Hot, Warm, or Cold Water for Laundry?
The Spruce / Ana Cadena
How do you grab the correct washing machine temperature for yourlaundry?
The wrong water temperature might leave clothes filled with odors, bacteria, and can potentially ruin them.
The Spruce / Ana Cadena
Lower priced detergents just don’t have enough cleaning ingredients to get clothes completely clean in cold water.
With the right detergent, washing your clothes in cold water can prevent shrinkage and fading colors.
Always choose cold water if you are unsure of your clothing item’s specific washing instructions.
Illustration: Alison Czinkota. © The Spruce, 2018
Using the cold water setting will cause the least damage to fabrics likeshrinking,fadingorcolor bleeding.
Set the washer dial on cold rinse and leave it for every load.
You’ll save money by not paying to heat the water.
In most clothes washers, the hot water setting is 130 degrees Fahrenheit (54.4 Celsius) or above.
Check your washer manual and your home water heater tweaks for specifics.
If you have a washer with a steam cycle, that will increase the temperature in each load.
The warm water setting is between 110 and 90 degrees Fahrenheit (43.3-32.2 degrees Celsius).
The cold water setting is between 80 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit (26.7-15 degrees Celsius).
During the winter, outdoor temperatures can greatly affect cold water temperatures.
