7 Ways to Green Your Laundry

When it comes to cleaning your clothes, there are plenty of things you can do to monitor the eco-footprint of those socks.

Making some simple changes in how you approach doing laundry can not only conserve energy, water and waste, but also help extend the life of your clothes. Here are seven ways to go beyond green in the laundry room:

1. Control Your Temperature

It may seem simple, but washing clothes in hot water uses more energy because the water must be heated. In fact, up to 90 percent of the cost of a load of laundry is spent on heating water.

Traditionally, warm water is used to help remove stains from light-colored clothes, while cold water helps protect the colors of delicate clothing. If you’re able to pre-treat any stains before the wash, there’s no reason you can’t reserve the warm water cycles for only the dirtiest of loads.

Check Out: How to Save Energy in the Laundry Room

2. Keep Your Concentration

Most of the major detergent brands now produce what is known as concentrated detergent. A concentrated liquid detergent requires less soap per load, while some concentrated detergent is pre-packaged in single unit doses. Both versions have several environmental benefits:

• Smaller plastic containers that use less packaging, and use less fuel in shipping
• Less water used in the manufacturing process
• The ability to use less detergent per load

No matter what product you use, it’s important to follow the directions on the container for proper use. By using the recommended amount and storing the product correctly, you’re not only more likely to get the product’s top performance, but it can help stretch your dollar, as well.

More: The Dish on Concentrates

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