I learn many things online. One of the things I learned was from someone who owned a laundry in NYC and said that generally our clothes are not as dirty as we think.
He said that for most people a regular wash cycle is unnecessary and wears out our clothes faster and uses more energy/time. So I thought I would do a test with my clothes.
I used the short cycle that instead of the 1 1/2 hours of the regular wash cycle, it only takes 30 minutes. I have been using that for the last few loads, and then doing the sniff test. I can’t smell any difference in cleanliness between the longer and the shorter cycles.
Now part of this is because I mostly do work from home. However his clients were out in the world, and he still recommended a shorter cycle. He said that for most people hot water is not necessary and that detergents are so good that there is rarely a need for hot water unless it was for specific examples.
This is a big change from my childhood where there was hot water and lots of it. My mom was in charge of laundry even though I offered to help. I didn’t mind being Mr. Mom, and I enjoyed it. However if that made her happy then fine. I disagreed with the need for hot water at the time for things that weren’t dirty or used outside but she liked to use it so I had no choice.
I’m not against hot water philosophically. I love it in the shower. I think that we over estimate how dirty our clothes are and rarely do they need that kind of attention. Just something to consider.