But dark-colored clothes that have faded are pretty sad. With these seven easy tips, you can learn how to wash dark clothes so they hold their color longer, look better, and last longer. So before you toss clothing into the hamper, first ask yourself if those jeans really need to be washed. Perhaps they can go back in the closet or drawer to be worn again. Take a look at the guidelines on how often to clean men’s and women’s clothes. You can protect the color of your dark clothing, plus save some time and your money by doing less laundry. After you’ve sorted out the dry clean only items, sort your washable clothes. Never wash light-colored clothing with dark items to prevent dye transfer. It’s also important to avoid combining dark fabrics with lint-producing clothes or linens. Lint from these fabrics will often adhere to dark items making them look “fuzzy” and faded. Hot water will always fade dyes and cause more dye bleeding more quickly than cold water. Be sure that your washer is always set to use a cold water rinse cycle. There is never a need to use hot or warm water to rinse clothes. Using a liquid detergent instead of a powder detergent will prevent any undissolved particles from clinging to dark clothes leaving the finish looking dull. If you don’t use an automated washer detergent dispenser, be sure to add the detergent to the washer drum first. Adding detergent after clothes are in the machine may cause problems with spotting or residue. If you must pretreat a stain, test the cleaning solution first in an inconspicuous spot like an inside seam or hem to ensure that the product will not cause fading. This is a good place to mention that a front load washer or a top load washer without a center agitator is more gentle on clothing than a standard top load washer. More gentle agitation means less fiber breakage that causes clothes to look worn and faded. Hand washing is always a good option for delicate dark items. Step Two: Be sure to load the washer correctly and never overload the capacity of your machine.
