As microfiber lasts longer than cotton, these towels provide better value for money, withstanding up to around 500 washes.
“If you take care of your microfiber towels and clean them properly, they should last you a few years before needing to be replaced,” says Willatt. Sometimes your reusable cloths will give you a clue that it's time to buy new ones.
One of the benefits of cleaning with microfiber is that it lasts a long time. Many microfiber cloths can take up to 500 washings. That's up to two years in a typical household. Unfortunately, they don't last forever; at some point, microfiber cloth cleaning won't have the same revitalizing effect it once did.
Another bonus: They're eco-friendly, because you don't have to throw them away after a single use! The average microfiber cloth can withstand several hundred washings, which means it should last you a few years. But you do actually have to be careful of one thing when you wash them: the soap.
One major drawback is that they can cause frizz and damage to the hair. The fibers in microfiber towels are often synthetic and can create static electricity, which can rough up the hair cuticle and cause frizz.
Microfiber towels eliminate the friction caused by traditional cotton towels and minimize breakage or further damage, explains Shamban, who adds that microfiber does extremely well with fragile hair strands that are prone to breakage.
A cotton bar towel can be washed 20-30 times before it loses its effectiveness, a microfiber towel can be washed 200-300 times before it loses its effectiveness.
As microfiber lasts longer than cotton, these towels provide better value for money, withstanding up to around 500 washes.
Another way to tell is to push a water spill with it. A microfiber cloth that has been split will absorb the water, not push it. You should be mindful, that a thick, fluffy microfiber towel with a little bit of nap on it may feel softer and appear to be a better product, but it is not.
Microfiber towels and cloths can become stiff after many uses due to soap and hard water residue. To make them soft again, add 1 cup of vinegar to your washing machine, and then run a short cycle. Then, run another short cycle using 1 cup of baking soda.
After the lint trap has been emptied, you can place your microfiber towels inside the dryer separately from garments made with natural fibers as they tend to shed. Avoid adding dryer sheets and using high heat settings to dry microfiber towels as this may damage the fibers.
In fact if it seems like microfiber towels are not as absorbent as before, says Sweeney, they might have melted. The most common causes for melted microfiber are drying on high heat and placing in a dryer that wasn't fully cooled down.
Over time and use microfiber products lose their absorbency, softness, buffing performance, resistance to linting, and gentleness. Often, this is misdiagnosed as a sign of poor quality and age, but is most often due to poor laundry habits.
Before you wash your microfiber cloths, it is important to know that you should never use fabric softener or bleach. Fabric softener will clog the spaces in the fibers and render your cloth useless. Bleach, on the other hand, will erode the fibers.
Microfiber cloths are available in two forms — reusable or disposable — and each has its own set of pros and cons. Most common are reusable cloths, which must be laundered after every use. When handled correctly, these cloths can last 100 to 1,000 washings.
All those extra ingredients, lubricants, and fragrances from fabric softener and dryer sheets actually coat the teeny tiny microfibers. And this isn't a good thing. If you've ever used fabric softener or dryer sheets on microfiber, you may have noticed that your microfiber becomes waxy-feeling.
Microfiber couches are a cheap alternative to suede or leather, and the soft texture makes a comfy, cozy place to snuggle up. The only downside? Soap and water will ruin most, making them tricky to clean.
But, she warns, never use dryer sheets because they can coat and damage the fibers. Before washing and drying other brands of microfiber cloths, make sure to check their tag or website for proper cleaning instructions.
Using a Cotton T-Shirt on Wet Hair
The cotton used for bed sheets and pillowcases is way more coarse than cotton used for clothing. Similar to microfiber towels for hair, cotton t-shirts are soft and don't catch on the hair strands or cause breakage.
“Microfiber towels, by design, reduce the amount of friction your hair is subjected to when towel drying,” she explains, and are the best at wicking away moisture. While satin won't dry as quickly, it can be a good option for those with curly or wavy hair types who want to maintain their curl patterns.
You often rub the towel against your strands when drying the hair. The texture of traditional towels creates friction and encourages frizz. You can avoid this with a microfiber towel, as its smooth surface avoids disrupting the cuticles and allows your curls to stay intact, resulting in less frizz.
The friction from a cotton towel can rough up the cuticle for less-than-smooth results. A microfibre towel, on the other hand, will treat your hair with care to help prevent frizz from ruining your 'do – and your day. Plus, you'll spend less much less dough on frizz-fighting hair prods.
1) Light colors look dirty right away 2) “Swirl” marks are quite annoying and make the furniture look stained even if it isn't 3) There is resistance between the microfiber and the fabric of your clothes — you rather stick to it and can't adjust your position easily 4) STATIC!