Turkish cotton needs to be "trained" to hold onto liquid. Washing your towel will open up the fibers of the cotton and help it to better absorb water. Some people like to soak their Turkish towels in a bucket of water to help with this process.
Our organic Turkish towels are pre-washed, but to help increase its absorbency, let it soak in cold water for about 12 hours before you wash it for the first time. This allows the cotton fibers expand, ensuring maximum absorbency and softness. Wring the towel and let it hang dry.
Vinegar works well, especially before the first use wash the towels in vinegar in your washing machine, it will make them softer and more absorbent.
Liquid fabric softeners are the biggest reason that your towels are not absorbing the water they are meant to. The chemical layer keeps the towels from sucking up the water, which means it's only moving it around on either your skin, hair, or dishes.
Again, Turkish towels will get softer and more absorbent the more you use them and wash them. How to make Turkish towels more absorbent if you want to jump start the process? You can soak your new towel in cold water for a few hours or over night and hang dry it.
Baking Soda
Start by washing the towels in your washing machine using hot water and your usual detergent. Pause the rinse cycle and add between half a cup and one cup of baking soda to the water. The baking soda will act as a natural fabric softener and break down residues that might be impeding towel absorbency.
The recommended approach is to tumble-dry your Turkish towels on low heat. High temperatures may weaken the cotton fibers, which can lead to issues like shrinkage or fabric damage. By opting for a low-temperature setting and actively monitoring the drying time, you can prevent your towels from overdrying.
Using vinegar in laundry is simple. You can add it to the fabric softener dispenser in your washing machine or pour it in during the final rinse cycle.
With proper care, they can last for years while maintaining their softness and absorbency. Whether you're using them at home, on vacation, or for various activities, Turkish towels are a reliable and fashionable choice.
Wash your towels in warm water or hot water -- not scalding -- with one cup of white distilled vinegar. This will strip towels of any built-up residue and help restore absorbency. DON'T USE DETERGENT, only white vinegar.
Over time, even the highest quality terry towel can develop a musty smell, lose absorbency, and appear dingy. This is to be expected with regular use and is typically caused by the effects of hard water and detergent build-up.
New towels are also often coated in fabric softeners so they're nice and plush for shoppers—but these ingredients prevent towels from soaking up water. To get rid of that buildup, add a 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle during the initial wash.
How do I 'break-in' my Turkish Towel? For information on why we ask you to 'break in' your towel, click here. We strongly encourage a pre-soak our towels in cold water for 4-6 hours followed by a cold-water wash and line dry.
Hotels typically use towels made from 100% cotton, which is highly absorbent and quick-drying. Additionally, they follow strict laundering practices, such as using the right amount of detergent and avoiding fabric softeners that can leave a residue, ensuring the towels remain absorbent.
Adding vinegar directly to the wash with your laundry detergent may compromise its cleaning performance. Laundry detergents are formulated for specific pH levels, which may be disrupted by the acidity of vinegar, leading to less effective cleaning. It's best to avoid mixing them to ensure optimal results.
White vinegar, also known as distilled vinegar or spirit vinegar, is made by fermenting grain alcohol (ethanol) which then turns into acetic acid. Water is then added to the vinegar, so white vinegar is made of five to ten percent acetic acid and ninety to ninety-five percent water.
The short answer is no. And the long answer goes like this: When used together, baking soda and vinegar will neutralize each other, effectively canceling out the benefits of low pH for vinegar and high pH for baking soda.
Soak your Turkish towels before first use While your Turkish Towels will be soft on arrival, you can soak them before first use to make the long fibers open up and make the towel extra absorbent. Soak your towels in cold water for at least 12 hours. We recommend soaking your towel in your bathtub for best results.
Use baking soda.
This will help loosen up fibers and clean off any chemicals or grime, making your towels softer. Just mix half a cup of baking soda with your normal amount of detergent.
Here are some of the most common: You're washing your towels too often. Washing your towels with a high-efficiency (HE) detergent will help them last longer, but if you're using regular laundry soap every time you wash them and drying them in the dryer, this will also make them less absorbent over time.
Front-load washer: Vinegar is usually used as a fabric-softener alternative when it comes to laundry, and for that reason should be put in the fabric softener compartment of your washing machine, Matthew says.
How fast your towels spin and how long they wash affects how wet they are. If they spin slowly or wash for a short time, they stay wet. This means they'll take longer to dry. Also, dirt and other particles left on the towels after washing can stop water from disappearing, which makes drying take longer.