Towels through the year

Short answer: Change your towels once a week, wash them without fabric softener and keep two sets per person. Hang them spread out between uses so they dry all the way through. That keeps odour away and the towels absorbent all year round.

A fixed change every week

A fixed change once a week is easy to keep and suits most households. Pick a day when you wash anyway and it becomes part of the routine. The towel is the item that gets damp most often, and a steady rhythm stops moisture building up from one use to the next.

Two sets per person

With two sets per person, one has a full week to dry out completely while the other is in use. That is enough to keep odour from starting. You need not fill the cupboard, and you never reach for a damp towel after a shower, because a dry one is always ready.

Forty degrees is enough

Wash towels at forty degrees and load the machine so they have room to move. Ordinary detergent in the right amount is enough. Take the towels out as soon as the programme ends, so they do not sit damp in the drum. See bamboo towels.

No fabric softener

Fabric softener leaves a thin film on the fabric, and the film makes the towel absorb less well. That is exactly the quality you paid for, so skip the softener. If towels have started to feel slick or water-repellent, an extra wash without additives often gets them working properly again.

Hanging matters most

Hang the towel spread out on a rail or hook so air reaches both sides. A towel that hangs folded double or lies in a pile does not dry all the way through. So it is often the hanging, not the wash, that decides whether a towel stays fresh between two washes.

Moisture causes the smell

Moisture is the only cause of smelly towels. Bacteria thrive when the fabric stays wet for long, and that happens most in small, closed bathrooms. Open the window or switch on the fan after the shower and hang the towel to dry. That keeps the smell away without extra products.

After three to four uses

As a rule of thumb, a towel is washed after three to four uses, and sooner if it does not dry. You can tell by holding it to your cheek after a couple of hours. If it is still damp or cool, it goes in the wash, even if a week has not passed. Pair it with bamboo bedding.

Towels in the rest of the home

The kitchen and guest bathroom have the same needs. A towel by the basin gets many small wettings during the day and must be changed more often than the bath towel. If you want a whole home in bamboo, match fabrics and colours, so the range at home and homewear in bamboo fits together.

When to replace it

A towel should be replaced when it no longer absorbs, even after washing without softener. Then the fibres are worn or coated, and more washing does not help. Do not wait until it is thin or has holes. Order a new one in good time and let the old one live on as a floor cloth or cleaning cloth.