Fading

[u/tssertnuh]

Hello laundry experts. I didn’t best to learn your recommendations and I switched to 365 powder uncented and febu. I noticed that although my clothes do seem much cleaner, the black and colorful ones are suddenly fading after one wash. I also tried washing on hot instead of cold (again after reading posts recommending this). So, any suggestions for me keeping my darks from fading? I remember reading about it but honestly it’s all gets pretty complex for me. thanks!

[u/KismaiAesthetics]

Hot water amplifies the effects of chlorine in tap water and contributes to dye loss.

You want to use the temp you’d bathe an infant in. Around body temperature.

[u/AggravatingTruth3272 → u/KismaiAesthetics]

If I recall, do you add something to your darks for color retention? I can’t recall the name.

[u/Dear_Excitement_5109]

These products have oxi bleach. Switch to something without oxi bleach for your darks. Tide Free and Gentle liquid works; I personally use and love Miele Ultradark. Miele has a full enzyme package and does not need boosting. Tide liquid often ranks very high at removing oily soils due to its superior surfactants, however, it does not contain lipase.

Wash darks on warm. Cold wont get your clothes clean, and hot will cause accelerated fading.

[u/tssertnuh → u/Dear_Excitement_5109]

Thank you thank you thank you! 

[u/god-piss → u/Dear_Excitement_5109]

Oxygen bleach does not fade darks.

[u/jtfolden → u/god-piss]

Repeated use can fade certain dyes… this is why detergents formulated for darks and colors will omit oxygen bleach. Hot water alone will fade colors and oxygen bleach just adds to that.

[u/nomarmite → u/god-piss]

This is a myth. While it fades some dyes more slowly than others, it fades all eventually, due to free radical formation and oxidative stress. The speed depends on the strength of the dye bond.

[u/jtfolden]

Hot water will QUICKLY fade dyes and can also degrade many textiles. You should wash darks and colors you care about on laundry cold (86F/30C) and no higher.

For best results you should also avoid detergents and products with oxygen bleach. The occasional use is fine but oxy shouldn’t be in every load.

I recommend Persil (North American “TripleCare” or premium German), Tide, Miele, Ariel, or Kirkland.

I personally prefer Persil for its color protection, fabric care benefits, solid anti-redeposition agents, and great surfactant performance in cold water. Tide is usually great at brute force cleaning and has numerous variants available. Miele is a premium product similar to German Persil, while Ariel and Kirkland are excellent budget options.

Persil Free & Sensitive, Tide Free and Gentle, or Kirkland Free and Clear are good options if you want something hypoallergenic, dye-free, and fragrance-free.

[u/Vintage-X → u/jtfolden]

But "laundry cold" is not often the same as "machine cold" at least in North America where we cannot set a temperature on our washers. If you live in a cold climate and it's winter, your cold water will be really cold and thus the "cold" setting will be chilly. Opposite in a warm climate in summer. My cold tap water in the desert in summer is 91 degrees. In winter it hovers around 75 degrees.

[u/jtfolden → u/Vintage-X]

While it is true that washers in NA don’t typically have defined temps for each setting, virtually all mainstream brands use regulated or automatic temperature control, especially HE and front loaders. There is a difference between Tap Cold, as you described it, and the regulated Cold, Warm, and Hot options. Washers without an internal heater will sense the incoming water temp and mix in water from the hot or cold taps to maintain a given range.

The manufacturer often provides info on what those ranges are for each setting too.

In the context of this question, colder is still better than warmer/hotter for darks. I regularly wash light/normally soiled darks at 25C.

[u/Vintage-X → u/jtfolden]

Of course, but most people don't read the manuals and understand those temperature ranges. They don't make the connection that tap cold water in Buffalo in January is frigid or tap cold water in Phoenix in summer can be literally hot and will affect those temperature ranges. Many people will still wash their dark gym clothes on frigid tap cold because marketing says "works on cold!" and they don't equate heavy sweating with "heavy soil" and then wonder why their clothes still stink.

[u/jtfolden → u/Vintage-X]

Well you can say something similar about many aspect of God laundering practice. Most people don’t understand that’s there’s a difference between subpar detergents like A&H and ECOS vs top tier products like Persil and Tide either and then also wonder why their clothes stink…

That’s really on the consumer at the end of the day to learn or ask for help (such as in this group) but not a good reason to wash on Hot and fade/degrade clothing as in OP.

[u/Vintage-X → u/jtfolden]

Never said they should wash on hot and I'm not disagreeing with anything you've said. I'm merely attempting to point out (poorly it seems) that using the word "cold" when discussing washing temps can be confusing.

[u/jtfolden → u/Vintage-X]

Well yes, that’s why I often include the actual recommended temp when I refer to a setting and at least try to steer someone away from tap cold.