Washing clothes at 30C is 'spreading flu as it's not hot enough to kill viruses'
20 December 2018, 10:57
A low temperature wash could be putting you at risk of catching illnesses this winter
Washing clothes on at 30C on an eco setting could be fuelling the spread of flu, an expert has warned.
It's been claimed that the temperature on a cool wash isn't hot enough to kill viruses like E.coli and flu, meaning these may still be on your clothes when you hang them up to dry and put them on again.
Professor Anthony Hilton, a microbiologist from Aston University, recommends putting the temperature to 60C at the very least.
Detergent, tumble-drying and ironing also help to kill these viruses, he claims.
He said: “Laundering is about killing germs and washing at 30C won’t do that.
“Most germs thrive at body temperature of 37C.”
While there has been a big drive to encourage people to wash at lower temperatures because of financial and environmental concerns, Hilton says: “From an environmental point of view, that is certainly a good move and fine if you only want to make clothes smell nice.
“You need to be getting the temperature up to at least 60C to kill germs that cause life-threatening illnesses.
“Mixed messages about what temperature to use are causing what we call confusion," he added, according to The Sun.
In related news, a mum recently revealed a hack to stop your washing smelling of damp when you take it out the machine.
Many of us are guilty of not giving our washing machines a regular scrub (they're self-cleaning, surely?), but the mum of two claims that making sure the rubber seal inside it is free from mould will keep your washing smelling fresh.
She said that she discovered it was so covered with grime that it "was so disgusting it nearly made me vomit".
“I had noticed my washing smelt a bit musty when I took it out of the machine but couldn’t work out what it was,” she told Kidspot.
“My ex husband asked me if I had checked the rubber seal around the machine - I pulled apart the seal and it was full of brown sludge.
“It was so disgusting it nearly made me vomit.“I was horrified that I had been washing mine and my children’s clothes in mould. I had no idea you had to clean out that part of the washing machine.”
Regular cleaning of this rubber ring is said to alleviate the damp and rotten smell laundry sometimes takes on.
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