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Laundry Care Symbols Demystified: Wash Day Hieroglyphics Made Easy

Published on Tuesday, 05 January 2016 02:44

Charles

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If the next time you do laundry you end up cursing yourself because you never took that class in hieroglyphics, don’t stress. First, those little symbols that you find all over the labels of your clothes aren’t ancient messages from the Egyptian pharaohs. Instead, they are encrypted messages from the makers of your clothes that tell you how to best treat your fabrics. Either way, if they might as well be Greek to you, fear not. This article will serve as your “pointee-talkee” for getting help from laundromat scholars.

Kicking the Bucket. One common symbol on clothes is a cross section of a bucket. This generally means that the item is washable, but with certain conditions regarding temperature, cycle, and other. When the bucket has one dot inside of it, wash it in cool or cold water. With two dots, use warm water. With three, use hot water. A bucket without a line under it means to wash normally. One line under the bucket means permanent press. Two lines under the bucket mean to wash with delicates. If the bucket has either an “X” through it or hand in it, do not wash the item.

Triangles. Triangles indicate the use of bleach. A clear triangle indicates bleach when needed. A triangle with diagonal lines through it means to use non-chlorine bleach as needed. A triangle that is black and has an X through it means not to bleach the item.

Squares with Circles. Symbols that show a circle inside of a square indicates tumble drying. When the circle is filled in, you can tumble dry with no heat. With one dot inside the circle, use low heat. With two dots in the circle, use medium heat. With three dots in the circle, use high heat. With no dots, use any heat. With a circle alone in the square, use the normal cycle. With one line, use the permanent press cycle. With two lines, use delicate or gentle cycle. If the symbol has an X through it, do not tumble dry the item.

Lone Square. Lone squares indicate the drying. A square with a lip on the top indicates to line dry the item. A square with three vertical lines in it indicates to drip dry. A square with a horizontal line in it indicates to flat dry the item. A square with two diagonal lines in it means to line dry in the shade. An X through an empty box means do not dry. A symbol that looks like a cloth being wrung with an X through it means to not wring the item.

Irons. An iron symbol is the ironing instructions. An iron with one dot means to iron on low temperatures. An iron with two dots in it means medium temperatures. And an iron with three dots means high temperatures. An iron that looks like it is jetting steam out the bottom with an X across it means to not use steam.

Circles. An open circle means to dry clean the item. A circle with an X through it means not to dry clean the item.

If all of this is still another language to you, contact the Laundry Center of NYC. They not only speak fluent laundry, but they pick up and deliver for free as well.

Can You Wash Laundry with Dish Soap

Published on Tuesday, 22 December 2015 20:39

Charles

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Well, you’ve done it this time. Amidst all the things you have to do, you forget to buy laundry detergent. Goody. What do you do now? If you’re like most people, your thoughts will probably turn to some kind of alternative, such as, well, liquid dish soap. But we’re talking about your clothes here. Is that a really good idea? As it turns out, yes. Not only is liquid dish soap a perfectly good alternative to laundry detergent, but it really works quite well. Besides, with liquid dish soap, you won’t get dishpan hands, or so we’ve been told.

Getting Down to the Dirties

So, if you have a load to do and you’ve got nothing but dish soap, this is the low down on how to do it best. First, if you’re stuck with nothing but Dawn, you’re in luck. Not only is Dawn one of the cheapest dish soaps available–with the exception of the store brands–Dawn is phosphate-free and hypoallergenic, which means you’ll be going easier on the environment, and anyone in your family who has sensitive skin will thank you as well. If you’re stuck with another brand, you’re on your own and would be best advised to check with a local chemical engineer to make sure you’re safe. Fresh out of chemical engineers? Go buy some Dawn. Then again, as long as you’re out buying Dawn, wouldn’t you just go ahead and buy some detergent? Never mind.

Dawn in the Wash

With your Dawn firmly in hand, you’re ready to conquer the wash. If you are like most people, however, the first think you ask yourself before you drop in that first drop is, “Isn’t this going to bubble all over the place?” The answer is no, especially if you are careful with your measurements. The secret behind this is as follows:

1 teaspoon of Dawn for small loads

2 teaspoons of Dawn for medium loads

3 teaspoons (which equals one tablespoon) of Dawn for large loads

It’s good to remember that we’re not talking about clothing detergents here, so the chances are very good that the makers of Dawn (or any other dish soap) are not inflatable swimming pool concerned with how soft and mildew-smell free your dishes are. As a result, if you do use a dish soap on your clothes, it’s an especially good idea to include a single cup of white vinegar in your wash load to do the fabric softener’s job.

All that’s left to do is to wash your clothes as you normally would. Just next time, remember the laundry detergent when you go shopping. If all of this is too much to remember, there is an alternative. Pick up the phone and call The Laundry Center of NYC. Not only will your laundry be picked up wherever you are, but it will also be delivered, and it won’t smell like Dawn either, because they don’t forget to buy their detergents.

Can Laundry Detergent Kill Bed Bugs?

Published on Tuesday, 17 November 2015 18:37

Charles

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You could be comatose in front of a television and still be aware of the huge problem of bed bugs. It’s no joke. Bed bugs are in literally everything. Fortunately, this nasty little parasite–not the same breed as those that prostelize at your door–is on the run thanks to a lot of good information that’s getting out about how to control them. If you are still trying to find out what to do, revive yourself long enough to gather these few more ideas.

Bed bugs are insects that feed exclusively on blood. If that fact alone doesn’t wake you up, consider this: bed bug bites can cause rashes, allergic symptoms, and psychological effects. The bites of bed bugs are also known to transmit pathogens, which is an umbrella term for a wide variety of diseases.

Now that we have gotten your attention, how do you get rid of bed bugs? First, any symptoms of bed bugs are usually followed up by actually finding them. Since bed bugs are attracted by places that are warm, your home or other dwelling is the natural place to find them. And since bed bugs are nocturnal, they can most commonly be found in beds (duh).

The first step you should take in your eradication program is to have your home professionally cleaned. This will reach all of the tiny places where bed bugs can hide that you probably couldn’t reach, or would if you could. This is fine and dandy, but if you aren’t crazy about having someone spray chemical on your linens, you can easily perform the next step yourself: wash all of your bed linens.

The next question usually is ‘Can laundry detergent kill bed bugs?’ Well, yes and no. The yes part is that nearly any laundry detergent will help to kill bed bugs. Now for the no part: Even laundry detergent won’t kill all bed bugs. The good news is that once your bed linens are finished in the wash, the next step will kill any bed bug that remains: drying. The only thing that is truly effective at killing bed bugs is heat. As a result, you should use hot water on any bed linens that have bed bugs. If your bed linens are colors and you can’t use hot water, wash them as you normally would, then put them in the dryer on “hot.”

How do Laundry Detergents work?

Published on Tuesday, 03 November 2015 17:10

Charles

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Soap is the word that comes into our minds when we hear of laundry, and we cast our minds to those old days when we were young. This is the time water, and soap was the greatest enemies ever. However, we get to adapt as the clock ticks. Laundry detergents have come a long way following the introduction of the first soap. The first laundry detergents were introduced in the 1950s and were offered for sale in the market. This was the greatest move in the laundry service for most homeowners. Laundry detergents are available in different forms i.e. there are powder and liquid detergents. Both types of laundry detergents have similar cleaning powers only that it depends on your choice and preference.

How do laundry detergents work?

Water alone cannot clean your fabric. You need detergents to remove grease on your favorite T-shirt or jeans. Water molecules tend to attach to one another (cohesion). Similarly, grease molecules on fabric tend to attach to one another. This is why water alone cannot remove grease from a piece of clothing. Detergents contain surfactants. These surfactants have two different ends of which one end strongly attach to the grease molecules, and the other end attach to water molecules. The mixing of water, grease and surfactants tends to create a tumbling motion. This causes grease or any other dirt molecules to break into smaller pieces that can be removed easily from your piece of cloth.

As you rinse your clothing, the water molecules tend to move past each other and in the opposite direction. The water molecules finally pull the dirt together with surfactants away from the fabric. During your last spin, the dirty water that has mixed with dirt is then flushed away, and your piece of cloth is left sparkling clean once more. The surfactants are designed in a way that it keeps the removed dirt in the water and prevents it from re-depositing on the cloth again.

Some of the known surfactants found in detergents include alkyl sulfates, ethers of fatty alcohols and alkyl ethoxylate sulfate. Non-ionic surfactants work pretty well and offer best cleaning results in case you are using hard water. Different laundry detergents have been formulated to work best in certain temperature conditions. These are normally labeled against each detergent that you buy, and you can be sure to read it before using. Moreover, detergents come at big inflatable water slides different prices. The less expensive detergents contain less active enzymes, unlike pricey detergents. Ideally, it is critical for you to check the ingredients available in any detergent you buy as this affects the final cleaning results.

The Laundry Center uses only the finest and safest detergents to make sure your laundry comes out ultra clean and smelling great.  Go ahead and schedule a laundry pickup online now.

Laundry Tips for Large Families

Published on Thursday, 08 October 2015 12:59

Charles

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There probably aren’t many people who can’t remember with a certain fondness the days of being in college or single, when doing the wash meant dropping a few things into the washer and you were set for the week, and depending on how you lived, maybe even for the month. Not anymore. Today, depending on how how family has grown over the years, your laundry has probably grown exponentially. What was once a chore that took a couple of hours–maybe–now is a Duggar family-sized undertaking. This article will show you how to go from one extreme to the other.

* Do it small. The old saying, “By the inch, life’s a cinch. By the mile, it takes a while,” certainly applies to laundry too. Whenever there’s a large family involved, everything takes longer. This includes laundry. As a result, you should take a careful look at your laundry chore, and whenever possible, break it down into smaller pieces, then pick a time when you can finish just that portion. This will inspire you to keep going for the rest.

* Schedule the laundry. You schedule everything else in your life. Why not laundry too? You could set aside time on one day for whites. Another day for colors, etc. There are a multitude of ways to break this task down to manageable parts. This will get the job done, leaving time before and after to do other things.

* Get help. Things are usually more pleasant when you have someone there to talk to, especially someone who speaks in multi-sylable words. Why not call a friend to help or just to keep you company while you are doing laundry? Not only will you get the job done, but you will do it in record time.

And while you’re on the subject of getting a large family’s laundry done, it’s worth noting that there is help available, and it will even come to your door to make sure it’s easy for you. One resource is The Laundry Center NYC, which picks up and delivers your laundry, no matter how much you have done or where you are. The Laundry Center NYC will not only save you time, but rest assured it’s probably going to save you money as well. The Laundry Center NYC inflatable i2k pub is a full service facility that can take care of practically everything on your laundry list and back to you fast.