How to disinfect very dirty Clothes : 5 methods

Washing clothes – never thought much about it, except to toss them inside the washing machine and forget about them till it is time to take them out. 

But sometimes I end up worrying, especially after a boute of sickness in the family – Am I doing the laundry correctly? Am I doing enough to clean my clothes off all the things I may have picked up from someone in the lift? Are the clothes clean enough, after a washing machine wash? Are they thoroughly disinfected?

Here are some commonly used methods to clean very soiled clothes and sterilize them thoroughly.

Best methods to clean and purify soiled clothes

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Cleaning with Laundry Detergent

Cleaning clothes with a good quality laundry soap/detergent is the most simple and very effective way. Use powder detergent for the best results to wash clothes.

Use small loads of clothes in the washing machine. Use the full water level to wash and rinse thoroughly.

Do not skimp on detergent – it should be allowed to work at full capacity. If not, you will have to count on luck.

Use the hottest water safe for the clothing you have at hand. But be aware that synthetic fabrics do not take much heat. Washing the clothes in water with a temperature over 160 degrees Fahrenheit (71 degrees Celsius) is said to be the most effective, according to Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), USA.

Use Disinfectants for clothes

Disinfectants contain germicidal ingredients that can destroy contagious disease-causing germs. They can very effectively clean laundry if you use it the way it should be used – following all the directions written on the package to the T.

Prewash the contaminated clothes of already infected people in cold water and then wash in hot water with powder laundry detergent and then use disinfectant in the final rinse.

Add the disinfectant to the rinse cycle after you have washed the clothes in the washing machine.

Allow some time for it to work. If your machine has a soak feature use that – a 10 minute soak is enough.

Bleach as a disinfectant. 

You can use liquid household bleach (sodium hypochlorite) as a disinfectant – very inexpensive when compared to other branded ones. There are detergents that contain bleach.

Some fabrics like wool and silk cannot be washed with bleach and bleach will remove color from colored clothes. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

Do not use bleach with ammonia based or acidic products. It is dangerous.

And by the way, Oxygen bleach is not a disinfectant. Only Chlorine bleach is.

To clean properly, the clothing should be immersed in bleach solution for some time. Mix 1 or 2 tbsp. chlorine bleach in water and use.

To use bleach as a disinfectant read all the instructions on the back of the product as well as your washing machine manual.  

Use bleach after washing clothes with detergent, or atleast after 5-10 minutes of washing in the washing machine. The detergent and its ingredients should work first. This is true for any disinfectant.

Using Wipes

Use ethanol or bleach-based wipes to wipe clean clothes and accessories that cannot be washed – leather and faux leather garments, faux fur etc.

Discard the used wipes after single use; or you would simply be shifting your pathogens from one place to another.

Using Sanitisers for spot cleaning

You can spot clean clothes with disposable tissues dipped in sanitizer.

A sanitizer needs to have a concentration of atleast 60-70% alcohol (70% is ideal) for it to be effective. This percentage of ethanol in the sanitizer is said to destroy the cell wall of pathogens, causing them to be ineffective.

Steaming and pressing

Using a hot iron on clothes can destroy germs to a degree. A steaming process, likewise, which heats things to between 248°F and 302°F can also be effective. This is done at professional cleaners.

Boiling clothes to kill bacteria

Soiled clothes can be boiled in a pot of boiling water for half an hour – A sure fire way to kill bacteria. This is not practical for heavy clothing but you can do this for infected towels and handkerchiefs and also one-off clothing which is very soiled.

A few words of caution

In your scurry for cleanliness do not neglect safety. I mean safety from these cleaning agents themselves.

Store all the cleaners, disinfectants, sanitizers out of reach of small kids.

Having 101 sanitizers lying around maybe a new thing for many households. If you have small kids, store them away from easy reach. They are all toxic. Even a simple sip can lead to danger.

If you are cleaning contaminated clothes used by an infected person, do not forget to wear rubber gloves and a dust mask. Clean the gloves after the work is done. If using disposable gloves, discard them after each use.

I would avoid trying on clothes and buying online for some time. 

Pathogens thrives on wet surfaces. Dry out anything which is damp.

When you have been outside, once you reach home change clothes immediately.

It is easy to make fakes and very lucrative, and in times of tragedy, bad people try to make hay. Check the disinfectants and cleaners for authenticity. Buy things that comply with the guidelines set by an authority (Like Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the US) in your country. They will have special registration numbers and certificates from that issuing authority.  

Many things we are encountering today are new and nothing is written on stone. I read something new every day. Update yourself.