How to wash wool, at what temperature to wash a sweater in a washing machine

The climatic conditions of our country are quite harsh, so warm clothes are an essential part of any person’s wardrobe. Wool sweaters are an excellent protection for the body from hypothermia in the cold season; they are warm, soft and comfortable. But often, an attempt to give things pristine cleanliness and freshness ends in complete failure - irretrievably damaged favorite clothes, at best, become the thing of someone close to them, very different in size from the previous owner, and at worst, they are sent to yarn, rags or straight into the trash can.

Helpful advice! To return a sweater that has stretched out after washing to its original size, you should wash it again in hot water and use cold water when rinsing.

Is it possible to wash wool?

Like any clothing, woolen products need to be washed from time to time. When you are about to start washing a wool sweater, jumper, knitted blouses, knitted cardigan or items made from sheep's wool, follow the tips below, otherwise there is a serious threat of irreversibly ruining your favorite clothes.

Be sure to follow the washing instructions on the laundry tag attached to your laundry. It indicates whether wool can be washed in a washing machine or whether only hand cleaning is acceptable.
Unless you plan to intentionally shrink the item, avoid washing wool items in extreme temperature changes.
Too hot water will also lead to a decrease in the volume of the item.
Do not soak woolen items for a long time. From being in water for a long time, wool fibers will stretch or shrink.
When cleaning, there is no need to wash or rub stains. Follow these tips to remove dirt.

What rules must be followed to properly wash a sweater?

There are two washing options that can maximize the life of any sweater made from natural wool: hand washing and gentle machine washing. But before we describe the instructions for optimal water procedures, I would like to note a couple more important nuances.

Extend the time between washes

photo: unsplash.com / Giulia Bertelli

Every time you wash your clothes, they begin to wear out at an accelerated rate. And this, as you understand, is bad. However, it is also absolutely wrong not to wash the clothes you wear. Therefore, it is worth stretching the time between washes.

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Moreover, this is easier to do than with the same synthetic sweatshirts, trousers or jeans, since wool has antimicrobial properties and is resistant to unpleasant odors.

It's easy to check whether a sweater is worth throwing in the laundry basket or is still wearable. Just smell it. Is there an unpleasant smell of sweat in the armpits after another day of wear? Are there any stains on the sweater? Pollution?
If there is no smell or dirt, you can throw the sweater over the back of a chair or dryer and dry it overnight for another day of use.

Attention! It is advisable not to hang this woolen product on a hanger - it may stretch. Store it folded on a shelf in your wardrobe.

If you notice stains on the sweater (light soil), simply clean the stain without washing (different types of stains require different approaches to removing them, which the Internet can help you figure out. As they say, Google to the rescue!), let it dry, and then dry the sweater

You should only wash your sweater when it starts to smell or is very dirty. To keep your sweater fresh for as long as possible, you should definitely:

use deodorant;
wear a T-shirt or, say, a shirt under it

Requirements for washing wool fibers

Below is a list of recommendations on how to properly wash a cardigan, remove stains from an Angora sweater, and clean other wool products.

If it is possible not to wash the item, then it is better to neglect washing. Ventilating in the fresh air will help get rid of the unpleasant odor.
Grooming involves the least amount of contact with water. They should be as short as possible.
Fluctuations in water temperature will cause the fabric to shrink. In order to understand at what temperature to wash the item, use the manufacturer's instructions on the tag. If for some reason this cannot be done, avoid washing in water with a temperature above 30 degrees.
Turn clothes inside out before washing.
Wool may fade; you should not wash several different sweaters at the same time, especially if they are different in color.
Heat treatment is detrimental to wool, which is why you cannot clean products made from this material in hot water. Drying with heating devices is also unacceptable.
Be careful when choosing a laundry aid. There are more than 100 different manufacturers on the market offering quality cleaning fiber products for delicate items.

What to do if the item is colored after washing?

There are several ways to fix the problem of items faded after washing.

If the jacket is made of natural threads, ammonia will help restore it to its original appearance. It is enough to dilute it in water (ratio 1:20) and soak faded clothes in the resulting solution for forty minutes. Afterwards the item is rinsed in cool water.

Synthetic sweaters will be cleaned with laundry soap. Dip the soiled item into a soap solution (three or four tablespoons of grated laundry soap are dissolved in water), wait thirty minutes, and then wash the item as usual.

What to wash

Before you start washing your woolen clothes, you need to remove all the stains on them. The detergent used by our grandmothers helps remove stains most gently.

Dissolve equal parts of vinegar and salt in a large amount of water, adding 1 teaspoon of ammonia. Using a cloth, apply the mixture to the stain, then rinse the item and wash it. This method removes dirt well, the main thing is not to overdo it with the amount of ammonia in the solution.

It is better to wash a wool sweater using a liquid detergent. Do not use powder because the granules do not always dissolve in warm water. This leads to the formation of white spots.

Angora or mohair dresses should be washed in water with added shampoo. This will keep things fresh. To keep items soft, add table vinegar (1 tablespoon) or water softener to the water before washing. Softer water will preserve the color of the laundry.

When choosing special cleaning products in the store, before purchasing, determine whether they are suitable for delicate products.

To do this, pay attention to:

Does the composition contain alkali, if so, then the product is not suitable.
Products with a bleaching effect are also not allowed.
Stain removers must be marked “suitable for delicate fabrics.”

How to stretch if you sit down?

There are several ways to stretch a jacket that has shrunk after washing:

Repeated washing . The item reduced in size is washed again, without using detergents. After washing, the knitted item is hung on hangers to dry. Under the weight of its own weight, the jacket increases in size.
Steaming. The damp jacket is laid out on an ironing board, and carefully stretching the item in the desired direction, it is smoothed with an iron with the steaming function connected. The steaming method is good for products of mixed composition. This method is not suitable for woolen sweaters (under the influence of steam, the product may shrink).
Rinse in vinegar water . The knitted product is immersed in a vinegar solution for thirty minutes (take one part vinegar to two parts water). Afterwards, the item is laid out on a table covered with a terry towel, and the desired shape of the knitted product is fixed with pins.

Read more about returning a shrunken sweater to its previous size here.

Is it possible to wash wool in a washing machine?

Before washing woolen items in the washing machine, you need to make sure that this will not damage them.

We present a list of basic rules for the interaction of such things with a machine:

First of all, we look at the tag. If the manufacturer recommends only manual cleaning, then machine cleaning should be abandoned.
Washing wool in an automatic washing machine can be dangerous for it. Wool fibers clog the filters of the machine, which leads to its breakdown. Using laundry bags will help avoid this.
You can wash a sweater in a washing machine only using a special “wool” program or using the “delicate materials” washing mode. They will provide the required number of revolutions that will not spoil the shape of the product.
Automatic cleaning is permissible at temperatures below the recommended one (30 degrees).
Don't forget to use water softeners and conditioners.
The use of a wool wringer is prohibited.

Choosing a detergent

Hand and machine washing should be carried out using special powders. Regular gels cannot be used for colored or white laundry.

When buying a detergent, look at the label; it should indicate that it is intended for delicate or woolen items.

Modern biological detergents, or those containing bleaching agents, can adversely affect the quality of fabric.

These cleaning products will cause fiber damage. A wool sweater will lose its shape and will stretch faster.

To keep the product in the same condition, use Deox Gel, Frosch, Luxus, Winni's, Yplon.

Drying

In order to dry woolen items without harming them, you should use simple precautions:

Knitted material does not tolerate temperature fluctuations. The drying room must have a stable temperature.
Do not allow the fabric to overheat. How many degrees it was when washing, so much should be when drying (less can be done, but not more).
No clothespins, they will stretch the fabric.
Using a thin clothesline will cause creases.
The correct way to dry such items is to place them on a horizontal surface. To speed up the process, you can put a towel under them.

Grooming rules

To avoid pilling and keep the item fluffy and beautiful after drying, comb it a little with a special brush.
If the wool needs to shrink a little, wet it a little and then lay it to dry near a heat source.
Vinegar and baking soda are the best natural anti-shedding products.
To prevent the material from stretching, do not wash or rub it.
The peculiarity of removing stains from knitted items is that they must be cleaned before washing. Dirt can be dried and brushed off, grease and other stains using special products applied with a soft cloth.

With careful care, woolen items can last a very long time, delighting and warming their owner.

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Ironing

Due to its structure, the sweater does not require ironing. However, if there are any wrinkles left after drying, you can lightly iron them. Before this procedure, it is advisable to read the ironing recommendations on the product tag. If there is no tag or this is a handmade gift, then you should follow these tips:

Ironing is carried out only after the product has completely dried.
The sweater is turned inside out for ironing.
To avoid shiny marks, it is recommended to use gauze.
The ironing process involves lifting and lowering the iron onto the material, rather than sliding over it.
You should follow the temperature regime for wool, which is usually indicated on the irons.