Sorting Your Laundry – The Bamboo Edition
Short answer: Sort your laundry by colour and material, not just by colour. Bamboo clothing is best washed with other soft garments at 30 to 40 degrees and kept apart from denim, rough terry towels and anything with zips or hook and loop fasteners, which wear on the smooth fibres.
Step one: the colours
Split the laundry into white, light and dark, as you normally would. This is still the most important step, because dye bleeds into the water and settles in lighter fabrics. Wash new, strongly coloured clothing separately the first few times, so any excess dye can rinse out without affecting the rest of the load.
Whites on their own
White bamboo items stay looking their best when they are only washed with other whites. Even a single pale blue shirt can leave a faint grey tint over time. A white bamboo undershirt for men should therefore go in its own pile with white T-shirts and white socks, so it keeps its clean colour wash after wash.
Step two: the materials
This is where the bamboo edition differs from classic sorting. Bamboo viscose is smooth and fairly delicate, so it should be washed with similar soft materials such as underwear, T-shirts and nightwear. Hard fabrics rub against the smooth fibres throughout the whole programme, and that friction is what gradually causes pilling and a dull surface.
What stays out
Keep bamboo clothing away from denim, workwear and terry towels, which act like sandpaper in the drum. The same applies to garments with zips, metal buttons and hook and loop fasteners, which can catch on the fabric and pull threads.
Delicates in a wash bag
Delicate items such as a wireless bra and tights go in a wash bag. The bag protects against friction and stops straps and fine knits from tangling with other clothes. Choose a bag with fine mesh, and fill it no more than halfway, so the water can flow through properly.
Step three: temperature and programme
Once the piles are split, choosing a programme is easy. Pick 30 to 40 degrees and a gentle spin for everything made of bamboo. A higher temperature does not make everyday laundry any cleaner, but it wears harder on fibres, elastic and colours.
Prepare the clothes before washing
Close zips, fasten buttons and turn garments inside out before they go into the machine. That way the inside takes the wear, while the outside keeps its smooth surface and colour.
Fill the machine three quarters full
Only fill the machine three quarters full, so the clothes have room to move in the water. An overfilled drum rinses less well and creates more friction between garments. Use a mild detergent dosed according to the pack and your water hardness, and skip fabric softener, because it leaves a film on the fibres.
The rest of the sorting
Once the bamboo clothing is sorted out, the rest of the laundry can be washed as usual. Towels, cotton bedding and workwear often tolerate higher temperatures and a stronger spin. That is exactly why it makes sense to keep the two groups apart, so each pile gets the programme that suits it.
A system that works day to day
The easiest approach is to have two or three laundry baskets, each with its own job, for example one for whites, one for darks and one for soft items. Then you sort as you drop clothes in. This applies to bamboo clothing for women and bamboo clothing for men alike, which can be washed together by colour. See also complete washing guide for bamboo clothing.
Frequently asked questions
Can bamboo clothing be washed with cotton?
Yes, if the cotton is soft, like T-shirts and underwear, and the same colour. Avoid heavy cotton such as terry towels and denim, because they wear on the smooth bamboo fibres.
Do I need a wash bag for all bamboo clothing?
No, only for delicate items such as bras, tights and thin nightwear. Ordinary T-shirts and underwear do fine without a bag, as long as you turn them inside out first.
How hot can bamboo clothing be washed?
Wash at 30 to 40 degrees for everyday laundry. That gets clothes clean while sparing fibres, elastic and colours. Only use higher temperatures if the care label allows it.
You can find the full range at Bamboo-Clothing.com.
