How to Sort Your Laundry

Contributor

By eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating:

(16 Ratings)

Ensure crisp colors and fabric freshness by sorting your laundry according to each item's fabric, color and sturdiness.

How to Sort Your Laundry
Ensure crisp colors and fabric freshness by sorting your laundry according to each item's fabric, color an… More
How to Do Laundry
Has a parent, spouse or someone else determined that it's time you did your own laundry? You'll soon disco… More
How to Stop Laundry Shrinking
Everyone has experienced the horror of washing a favorite article of clothing only to have it end up looki… More
How to Go Green with Laundry
There are few household tasks that use up more water and energy than laundry, but all hope is not lost. Th… More
How to Make Eco-Friendly Powered Laundry Detergent
The chemicals used in laundry detergent can be harmful to the environment. This very simple detergent reci… More
How to Make Homemade Laundry Stain Pretreater
If you have laundry stains to deal with, there are dozens of brands that promise to do the trick--all of w… More
How to Dry Clothes
Modern appliances make things so easy! Here's how to use your dryer.… More
How to Dry Clothing Indoors Without a Dryer
A clothes dryer is a major energy consumer in the home. For many years, a clothes dryer was a luxury, not … More
How to Iron a Shirt
Unfortunately, many shirts do need ironing - but if you learn to do it yourself, you'll save enough on dry… More

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Liquid Fabric Softeners
Hampers
Laundry Baskets
Laundry Detergents
Laundry Pretreatment

Step 1

Inspect clothes for stains, and sort out the clothes that need to be presoaked.
Step 2

Separate whites from colors. Within the colored laundry, separate light colors from darker colors.
Step 3

Separate lint generators (towels, sweatshirts, chenille, flannel) from lint magnets (corduroy, velvets and permanent-press clothes).
Step 4

Wash delicates, such as loose knits and laces, separately.

Tips & Warnings

As you sort, close zippers to prevent snagging, and empty pockets (nothing like soggy facial tissue in the washer!).
Remember that some fabrics should only be dry-cleaned. Others, such as lingerie, are best hand-washed in the sink. Check care labels to be sure.

Who Can Help Sponsored

Find Lawn Care Services Here. Compare Up to 4 Quotes, Free Service & No Obligation.

Comments

Anonymous said

Flag This Comment

on 11/22/2005 Separate synthetics from cottons and wash separately to reduce pilling.

Anonymous said

Flag This Comment

on 11/22/2005 The purpose of a towel is to absorb moisture. When using fabric softener in wash or fabric sheets in dryer, fabric softener creates a coating around fibers in the towels that keeps the towel from doing its job - absorbing. This is true for bed linens too.