Laundry!
I don’t know about you, but with a family of four children at home, that’s a chore I have to do every single day. Luckily, it was one of the easier places where I could go green – and save money in the process.
How to Have Earth Friendly Laundry
Water temperature
Just heating the water to wash your laundry uses a lot of energy.
But it’s such an easy solution to turn that dial to cold and save on energy.
A lot of people worry that their clothes won’t come clean. Most of the time, though, your clothes don’t need hot water. If you’re trying to get oil or grease off clothes, you want it hot. Hot water is also a good idea for underwear because there are a lot of germs that hang out around there.
Unless I’m purposely trying to disinfect something that has bodily fluids on it, I use cold water. The best water – washing in cold helps prevent a lot of stains from setting in and keeps colours from bleeding to other clothes.
Full loads only in the wash
Washing large loads will save water and save energy.
You use 40 gallons of water whenever you do laundry so if you can do one less load of laundry a week, then you’ll save 10% on your energy and water bills.
Just remember that full doesn’t mean overloaded. Never cram clothes into the machine.
The exception – if you have a newer machine that adjusts the water setting to match the amount of clothes, you probably aren’t saving water. However, a small and large load use the same amount of electricity.
Upgrade your machines
There are many energy-efficient laundry machines out there that can save you so much on your energy costs.
If you aren’t in the market for new laundry machines, then don’t go out and buy them, but if it’s time for an upgrade get the most energy-efficient one you can afford.
Change your laundry detergent
Using natural detergents and stain removers is great for the environment.
You can even make your own. I’ve done it, and it’s not difficult, but I haven’t had the success other people claim. I end up with gray and grimy clothes.
Natural detergents that you can buy (like Seventh Generation) are free of chlorine bleach and synthetic fragrances, are generally made out of plants and are specifically made to perform well in cold water. Read the fine print, though.
Non-chlorine bleach
Chlorine is not good for the environment.
Switching to a non-chlorine bleach is simple and it works just as well. A bleach made with peroxide instead of chlorine does the job right and it doesn’t have to be a name brand either. This really adds up to helping the environment and it’s so easy.
Say no to dryer sheets
The chemicals in dryer sheets and even fabric softener are not only bad for the environment, but they’re also bad for our skin.
To keep that static cling down, either find a eco-friendly dryer sheet, or use a wool dryer ball tossed in the dryer. It will remove that static cling with no chemicals.
We switched to dryer balls a while ago and I’ll never look back. For people like me, with multiple chemical sensitivity, the chemicals in even ‘unscented’ dryer sheets can be toxic.
Hang to dry
You know you love the smell of your clothes when they have been outside drying in the sun.
There’s the added bonus of the sun; it’s a natural bleach.
If you have a stain in something, spray it with a little lemon juice and hang it to dry and it will help get the stain out. Nothing gets more natural and eco-friendly than that.
If you live in a cold climate, have no fear; you can still hang to dry on a drying rack indoors and it will double as a humidifier that way. Put your rack over your heat source and you’ll moisten the air while drying your clothes.
Use what you have
Baking soda is a deodorizer and lemon will help remove stains.
Vinegar is a very effective natural cleaner.
Whip up your own detergents for great cleaning products that cost less and help the environment.
Hand wash
Skip the washing machine altogether when you can and wash by hand.
Wash the least dirty clothes first to use the water longer.
Use a large bucket, but it’s even easier if you have a large utility sink.
Okay, admittedly, it’s not anywhere near as easy as washing in the machine, but if you only have a small amount of clothing to wash, this can be a fabulous earth-friendly option.
Plus it can double as your work out for the day. 😛 Hand washing uses a lot of physical energy.
Wear clothes longer
You don’t have to wash pants after every wear unless you spilled something on them. Wearing clothes longer means less to wash of course.
Taking these steps to eco-friendly laundry will not only save you money, but will make a difference on your carbon footprint and the environment.
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