When is your washing machine full?

CEBU, Philippines - How much can you cram into a washing machine? Well, more than you might think.

The efficiency of washers today is measured with a full drum, and the clothes do get clean. An average wash weighs around three kilograms, and most machines can handle six to eight kilograms. Running a half empty machine is a waste of energy. Fill the washer according to the program’s recommendations: there’s a maximum weight specified in the user manual.

Here’s a rough guide to weights of common items:

Jeans 600 grams

T-shirt200 grams

Shirt200 grams

Briefs/Panties50-100 grams

Bra 100 grams

Pair of socks100 grams

Small towel200 grams

Quilt cover700 grams

Tip: A washing machine with a weight sensor helps you put in the right amount of clothes. It’s also a good idea to mix bigger and smaller garments for better circulation in the drum.

Choosing the right detergent

There are plenty of brands of laundry detergent in the market. Which one you choose is generally a matter of taste. If you’re sensitive to perfumes or have sensitive skin and want to make absolutely sure all the detergent is rinsed out, set the washer to do an extra rinse.

Powder or liquid? It doesn’t matter, so long as you use a detergent with bleach for whites, one without bleach for colors, and one without enzymes for wool and silk.

Caring for our environment. Today, many laundry detergents have eco-labeling. It’s not necessary to use bleach for every load of whites, as bleach causes wear to fabrics and damage to the environment.

Every other wash is quite sufficient. Other things you can do are always wash full loads, and don’t wash at unnecessarily high temperatures.

How much detergent? Using the right amount of detergent is more important than you might think. Too much will not make your laundry cleaner. On the contrary, detergent will remain in the fabric, which can irritate the skin and cause allergies.

Too little detergent and your clothes might not get clean. First and foremost, read the recommended dose on the pack. It tells you how much to use, and where to put the powder/liquid (directly in the drum or in the machine’s detergent dispenser).

Adjust up or down based on what you are washing, how heavily soiled the clothes are, and your local water hardness which is the measure of the amount of calcium and magnesium ions it contains.

The fewer the ions, the softer the water. Soft water doesn’t require as much detergent. Water hardness varies depending on where you live. Check with your local water company to find out the water hardness in your area.

How soiled is heavily soiled?

Lightly soiled washing - Clothes without obvious stains that just need freshening up.

Normally soiled washing - Clothes worn for a whole day that might have a few visible stains.

Heavily soiled washing - Clothes worn for at least one day (such as socks) that you’ve had close to your skin (like underwear), or textiles used in contexts where they get particularly soiled (such as bath towels).

Very heavily soiled washing - Textiles with heavy stains of mud, grass, food or wine, for example. Or tea towels and bed sheets that have been used for a while, and gym/sports clothes.