overview
overview
this page is all about how to reduce the wear and tear on your clothes and other fabric items to prolong their lifespans and delay and reduce their need for repairs.
this page is all about how to reduce the wear and tear on your clothes and other fabric items to prolong their lifespans and delay and reduce their need for repairs.
washing and drying machines can really bang up your stuff, and the simplest way to reduce this wear and tear is to just use them less!
clothes can often be worn multiple times before they are detectably unclean by appearance or smell.
dryers can be avoided altogether by hanging cleaned items to dry on racks and lines.
harsh chemicals like bleach can weaken the fibers of your fabric items.
using too much detergent in a load of laundry can cause your clothes to get cleaned less well.
washing in hot water or drying on a high heat setting can cause shrinkage.
use the delicates setting for delicates.
zip your jacket zippers closed to help avoid breaking the zipper heads in washers and dryers
some of the above recommendations overlap with many other worthwhile laundry considerations relating to human health and accommodating people with disabilities, and environmental pollution and energy use.
If winter is coming and it's time to put away your summer clothes for the season (or visa-versa), store your out-of-season clothes clean in a cool, dry place to help avoid bacteria and mold growth.
if you are doing rough stuff, especially manual labor and/or certain outdoor activities, make sure that your outermost layers (anything that could scrape against your surroundings) is made of durable materials. for example, lots of puffy insulated winter coats burst open and start spilling their fluff if they rub the wrong way against a tree branch or a rosebush. protect fragile coats like this by wearing a tougher outer coat over them.
if you clip your toenails regularly, you are less likely to wear holes in the front of your socks.
if you do get to the point of damage, which is inevitable even using all the most thoughtful harm reduction practices, early intervention can save a lot of work and materials.
it is much easier to fix a small hole than a big hole, and small holes have a troubling habit of becoming big. it is also possible to reinforce fabric that is worn thin before it tears open.