The clothes might be simple attires, but they are also very delicate in terms of taking care of them. The most common way of taking care of clothes is by ensuring that they have been cleaned and stored safely. Clothes are made from different fabrics which means that they will need different methods of taking care of them. Like any other materials made, the clothes are usually labelled, these labels are usually called the laundry symbols. A laundry symbol is basically a label that has been included on a cloth in order to guide you on how to use it in a washing machine, or if you need to clean it. One major aspect that affects the original state of the clothes is when they are washed. There are some clothes that are specifically meant for the machine, since the fabrics might be too delicate. On the other hand, some can be washed either with the hands or in the machine. Whichever way, all the clothes need to be washed while following the instructions on the label.
Too many times, people may not understand the wash instructions that are stuck on the clothes. Usually, most of the modern clothes are blended with different fabrics, which makes them more delicate, for that, they need total care when you need to clean them. You cannot expect to treat cotton shirts the same way you would treat nylon, sheer fabrics and other stockings. You would expect to find different washing instructions on a cloth that you wash daily and that which takes time to wash again. All in all, different clothes will have different washing instructions, due to the different fabrics used. You will always find a laundry symbol on each cloth. Here are some of the common symbols you would find attached to a fabric:
1. A Water Bucket With An X
When you see a bucket of water that has a big X or rather across that passes across the bucket, that will mean that the fabric is not supposed to be washed. Well, that doesn’t mean that you should stuff it dirty for the rest of your life with it. In other words, this sign means that the clothes should only be dry cleaned. Basically, they should not be immersed in water by any chance. The water would devastate the fabrics, which can make them shrink or expand. Some of the items that you would mostly find with these kind of labels are heavy blankets, designer wool jackets and other wool fabrics.
2. A Water Bucket With A Hand
This laundry symbol indicates that the fabrics need to be washed by hands only. That means that, you can simply get your washing bucket and start washing as usual. You should avoid washing such fabrics in the washing machine, which could affect their condition. When you wash the clothes in the machine, they usually tumble and twist, which could affect the fabrics of such clothes. For that, you must avoid washing such clothes with the washing machine.
3. A Water Bucket Only
This sign implies that the fabrics can be washed in the machine under the normal cycle. For that, you will not need to worry about setting up the machine with complicated cycles. Most of the clothes that would have this laundry symbol are the normal fabrics like a cotton shirt or trousers, or any other cotton fabric.
4. A Water Bucket With A Temperature
When you come across a water bucket that has a temperature, then you will know that the fabric labelled is sensitive to the temperature. That will mean that, you would wash the fabric in a standard cycle of a washing machine, but under a specified heat. The heat must not exceed the temperature that is indicated on the label. The most common temperatures that you would find include 30 or 40 for most of the synthetic and delicate clothes. For the linen and cotton materials, you would expect to find a temperature limit of between 60 and 90 . For that, if you wash the specific fabrics in the washing machine, with temperatures that exceeds the limit, you would end up damaging them. This calls for caution whenever you are setting the temperatures on the washing machine.
5. A Water Bucket With A Line Below
This symbol will indicate that the specific fabric should be washed under the settings that will sustain the press of the fabric if they were washed in a machine. For that, if you choose to wash a certain fabric with such a label, you would need to ensure that all the conditions are sustained when hand washing. For such fabrics, you can rinse them with cold water, prior to spinning them in a reduced cycle. This will help to sustain the fabric’s shape, in that, they would not shrink or expand.
6. A Water Bucket With Two Lines Below
When you see this symbol, you will need to know that you are dealing with a super delicate fabric. This means that the spin of the machine will need to be limited and the fabrics should be washed using a slight force. These settings are usually delicate, but they will help to maintain the press of the fabrics. In addition, you will be required to limit the time of the washing cycle of the machine. All in all, this sign means that you must be very cautious when you are washing these fabrics.
7. An Empty Triangle
A blank triangle will simply mean that you can wash the clothes with any commercial bleaching agent that you can find in the stores. This implies that such fabrics are not as delicate as such. But all in all, you must use the right amount of bleach.
In all these signs, you must ensure that you use the right amount of detergent that is advised for every fabric. Avoid using too much bleaching agent on the fabrics and always, avoid using bleaching agents on your delicate fabrics. Ensure that you have followed all the instructions as labelled with the symbol, for the sake of preserving the condition and the state of your fabrics.