Would you wash at 20?

[hoovermatic]

This tiny article in June's Which? caught my eye.............

'As of December 2013, all washing machines must have a 20c wash cycle. But would you use it? How much money and energy would you actually save? And what happens to cleaning power? Our experts are investigating right now and we'll bring you the answers as soon as we can'

So whilst the US government are pushing America down the route of doing laundry in less and less water, the UK government (or more likely this is an EU directive)are taking us towards ever cooler temperatures since they can't reduce the water levels much more!

 

[henene4]

AAAAAAHHH!!! WHY???

I would never wash at 20°. Everything is at least washable at 30°, and even that temperature does not use that much more enegy than 20°. I mean, after that, we cant wash with lower temperatures than the tap water is cold.
The cleaning-effects are on these temperatures nearly the same as on a 30° cycle, BUT, there is a big BUT, you need way more chemicals which are way more aggressive to the enviorment and , much more, on your clothes and your machine. Normal detergens are not working at these temperatures. So the newer detergens which are designend for that low temps have a special mix of biological contents like enzymes, but much more, non-biological contents. Cause of that more "soapy" detergens, rinse-results are even worse then they are now with normal detergens and the already "only-one-cup-of-water"-washers. These dertergens have a nother problem, espacialy on whites: they contain only smallest amounts of bleach, cause bleach is not active at all at 20°.
So i think, 20° are a not usable washtemperature for daily loads. For home washed suits, O.K., but daily loads are not designed and made for these temperatures.

 

[washerlover24]

NO WAY!!!

i will never wash below 40* i just feel things are not clean enough.

 

[aquacycle]

in a word.....no.

 

[pierreandreply4]

me i would say say yes if its cold water wash more more energy efficiant to wash in cold water.

 

[ozzie908]

An emphatic .....

NO

its just not hygienic

Austin

 

[lavamat_jon]

Whilst I wash dark laundry with excellent results at 30, I'm not sure that I'd go any lower than that... A Hotpoint Futura I had briefly before Christmas had a Cottons standard 20 programme and whilst it did more intensive drum action to compensate for the lower temperature and recommended using cold water detergent such as Excel Gel, it seems too much compensating is going on just for the sake of a wash that is 10 degrees lower and probably saving only fractions of a penny in running costs.

 

Saying that though, as with anything, don't knock it until you try it...

 

Jon

 

[washer111]

MOST CERTAINLY NOT!

Why not just offer a "tempered" Cold option, that heats the water this hot if it absolutely must (for the really cold days?) - rather than call it "20º" I think Miele already does this - cold is heated to 24º to ensure adequate (for non-OCD people or non AW members!).

 

I tried using 30º for darks, but my fabric softener usage meant things weren't getting quite clean. I switched to 40º and all is well. Really, how much energy is used heating very little water to 40º? I can understand that 50º, 60º, 75º, 90º wasting energy - but not 40º. Instead of "promoting" colder temperatures as better for everyone (really, they aren't: Henene4 highlighted this perfectly) - why not promote Eco-Friendly water heating options that can give the machine Hot water to save the heater being operated

 

[aquacycle]

more energy efficiant to wash in cold water

yes, but it's also disgusting and unhygenic. Might as well take your clothes down the river and bash them against some rocks.

 

[pierreandreply4]

aquacycle

maybe thats how things are in your family but for me when i learn doing the wash load on my old inglis superb vintage washer ilearn to do it washing in cold water and also time are changing and so do washing machines eather they are of american canadien design or european uk design we are going on a path where energy effency and global warming reduction. And also washing machines are constently changing every year, and for your info i have been washing in cold water and my clothes never smell bad and never did my washer and if you look closely at this care laundry guide you will see that most clothes must be wash in cold water to avoid damage to the fabric

http://www.textileaffairs.com/lguide.htm

 

[qualin]

I find this entire thread a little amusing, but for good reason.

North Americans can and do wash with cold water and we also have detergents which are specifically designed for cold water washing, but in Canada, "Cold" on our washers can actually be as low as 5 C. How anything gets clean, I really have no idea. I have no idea if washing with water that cold actually kills any germs, or just makes them really angry.

Personally, I don't like to wash in anything less than 30 C water if I can help it. I ignore the "Cold Water Only" instructions on my clothing because I don't believe they get clean otherwise. I personally do not think there is a lot of energy savings in washing with cold water, especially considering that most Canadian homes have natural gas water heaters, so it's just pinching pennies really. If we used electric water heaters, then I could see savings.

It's probably a good thing that Canadians don't have the luxury of washers which boilwash, otherwise I'd probably boilwash everything.

 

[arbilab]

I wouldn't wash my HANDS at 20C if I could help it.

 

[dj-gabriele]

I've seen that things come clean at 20°C and even in "cold" water.
But that usually leads in "clean" looking but mouldy smelling towels, bedding, etc.
And is achieved by using loads of detergent and stain pre-treater!!!

Honestly it's gross and as said penny-wise but pound foolish!

Where's the saving in ruining your garments and using twice the chemicals when simply increasing the temperature will do marvels?!

A 40°C wash in the average European washing machine accounts for 0,7 kWh of electricity and less than 50 litres of water.
At my prices it is 0,26€ of utilities per wash. Assuming water consumption stays the same, washing at 20°C uses 0,4 kWh of energy so the cost of the wash is 0,19€ A MERE 7 CENTS SAVING!
But I have to use a stain treater and more detergent which cost MUCH more and pollutes a lot more! YUCK! :O

And anyway, there simply are stains that will not go away if not washed at high temperature (perspiration stains, tomato sauce, molten chocolate, etc...)

 

[aeg03]

No I wouldn't. I don't even like using the 30 degree temp setting so 40 degress in minnimum for me.

 

[hoover1100]

Absolutely...

NOT! 40c as a minimum for even the most delicate and non-colourfast items (if they were damaged at 40c then they would be damaged by being in contact with the human body.)

For towels and sheets that minimum goes up to 60c.

Tried washing lower, just leves clothes smelling unclean over time.

For those serious about saving energy or money, ditching the clothes dryer will have a far greater impact than reducing wash water temperature.

Matt

 

[hotpointfan]

No way!

Never below 40 even for delicates 40 or 30.

Most clothes I wash at 40 degrees eg darks.

Some darks and mixed colours can go on 60 degrees if they are quite dirty.

Whites are usually washed at 60 cotton or synthetics for shirts again at 60.

Coloured towels at 60 degrees but white towels and tea towels at 90 degrees, we are slowly getting more and more white towels so we can phase out the coloured ones.

I use Formil powder from Lidl occasionally and that claims to work at 20 degrees but I have never tried it and I don't intent to, anyway, my machine doesn't have one!

Ariel advertises to wash at 15 but again I don't use Ariel Gel and I don't have 15 degrees and I wouldn't use it if I did anyway!

 

[DirectDriveDave]

Our 1990 machine gives us 50 C (rounded off) for hot. I will NOT wash in water cooler than that for hot.

 

[lavamat_jon]

Dave...

Fortunately our machines still let you go up to 95*C, and the energy label rated cycles are specific cycles - most manufacturers nowadays have a seperate "Eco" cycle that is used for testing - so for the moment at least we can still get old-fashioned hot washes with plenty of water.

 

[foraloysius]

Factors in doing laundry are Time x Temperature x Mechanical Action x Chemical Action. If you decrease one factor, you will have to increase one or more of the other factors to get the same result.

So, in order to compensate for 20 degrees Celcius or Cold water washes, you will have to use longer wash times, more intensive wash action or/and more detergent. Where you will win on one end, you will loose at the other end. So there really is no point in washing at lower temperatures. More detergent, more wash action and longer wash times will cause more wear and tear on clothes than a higher temperature, as long as the temperature used is not too hot for the fabric.

And indeed, everything that you wear on your body should survive a wash in warm water.

 

[pierreandreply4]

to all those that lives in the uk (*this is not a critic)

to all aw uk members what will you do if for any reason your country decided to adopt the same measures as the us or canada would you rather pay a fortune on sites like eb ay to try and buy a vintage washers that suits your needs me for one thing i have never had any trouble with washing in cold water i and never had bad smells or poor cleaning as everything came out perfecly clean and with the same amount of detergent and not add ons like color safe bleach ectonly 1/2 a cup of detergent and that its still the same today. Even if i have a duet and if i go back to a topload washer i will not change the way i wash the only time i would use warm water would be for perm press fabric or overnight soacking then cold water wash and the only time i would set my washer to hot water is for bedsheets otherwise it will always be cold water washing for me.

 

[lavamat_jon]

Pierre...

Nobody is telling you how to wash, nor asking you to change how you wash, however this thread is discussing UK/European machines that all have heating elements, always have heated and always will.  Please do not get offended as we are discussing the way we wash here.

 

Everybody's opinion has a value, and there isn't one right way about doing things.  The world would be boring if we were all the same - imagine if the entire world had one brand of washer, one brand of detergent, one water temperature...  We understand and appreciate that you like to wash in cold water, but do not take other's preferences to wash in different temperatures as criticism on your part.  I will get criticised by some for washing on 30 deg C (which I have found from my personal experience and experimenting over the past couple of years, gives superb results on dark/coloured laundry - identical to 40 degrees), but as long as the way you do things works for you then who cares what anybody else thinks, acceptance is the key to harmony in today's world.

 

Jon

 

[optima]

If washing & 20c is bad get ready for a maximum 1600 wattage limit on Vacuum Cleaners. It's all going mad mad mad but i'm more than happy with my classic low powered 600w Panasonic.

 

[dj-gabriele]

600W vacuum cleaner?! I faint... ahahahha

My oh my!
It's not the power limit on vacuum cleaners that makes me go into panic but the limit on all the other appliances that we take for granted if I were to move to the US or Canada!
Like a 3 kW kettle or a 3,2 kW steam iron+steam generator or a 2,4 kW hairdryer or a 3kW indoor grill or the ability to plug in a clothes dryer virtually everywhere! And go figure, here by code you can have standard 20A power points!

 

[logixx]

I think 600 watts is okay since this vacuum has no hose, which usually reduces air flow. Our Vorwerk has only 700 watts and a 100 watts power brush - cleans superbly. But it is true about the lowering of total power draw. Here, most large appliances are now only 10 amps, which means 2000 to 2500 watts of heating power. In the past, most appliances had 3000 watts at 16 amps. My washer, for example, claims a six kilo load to be washes at 40C on the one-hour cycle. Only recently did I find out that the heater isn't capable of heating the amount of water (at only 1900 watts) to the selected temp and the main wash will just time out. So bring back them powerful heating elements!

Back on topic. I'd only use 20C to refresh things that have been in the closet for too long and need a rinse, basically. I tried the Ariel gel and after two washings in 18C water, all my darks smelt and I had to rewash them in warm water. Coincidentally, our consumer magazine also reported about temps in washers and how hot each machine got on its 60C cycle. They said that, by the end of the year, only A+ efficiency machines are able to be sold.

 

[dj-gabriele]

Here, most large appliances are now only 10 amps

Go figure that the new Candy Grandò have a total connected power of only 1500W, talk about lowering instantaneous power use!

 

[gorenje]

Sure it can be an individual choice, but ...

my answer is NO WAY!

Never below 40°C, simply because even the body temperature is almost 40°C.

Any extra chemicals or extra time or extra vigorous action added to achive the same result will leads to higher costs, harm for the environment, harm for the clothes, than if a higher temperature is used.

Regarding on washing habits in North and South America where a considerable percentage of people wash in cold I was wondering if it could be possible that the water chemistry over there is significantly different from ours here in Europe which is generally quite hard.

It could be that washing a same load in cold over there or over here would lead to a different result, just because of the water.

Mine is just a hypothesis.

Ingemar

 

[mrlavadoro]

Is stupid wash a 20 º

I wash at 30, 40 or 60 degrees but NEVER i going to wash at 20 degrees it´s not higienical and is bad for the clothes.

 

[aquacycle]

Optima, I love that Panasonic! I grew up with a slightly later 700w version in a house with 4 cats and 4 kids and it never let us down!

Here is my Panasonic collection.

 

[retromania]

Next.....

Before long we will be back to beating our laundry on a rock in the river!!!
When I got my HE front loader, I had to get use to the less water thing. It took a while. I just wasn't convinced at first that my clothes were really getting clean. That was five years ago now and it does fine. My clothes don't get soiled because I have a desk job, but there is a heavy-duty setting on the machine to make it run a long time. Also you can add an extra rinse. Well, anyway, blah blah blah blah blah. Y'all get the point.

 

[rolls_rapide]

Also...

There were cases of spontaneous combustion of towels in beauty salons' airing cupboards, due to the flammable essential oils not being properly washed out of the material. Low temperature washing was blamed as one of the factors. (Ideally, such establishments should be washing at much higher temps to combat cross contamination of clients!).

The best "cleaning-to-economising" ratio seems to be around 40 degrees Celsius, where oils, greases, ointments and body soils are usually taken care of in an efficient manner.