<p>A trivial issue, but it is bothering me. My towels become very hard. I have some new ones now, and the contrast is so striking. Our water here is very soft. I wash the towels in our front loader using HE Tide, always do a second rinse, and I put white vinegar in the fabric softener compartment to remove any detergent residue. I don’t use fabric softener because some of us in the house have sensitive skin. What am I doing wrong?</p>
<p>A couple of thoughts: The optical brighteners in the Tide might be causing the roughness. I use Ecos detergent for HE and haven’t had this problem. We don’t use softener or dryer sheets either. And maybe switching to bamboo towels might help? I have a couple of these and they are softer than my regular cotton ones.</p>
<p>Don’t use fabric softener because it builds up on the dryer screen. And it is not good for allergies as you know.</p>
<p>You might want to try a softer fiber towel, like pima cotton. </p>
<p>We use unscented detergents, and we have very hard water. I don’t have a problem with towels getting hard but I do have a problem with washcloths getting stiff because certain family members fail to rinse all the soap out of them!</p>
<p>You’re not rinsing enough. Really. Every so often, I wash my towels without any detergent at all and I still see suds (front load, glass window). (And I only use about a tablespoon for a full load normally, too.)</p>
<p>If it were me, I’d run the towels through two or three cycles of hot water, no detergent, no softeners, no vinegar, nothing, then put them in the dryer with a tennis ball or two.</p>
<p>By the way, the way vinegar removes detergent is by reacting with it to form a salt. That’s fine, but then you need to rinse out the salt.</p>
<p>Use white vinegar instead of fabric softener in the wash cycle. The vinegary scent is completely gone at cycle end and all fabrics come out of the dryer amazingly soft.</p>
<p>Also, our repair technician told us to avoid using liquid fabric softener in the washer to extend it’s life. Softener gums up the works, clogs screens pumps and hoses.</p>
<p>I was told to use white vinegar and baking soda to make my towels whiter and softer for my rentals.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the tips. I do use white vinegar, in every load. Thanks for the explanation about how it works, dmd77! I will try washing the towels without soap to see whether suds form. I’ll be surprised if they do - we have very soft water and I use a small amount of powdered detergent. But maybe soap residue is the answer. I’ll try baking soda and, if all else fails, I’ll change detergents.</p>
<p>It is also based on the type of towel you buy. Costco carries good hotel quality towels that last for quite a while and stay soft, regardless of type of detergent.</p>
<p>mom2collegekids:
Would you share the ‘recipe’ using baking soda and vinegar to make towels whiter and softer?<br>
I understand why it would make towels softer but I have no idea how it would make them whiter. Anybody know?</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>I don’t know “how” baking soda makes them whiter, but it does (don’t use on colored towels).</p>
<p>1/4 to 1/2 cup (if heavily soiled) of baking soda in the laundry and 1/2 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle.</p>
<p>Well, I’ll definitely be trying this tomorrow.
In my kids’ bathroom, they all have white towels (with different trim so it is clears which towel belongs to whom) but my teen-aged son’s towels is noticeably dingier than the rest. No matter what I’ve tried, it just stays dingy white.</p>
<p>Dryer balls. They work well.</p>
<p>I soak my white towels in hot water and a scoop of OxiClean to keep them white. My towels are always soft so I’m not sure what I’m doing right. I can tell you what I don’t do: I don’t overload the washing machine and dryer. I don’t put dryer sheets or use softeners with the towels.</p>
<p>You do dry them in the dryer, don’t you? If you want not to use so much energy, dry them in dryer briefly, then hang them to almost dry, then put them in the dryer with a dryer ball of some kind to beat them as they tumble, which will soften them. Dryer sheets and softener reduce the absorbency of towels. Never use them with any high tech fabrics or fleece.</p>
<p>*If you want not to use so much energy, dry them in dryer briefly, then hang them to almost dry, then put them in the dryer with a dryer ball of some kind to beat them as they tumble, which will soften them. *</p>
<p>I’ve done the opposite to save energy on warm days. Hang them til almost dry and then put them into the dryer to soften them.</p>
<p>I have not been able to try any of the suggestions, because for the last two days rusty water has been coming out of all our faucets, toilets, etc. They periodically flush the hydrants around here, and we get lots of rust. It’s a real pain.</p>
<p>If you (or others) ever end up with rust on laundry, try Iron Out
[Super</a> Iron Out Rust Stain Remover - Free Shipping](<a href=“http://www.soap.com/p/super-iron-out-rust-stain-remover-66639?site=CA&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc_S&utm_term=SMT-004&utm_campaign=GoogleAW&CAWELAID=1323203348&utm_content=pla&adtype=pla&cagpspn=pla]Super”>http://www.soap.com/p/super-iron-out-rust-stain-remover-66639?site=CA&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc_S&utm_term=SMT-004&utm_campaign=GoogleAW&CAWELAID=1323203348&utm_content=pla&adtype=pla&cagpspn=pla)</p>
<p>I used it years ago in NY and was very impressed.</p>
<p>I use Iron Out on d2’s softball pants. Removes the red GA clay beautifully… though it does stink!</p>