Introduction
When you buy dark and vibrant clothes, you immediately start predicting how long they will be able to maintain their vibrance. However, just washing those clothes properly can help maintain their color for a long time. If your washing machine or dryer breaks down, you can search for “dryer repair near me” and hire professionals to fix it for you. For now, let’s check out how you can keep your laundry from fading.
Tips& Tricks
1. Things that accelerate fading –
Your laundry may fade quickly due to several reasons. However, most of the fading happens in the washer. When you wash your clothes in hot water with harsh detergents and abuse them by putting them in long drying cycles, they start to fade away quicker. Moreover, if the quality of the dye or fabric is not good enough, it may start to bleed away, and the fabric may lose color rapidly.
Fading also happens due to friction between different types of clothing. For instance, if you’re washing tough denim pants along with soft and vibrant T-shirts, the T-shirt fibers would break down quicker due to friction and develop a faded appearance. If you’re able to wash and dry your clothes properly, you can mitigate fading to a great extent.
2. Keeping black clothes black –
Making clothes black is a tough job. Black dye is most susceptible to bleeding and fading away and that’s why most people find it challenging to keep their black clothes and jeans the same shade of black for years. However, there’s an easy solution.
Just wash your black items separately from any other colored fabric. Put the black clothes inside out to protect the fibers from friction and put them on a cold wash at a delicate cycle. After the black clothes are washed, put them in the dryer immediately at a low heat setting. However, it’s best to air dry clothes to preserve their quality and color for as long as possible. Just keep them out of the sun and dry them under the shade.
3. Read care labels –
Unless you’re buying handmade boutique items from a local designer, all the clothing sold in stores or online come with a care label. Before you put your laundry in the washer and use the generic setting, check the care label. The care label includes all the instructions you need to wash the clothes the right way.
It includes information on the settings you should use on the washer and the dryer and also warns you if the fabric is not suitable for the washer or dryer and should instead be hand-washed or air-dried. Stick to those instructions so that you can keep your clothes looking like new for years to come.
4. Use cold water and a delicate wash cycle for dark clothes –
When you wash dark clothes, make sure that you use a short and delicate cycle in cold water. Cold water doesn’t agitate the fibers too much and a gentle wash cycle does the same. That way there’s a lower chance that the fibers would break down and the dye would start to bleed. If you’re not satisfied with the cleaning, you can gently wash your dark clothes by hand.
5. Choose the right detergent –
Detergent plays a significant role in maintaining the color of the fabric. Instead of buying generic and cheap detergents that use harsh chemicals, choose liquid detergents that are formulated for dark clothes. They may cost a few more bucks. However, they would extend the life of the dark fabrics by a great margin.
If you insist on using harsh detergent, use a very small amount to minimize residue on your dark fabrics after the washing cycle. Also, make sure to insert the detergent into the washer before you throw in the clothes. When you add detergent on top of clothes, an excess amount may be used on the contact areas and have a higher risk of leaving residues.
6. Don’t use excess detergent –
Most modern washing machines have an automatic dispenser that can gauge the amount of detergent that needs to be inserted during the washing cycle. It’s optimized so that excess detergent isn’t used. This way the clothes remain vibrant for a longer time. If you don’t have a washing machine with an automatic dispenser, you need to read the manufacturer’s instructions and use the amount that is recommended for the load size.
If your washing machine is too old, you may consider upgrading to a modern washing machine that has convenient features like automatic dispensers. Older washing machines lack features and are less efficient. Hence, you would be able to cut down on your energy bill by upgrading to a modern washing machine.
7. Use fabric softener –
You should consistently use fabric softeners with detergent every time you wash your clothes. One of the main benefits of fabric softeners is that it protects the color of the fabric and keeps it vibrant for a longer time. Apart from that, fabric softeners also reduce static cling, cut down on drying time, and make ironing your clothes easier. As a bonus, fabric softeners also add a pleasant and fresh scent to your clothes.
8. Air dry whenever possible –
As mentioned above, air drying is the best way of drying your clothes. While it isn’t optimal and not possible in every scenario, air drying your clothes allows the water vapor to slowly evaporate or get desaturated from your clothes as they hang in the air. The clothes don’t need to go through a rough cycle inside the dryer and don’t need to be blasted with hot air. This helps to preserve the color. Just make sure to dry your clothes away from the sun.
Conclusion
Maintaining the color of your clothes is not rocket science. You just need to follow the above-mentioned simple tips and make your clothes last for a very long time with minimal fading. On the other hand, if your washer or dryer breaks down, you can search for “dryer repair near me” and hire pros to fix it for you.
