7 little bits of good for laundry day
At ecostore, we believe that creating a world of good starts with taking small steps. We call these simple changes to your every day “little bits of good”. Household laundry is a huge drain on New Zealand’s water supply, but it doesn’t have to be, with these simple water-saving switches you can start making today!
1: Wash less
Did you know that most garments don’t need to be washed unless they’re dirty or smelly? Take jeans, for example. Some denim manufacturers indicate that their garments can be worn up to 10 times before they need washing. Wool products are similar, as their natural, breathable fibres do not absorb odour. If you spill something on your garment, consider spot cleaning (with a suitable product) rather than mindlessly throwing it into the wash.
2: Fill that drum
Wait until you have a full load before you flick the machine on. Most people wash about 3.5kg of laundry at a time, even if their machine can hold significantly more. By running your washing machine less frequently, you’ll save water as well as time, effort, detergent and power.* However, be careful not to overfill your drum as the items won’t get properly clean. Use your scales to figure out the correct load size for your machine.
3: Prep like a pro
Dealing to stains before you wash your clothes will mean that you don’t have to rewash them if a basic wash doesn’t cut it - reducing the amount of water required to get your garment back to beautiful. Choose stain removers that are appropriate for your garment, and remember that good old fashioned soap bars can be your best friend in the laundry. You can also consider soaking soiled items before washing them, but stay mindful of your water usage.
4: Air your clothes
Often, you can rid clothes of odours just by hanging them outside for a few hours. Depending on their colour fastness, you might like to hang them in direct sunlight for a quick burst of natural antibacterial action as well.
5: Choose concentrated detergents
Concentrated products like our Laundry Capsules and 3X Laundry Liquid have been made using less water, reducing the environmental footprint of your washing even further. And they have the added bonus of taking up less space and needing less carbon to freight.
6: Use cooler settings
On the subject of carbon, did you know that a hot wash uses 10 times the amount of electricity as a cold wash. Our concentrated laundry liquids work just as well in cold water, so you can save your hot washes for heavily soiled items.
7: Commit to one less load per week
If everyone in New Zealand did their little bit by doing one less load per week, the country would save a whopping 107 million litres of water. Not such a small step when you put it that way.
Source / Consumer NZ - How to save water in the laundry
PS - The numbers behind our numbers
1. There are approximately 1,554,300 washing machines in New Zealand according to the latest available figures.
2. Based on the Energy Efficiency (Energy Using Products) Regulations 2002 it’s assumed a washing machine has 365 uses a year.
3. There are approximately 567,319,500 domestic machine loads done each year in New Zealand (Number of washing machines * Number of times each machine is run per year).
4. An average 4.5 star washing machine will use about 69 litres per load.
5. New Zealanders use an estimated 39,145,045,500 litres of water each year on washing laundry (567,319,500 washes * 69 litres per load).
6. New Zealanders use an estimated 107,246,700 litres of water per day on washing. (39,145,045,500 / 365).