirk

 

[launderess]

What one must remember is older formulated detergents relying mainly on phosphates, washing soda, borax (borates), perborate bleaches and the like really do need warm and above water (40C +) to be effective. Modern top shelf detergents are now a cocktail of enzymes and surfactants which work very well in cold water. Modern bio-chemistry has developed enxymes for laundry use which actually only work/work better in cool or cold water. Perborate bleaches, which even with activators only work in warm water and above, are being replaced with percarbonate bleach. Percarbonate oxygen bleach works well in cold water, and with an activator, works darn well in cold water.

Like many have been laundering most if not all laundry at warm, hot or even boilwash temps in my Miele for long as one can remember. But energy prices have become dear, and even with the Miele heating water, doing two or three loads per day was becoming rather costly electric bill wise. Was just as gobsmacked as the rest when began doing laundry at 100F or 120F and noticed results were just a good as 140F or above. Laundered a badly coffee stained duvet cover last night in cold water, and it was totally CLEAN.

As one who irons mostly all laundry, (lots of pure cottons and linens), am here to say warm water washing does result in less creases and "shrinking" of stitches. This means less must be pulled back into shape before ironing.

L.

 

[aquarius1984]

about the lets stick to 30 comment i was talking about the general public. Of course we know and have the eye to tell if laundry is clean and i guess we would wash it again if it was the case. I can just see the Vicky Pollards of the future washing everything at 30 in their indesits. Yuk but then they wont notice the smell over their Lambert and Butlers anyway. Especially now even low temp cycles are getting shorter and shorter on modern machines. Nick

 

[nickuk]

Laundress thanks for the info on bleaches,

Kirk - hi! Gotta love those campsite launderettes..

Nick - I used to run `Wool', use a liquid like Persil Silk and Wool, press economy and slow spin and get me a handwash cycle for gentle wool, silk and handwash garments. Damned versatile machines!

Persil careline said, one year ago apx, that they don't like to reccommend ANY washing at 30 degrees since basic skin soils and fats melt at body temperature (37?) and it was unhygeinic to wash below this regardless of fabric, colour, detergent.

Was the careline wrong, is the inf. out of date or did she have a point?

Nick

 

[maytagbear]

According to my chart,

30C is about 86F, which is what I like for a "warm" wash, and I get pretty good results from it. I do wash towels at tank temperature, 130F, however, and I wash sheets at about 106F.

If any bugs survive mechanical action, laundry detergent, and dryer temperature, they are clearly superior organisms than I am.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[aquarius1984]

Good point from the good ol' Persil Careline.

Sorry Jon I know youve proven it this weekend, I do believe you and im not "dissing" anything you say ,

but we also need to consider that yes Ariel and the likes may remove soil at 30*c or what i suspect to be "surface soil" like stains, eventually there will be residues left deep in the fibres and natural body fats which are damned hard to remove without quality detergents, contact time, agitation, and in fats case heat too.

of course we would not wash greasy pans at 30*c.

this is how i figure it.

I used to wear 100% cotton chef tunics that would get all the different types of food down them but i would say mainly fat.
i used to stand at a deep fryer for 2 hours at a time first thing in a morning making homemade onion rings. considering i didnt spill anything on me the greasyness (after the frying session) on my top after which was clean everyday was MINGIN! next add another 11 hours of Sweat, my body fat like Nick said, Beef and Human Blood (those Pesky waiters! lol), spice stains, having some idiot splash soup up me ... you get the picture.

I prewashed them at 40*c in mums Hottie 100ml Persil NB.
Then 95*C with 300mls PNB they still came out greasy.

Now these are extreme wash conditions mixed with extreme soiling but i would say they match normal soiling, with 30*c cottons wash.
Over time it will be good to see if Ariel keeps the grease out of clothes.

Nick

 

[newwave1]

okay here goes. i'm "turnin down to 30" for one load only. just out of curiousity. doin darks in the AEG. i'll let you know how it turns out. using ariel sensitive.

D

 

[hoovermatic]

"I can just see the Vicky Pollards of the future washing everything at 30 in their indesits. Yuk but then they wont notice the smell over their Lambert and Butlers anyway"

I fell off my chair laughing when I read this - very apposite!!

BTW - I turned down to 30 some time ago for most things. I still wash whites on 60 though but most of my laundry isn't so much dirty in the sense that it is covered in a range of 'difficult' stains, it simply needs freshening up. 30 works for me but may not suit everyone. My gym kit is not dirty, merely sweaty and I wash that on 30. None of my clothes smell musty or stale. How on earth do people in countries like Australia who are big cold water washers cope with smelly clothes??? It just doesn't make sense to me.

I see this argument in the same kind of light as the old one of changing from Twin Tubs to autos. Housewives didn't think they would get clothes as clean, my Mum certainly didn't. Also, temperatures have been reducing for years. Poly cotton shirts were always labelled as a 50 degree wash some years ago and the old wash cycle 4 was 50 degrees. Now the same shirts are almost always labelled 40 degrees and in time it will reduce to 30. It will take some people a bit of getting used to but I can say with full confidence, that for me, it works a treat and I will not be turning up my dial!!