Skip to content

Cart

Your cart is empty

Article: Sanitize Laundry for Delicate Clothes

Sanitize Laundry for Delicate Clothes
Cleaning

Sanitize Laundry for Delicate Clothes

The washing of clothes in the household is an essential part of personal and family hygiene. Laundry not only cleans the garments from stains and unpleasant odors but also acts as a disinfectant for clothes. Disinfecting clothes from germs gets more important as cold and wet weathers of the late fall and early winter fall upon us, increasing the chances of catching an airborne pathogen. The airborne pathogens may be viruses, bacteria, and fungi, and are transmitted by small particulates dispersed in the air (aerosols). Looking at it in that way, clothing (scarfs, sweaters, hoodies, etc.) acts as an aerosol filter in everyday life. 

The air that surrounds us passes through the clothes and sticks any microscopic particles it carries along to the textile fibers. As a result, the garments we wear gradually loose their perceived freshness and acquire various smells. Imagine standing close to an open fire or a smoker for a few minutes. The clothes quickly absorb the smoke particles and carry their odor until it's washed away. The same thing happens with airborne germs. The germ-carrying particles can be picked up from an atmosphere of a stuffy room or captured by clothes when one covers a sneeze or a cough with a garment (for example, a scarf) or a clothed body part (for example, an elbow). Once trapped in the clothes, the germs may remain active for days unless sanitized. Their transmission can be carried out by repetitive use of clothes, cross-contamination through contact with other garments, or laundry sorting before washing. 

When one thinks of disinfecting a fabric, it is natural to imagine high temperatures and chlorine-containing bleach. Despite being effective at cleaning and killing the pathogens, such washing conditions tend to destroy delicate fabrics of high-end clothes made of wool, fine cotton, or viscose. That does not mean that it is impossible to sanitize clothes made of delicate materials. A bit of knowledge about the chemistry of regular and germ killing laundry detergents and the evidence-based effectiveness of various washing conditions could help us to identify best-washing practices at home even for the most capricious garments. 

A typical laundry detergent (for example, Dash® All in 1 PODS) is composed of a mixture of soaps and various surfactants, both anionic and non-anionic. The surfactants clean clothes by dissolving fats and removing dust and germ particles by wrapping around them and detaching them from the textile fibers. However, removal alone might not be complete and does not imply the deactivation of germs. The addition of bleach is needed to further enhance the potency of the cleaning.

Commonly used chlorine bleaches (for example, Clorox®) contain sodium hypochlorite salt (NaClO). The hypochlorite is an oxidizer that works by reacting with molecules in its environment and producing oxygen or chlorine, depending on the reaction conditions. The hypochlorite does not distinguish between “bad” molecules (ones that compose germs and dirt) and “good” molecules (the ones that compose fabric and its colors). For these reasons, bleach whitens the fabric and may damage the colors if used incorrectly. In addition, chlorine-based bleach is generally incompatible with wool. Wool is made of proteins, and proteins are long chains of interconnected amino acids. Chlorine bleach solutions are typically basic (pH > 7) and that, in combination with the oxidizing power, breaks wool proteins into fragments, irreversibly damaging the fabric. The finer the fabric, the bigger the damage. Fine fabrics feature thinner fibers and expose larger surface areas than coarse fabrics, making fine fabrics more reactive towards aggressive chemicals.

Active oxygen bleach (AOB) detergents provide an alternative to chlorine-based bleach. It is common for an AOB laundry disinfectant to contain two principal components: the one that carries active oxygen and another that activates it during the washing. For example, in the case of a popular AOB Napisan®, that would be sodium percarbonate salt and TAED (tetraacetylethylenediamine), respectively. The activation means the production of peroxides, such as hydrogen peroxide or peracetic acid and is especially helpful for washing in cold or warm (30-40 °C) water. These peroxides are potent oxidizers that destroy outer membranes of microorganisms and produce molecular oxygen in the process. Thus, AOB-containing products are good laundry disinfectants. Although they may be aggressive towards some fabrics, especially at high temperatures and high concentrations, AOB-based detergents are more forgiving than chlorine bleach.

In 2013, the International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene produced an evidence-based report on the germicidal efficiency of various washing conditions in a domestic setting, as well as recommended washing practices to achieve and maintain good hygiene. Below are the seven tips distilled from the report and applicable to the clothing worn normally, such as daily wear that gets in contact with skin and outerwear. Regardless of the tips, make sure to consult both care instructions for the clothing and directions on the detergent and bleach before use.

  1. At the start, segregate the clothing into separate loads based on their contact with skin to reduce the chances of cross-contamination during washing. For example, separate t-shirts, socks, and underwear into one load, and sweaters, hoodies, and jackets into another. 
  2. Always wash your hands after sorting dirty clothes.
  3. A standard washing cycle at 30-40 °C using an AOB-based bleach detergent is considered sufficient to reduce the amount and deactivate most of the pathogens.
  4. If garments are so delicate that they are incompatible with AOB-based bleach and/or warm temperatures, consider adding a prewashing step in cold water with a compatible detergent in addition to the recommended care instructions.
  5. After the laundry is done, dry clothes as soon as possible to prevent the multiplication of any remaining microbes.
  6. Drying garments in sunlight, tumble-drying at 40 °C or above, and ironing are factors that further enhance the hygienic quality of the washing process. However, tumble-drying alone as a means of disinfection is not recommended due to its negative impact on the environment.
  7. To further enhance the hygienic effectiveness of your laundry practices and minimize the chance of four odors, it is a good practice to keep the washing machine clean. That can be accomplished by periodically performing laundry at high temperatures (60 °C and above) with bleach, cleaning detergent box and rubber lining with disinfecting products, and drying inner surfaces when the machine is not in use.

 




Read more

How To Wash Polo Shirts
Garment Care

How To Wash Polo Shirts

Whether you love putting on a short sleeve polo shirt or a long one, you will agree with me that polo shirts are a wardrobe essential. Polos brings out a stylish look for those who love outdoor ac...

Read more
How To Fold A Polo Shirt
Polo

How To Fold A Polo Shirt

One of the most distinctive ways of dressing up in a casual outfit is having a polo shirt since it doesn't require any matching dress shirt or special slacks to be worn as an accompaniment. Polo sh...

Read more