Here at Dropps, we find our customers to be notoriously savvy, always wanting to find the most efficient, earth-friendly method for all the things the wash, clean, and purchase. This community is ever-resourceful! A question that occasionally floats around is “Can you wash towels and clothes together?” Many people like the idea of this because it can combine loads, saving time, water, and energy. However, most would agree that washing towels and clothes together isn’t the best idea.
Why Isn't This Advised?
Towels are notorious for being huge lint producers (gotta love cotton)! If you wash a load of fairly new towels, you’ll notice that there is an enormous amount of lint in the dryer screen. Imagine that lint getting trapped on your delicate clothes, your corduroy, your favorite sweater! It’s a nightmare to remove.
What is the Best Way to Wash Towels and Sheets?
We recommend that towels and sheets always need to be washed on hot and on a long wash cycle with a detergent that contains enzymes, like our Stain & Odor Laundry Detergent. Towels collect and absorb our bacteria and skin cells each time we use them, so they can require a deeper clean than most clothes! When clothes are washed for a longer period of time than they need to be, there is an unnecessary amount of agitation that takes place. This leads the clothes to looking old before their time. It can also cause the elastic to break down sooner on certain items and damage things like lace and netting.
Are There Any Items I Can Wash With Towels?
If you’re running a small load of towels and really want to throw additional items in to save water, some sturdy clothes, like jeans and tee shirts, can be included. In this case we’d recommend a warm wash (not hot), and a lower heat in the dryer as well. Wool Dryer Balls can help shorten drying time, so your clothes don't need to be exposed to any more heat than they need to!
Let us know if this blog post was helpful to you, and if you have any other questions about combining certain loads. Happy washing!