Most generic laundry detergents may be too harsh for certain delicate laundry fabrics. The best detergent for delicate laundry typically includes gentle ingredients and a pH that is close to neutral, which cleans without damaging delicates.
General rules for washing delicates are: Avoid washing in hot water and harsh detergents. Always wash in cool or tepid water with a gentle laundry detergent. Always separate your delicate items from other dirty laundry and wash with like colors.
The delicate detergent contains many of the same ingredients, but the enzymes have been restrained a little. The blend of enzymes in the delicate brew are not going to chow down animal fibre along with your toughest stains. They are still powerful, but slightly less versatile.
But our tests of dozens of laundry detergents show there are significant differences from one formula to the next. Some detergents are effective at getting clothes clean while others barely clean better than running a wash cycle using nothing but water.
Regular laundry detergents with harsh enzymes will destroy delicate fabrics. White clothes must be washed with a detergent specially made for white fabrics, otherwise they will turn grey. And colored garments will lose color if they are washed with a detergent for white clothes.
Affordable laundry detergents can be a lifeline for those looking to stretch their budget without compromising on cleanliness. These cost-effective cleaning agents come in various forms, such as powders, liquids, and pods, each with their own merits.
“Although gentle cycles are necessary for fragile fabrics and items with delicate decorations, they won't do a good job cleaning heavily soiled clothing and bedding,” she explains.
Answer: A delicate detergent should clean the clothes effectively without affecting the quality of the clothes. It should have the ability to remove all kinds of stains without causing any harm to the clothes.
The right way: Fill a clean sink with lukewarm or cold water and a small amount of delicates-friendly liquid detergent, like Tide Free & Gentle Liquid. Lightly agitate for three to five minutes, rinse well, and dry flat. Get more tips on How to Wash Silk here.
All Woolite® products are liquid detergents and are specially formulated for the machine to not cause shrinking, stretching, or fading on washable suede, linen, cotton, washable wool, silk, rayon, polyester, cotton/polyester, nylon, nylon/spandex and rayon/spandex.
The Delicates Cycle
A delicate wash or “hand wash” cycle is the machine equivalent to handwashing! This cycle uses warm or cold water with low or no spin. It's typically the shortest and most gentle cleaning cycle, and the low or no-spin allows for minimal fabric agitation.
Lighter Liquid Detergent
Oftentimes, lighter laundry detergents will be softer on delicate laundry. Charlie's Laundry Liquid is one of our favorite lightweight laundry detergents. It's hypoallergenic detergent is free of parabens, sulfates, dyes, synthetic fragrances, phosphates, and bleach.
“Similarly, if you have delicate fabrics like silk or wool, separating them can help prevent damage during washing.” This can also go for towels and clothing. You never want to wash your towels with your clothing—based on their material and weight, they will clean and dry better if separated.
Select the Gentle Cycle:
The gentle cycle reduces agitation and minimizes the risk of wear and tear. If your machine doesn't have a dedicated delicate cycle, opt for a short and cold water cycle to protect your clothes.
Delicate laundry detergent is a specially formulated detergent that is designed to be gentle on both delicate clothing items, such as silk blouses or wool sweaters, and delicate skin. It is typically made with natural ingredients like plant-based cleansers, color-safe bleach alternatives, and delicate fabric softeners.
As discussed previously, the detergent's job is to help pull away the dirt and grime from the clothing and rinse it out with water. The actual "wearing" out of clothes is more likely due to the rubbing of clothes in the washing machine (i.e. the agitation), not from the detergents themselves.
If you're just hand-washing delicate pieces, including lingerie, or washing machine-safe items on the delicate cycle, a regular detergent will probably work fine—especially if you wash said items in a mesh garment bag, which offers an extra layer of protection.
Cotton Cycle: 1.5 hours to 4 hours. Synthetic Cycle: 2.5 hours to 3 hours. Delicates Cycle: 45 minutes to 1.5 hours.
Cold temperatures are perfect for delicate items and any clothing with colors that may bleed or fade with higher temperatures. Cold water will never shrink your clothes and can be beneficial for a variety of clothing types including black clothing, bright-colored clothing, lingerie, swimwear and wool.
Tide Simply is a value version of Tide that includes less cleaning ingredients to help lower the cost while still providing a very solid clean.
You use too much laundry detergent.
Adding too much detergent can create extra suds that don't completely rinse out of clothes, leaving behind a sticky residue that attracts more dirt, dust, and bacteria—and that you'll have to remove using borax and washing soda in a process called laundry stripping.