Machine wash basics, detergents

[King Salmon]

Some basic questions I've always wondered about machine washing:

When should I warm wash? Only in extreme cases with grass stains, etc.? Should I just use cold wash for normal day-to-day wear?

Which detergent to use? Is there a super-premium gentle detergent that I should use for my shirts? Why not just use that for everything then?

How harsh is OxyClean? It's essentially hydrogen peroxide (correct me if I'm wrong), so while it's certainly much less harsh than bleach it's still kind of rough and shouldn't be added to every load -- despite the advertisements.

I've heard that fabric softener is bad, is this true? I like it for towels.

 

[ghulkhan]

for jeans, I jsut let them soak in dr bronners over night....

for t shirts and knits and crap I jsut throw em in the washer with bronners
cotton pants the samaething
I dont use any fabric softeners or starch in any of my clothing ....I jsut dont like starch but according to AK its not good for shirts either ...

for shirts these guidelines sound pretty damn good...
http://www.customshirt1.com/ASK/laund01.html

I dont use fabric softeners or anything for my chinos

and anything else..I dont really clean

 

[G79]

Thanks for the link bro.

 

[atroopan]

Originally Posted by ghulkhan

...
and anything else..I dont really clean

This is the part which I'm wondering about

Other than that I pretty much follow the same routine nowadays using Bronner's for all my merinos, pimas, denim, and other wools.

Shirts I get laundered, but I'm too lazy to iron stuff so... haven't had problems yet. Then again - I'm not wearing $250 shirts on a daily basis either.

Most of my technical workout gear like underarmour and 'heavier-duty' cottons which I don't care about, I just throw in with Tide or Sunlight - whatever is on sale.

I'm going to have to experiment with shirt washing in the near future though if I hang around here too much and make the plunge into the world of ridiculously expensive shirts.

troop

 

[ghulkhan]

Originally Posted by atroopan

This is the part which I'm wondering about

Other than that I pretty much follow the same routine nowadays using Bronner's for all my merinos, pimas, denim, and other wools.

Shirts I get laundered, but I'm too lazy to iron stuff so... haven't had problems yet. Then again - I'm not wearing $250 shirts on a daily basis either.

Most of my technical workout gear like underarmour and 'heavier-duty' cottons which I don't care about, I just throw in with Tide or Sunlight - whatever is on sale.

I'm going to have to experiment with shirt washing in the near future though if I hang around here too much and make the plunge into the world of ridiculously expensive shirts.

troop

when I said that I was reffering to wool pants, wool jackets, jackets, suits and that junk
usuallty just let it air out
and I hardly clean the jeans