How to Stop Hard Water From Ruining Your Towels
You’ve just sorted your laundry, tossed your towels in the washing machine, loaded up your detergent and fabric softener, and are about to push that button — but wait! If your home doesn’t have a water softener installed, washing your towels may be doing more hard than good. Sure, you need to get your towels washed, dried, folded, and in the linen closet before it’s time for your family’s morning (or nighttime) shower stampede, but wouldn’t it be better if those towels were soft and fluffy, too? Cue the water softening fanfare, and stop ruining your towels with hard water today.
4 Ways Hard Water is Ruining Your Towels
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- They’re not getting clean. Do you find you’re using more and more detergent to wash away makeup stains? Maybe you just can’t seem to get that fresh scent to stick. News flash! Hard water makes it more difficult for your detergent to lather, making cleaning your laundry even more difficult.
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- They’re dull or discolored. You can thank all that soap scum and mineral residue for the less-than-vibrant appearance your beloved towels once had. Dark towels will fade faster, and mysterious rust stains might appear, too — yuck!
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- They’re hard or scratchy. Show of hands — who wants to wrap themselves in sandpaper upon stepping out of the shower? …That’s what we thought. Not only to caked on minerals dull towels, but they can compromise their soft fluffy texture, causing them to require replacement more often.
- They’re irritating your skin. While you only use your towel for a short period of time, drying off with all that added soap scum and residue can really damage your skin. Alway, considering that you’re probably washing your clothes and bed sheets using the same method, you’re going to be surrounded by hard water minerals and irritating fabrics night and day.
How to Stop Hard Water From Ruining Your Towels
Clearly, it’s no secret that towels get dingy, flat and scruffy over time — but luckily for you, there’s a way to delay the process. Enter, the whole house water softener! Hard water exists in 85% of American homes, and if you’re experiencing any of the above, it sounds like yours is one of them. Time to give the professionals a call! In the meantime though, here are a few additional steps you can take to prevent towels from prematurely deteriorating due to water hardness:
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- Add 1 cup of ammonia — and no detergent — to your towel load and wash it on the hottest setting. This can help remove stubborn deposits.
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- Stop overstuffing your washer to make cleaning and rinsing easier on your machine.
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- Less is more when it comes to detergent. Using more won’t make your towels and cleaner, but quite the contrary, can damage or wear them down them instead.
- Give them a quick shake before going into the dryer. This helps preserve the fluff factor!
Looking to install or service a water softening system? Contact a water specialist online or call toll-free: 1-888-741-9025 for a free quote and in-home water analysis.
For more information, check out our blog: Water Softener FAQs: Common Water Softening Questions Answered