If you find yourself regularly cycling through bath towels as they quickly go from soft to scratchy (or linen-thin), you may wonder how your friends and family members manage to keep the same towels in great shape for years. Although most of the bath towels sold today are equipped to go the distance, they do require a certain level of care in order to perform at peak capacity — and at an average cost of $15 per towel, the price of replacing your towels over and over can add up quickly. In addition to this cost, the loose fibers that come off your towels during a spin cycle can clog up your washer’s drain or your dryer’s filter. What can you do to extend the lifespan of your bath towels and minimize the extra wear and tear on your appliances? Read on for five tips that can help keep your bath towels as fluffy as the day you bought them.
Pay attention to materials (and care instructions)
Different materials react to water, detergent, and rough washing differently — and the way you wash a toddler’s microfiber towel should be much different than the way you wash a cotton-blend or wool towel. If you tend to throw all your towels into the washer and press the fewest numbr of buttons you need to start the load running, it may be time to look at your towels’ labels to see what they’re made of and what type of care the manufacturer recommends. Just by putting a bit more effort into sorting your towels and running them on the correct setting (whether a short hot cycle or a long cooler one), you’ll be able to ensure you’re doing all you’re supposed to when it comes to keeping your towels fresh.
Don’t Use Fabric Softener On Your Towels
Although fabric softener may be necessary for certain items to avoid static cling, it can lead to a waxy buildup on your bath towels that’s tough to get off. After just a few trips through the dryer with some fabric softener sheets, your bath towels may be completely coated with fabric softener, eventually causing the fibers to prematurely degrade. By washing and drying like towels together and fluffing them immediately after getting them out of the dryer, you’ll be able to avoid waxy buildup while ensuring they’re still fluffy and fresh-smelling.
Rotate Towels Regularly
If you find yourself using the same two or three towels all week, washing them on the weekend, and stacking them on top of your unused clean towels, you may dramatically shorten the lifespan of the few towels you use on a regular basis. By putting clean towels on the bottom of the stack in your linen closet, you’ll make sure you use all your towels an equal amount and can majorly spread out the wear and tear they’ll endure over time. This can also allow you to periodically rotate out towels that are becoming threadbare without requiring you to drop $50 or more on a set of three or four towels.
Give Towels A Vinegar Rinse
White vinegar may not be one of your favorite smells, but soaking your bath towels in it occasionally (or even just adding a few capfuls to a load of laundry in lieu of soap) can rinse off any detergent residue that may remain after previous launderings, reduce stains, and eliminate any musty or mildewy smells that can result from putting away still-damp towels. Although the vinegar can smell strong when you pour it in with your towels, giving them a good cold-water rinse before tossing them in the dryer should keep them smelling fresh.
Consider Outsourcing Your Laundry
If you live in an apartment or a house without a washer and dryer and are dependent upon public laundry facilities, you may want to consider sending your towels to a laundry service instead of trying to wash them yourself. Although many laundromats are clean, well-run places, you never know what may have been washed in the load right before yours — and putting your towels in after a load that just had a permanent marker explosion or consisted of bodily fluid-stained bedding could leave them looking and feeling less than clean. Outsourcing this chore to a laundry service can ensure your towels will be properly cared for while taking a tedious chore off your plate.
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