25th Jan 2023 love2laundry Love2Laundry

What Is Triangle Laundry?

Doing laundry is a mundane household task. On average, we spend 88 hours washing and drying clothes every year, which equates to 173 days in our lifetime.

But what adds unnecessary time is trying to work out exactly what the care instructions are: do you wash the item at a high temperature, at a low temperature, or is it ‘dry clean only’?

Each care label will differ for each item, so it can be confusing to figure out the most appropriate cleaning method.

You may find a small triangle symbol on the care label of your shirt, jumper, trousers, dress, or household furnishing. But what does it mean?

In this article, we will discuss the question ‘what is triangle laundry?’, which we hope you find useful.

What is triangle laundry?

So, what is triangle laundry? Well, the small triangle that you see on your garment’s care label represents bleaching.

So, if the triangle is open and blank, this means that you can bleaching of the garment is allowed, using any type of bleach.

If the triangle has 2 lines inside it, this means you should only bleach it using non-chlorine bleach.

Whereas, if the triangle has a large ‘X’ through it, this means you should NOT bleach the garment at all.

What might be written on the care label of a clothing item?

In the UK and the EU, there are rules for care labels on textiles. This is so that the customer knows the best way to wash, dry, and care for the garment, after they have purchased it.

The care label may be written in different languages, to make the information as accessible as possible.

On your garments or household furnishings, you can expect to see the following information written on the care label:

Bleaching guidelines

Using a triangle symbol, the care label will tell you whether or not bleaching is acceptable for your garment. It will also state the types of bleach which are suitable, as certain bleaches (such as chorine bleach) can actually be harmful for the fibres of the fabric.

Bleaching can effectively remove tough stains and whiten clothing, as long as you do it correctly.

Fibre content

All manufacturers are legally required to state what the garment is made from.

This will be displayed in a percentage. For example, the garment could be made from ‘100% Cotton’ or ‘100% Polyester’.

Country of origin

The care label usually discloses the location where the garment was produced, e.g. ‘Made in China’.

Wash instructions guidelines

The care label will state whether or not the garment can be washed. If the garment can be washed, it will specify whether it is ‘hand wash only’, or machine washable.

If the garment can be washed, there will be temperature guidelines for the water, or a recommended heat setting. For example: ‘Do not wash at a temperature exceeding 40 degrees Celsius’ or ‘Machine Wash Cold’.

Drying guidelines

The care label will have instructions on how best to dry the garment, after it has been washed.

For instance, if the garment cannot be tumble dried, then there will be a symbol which states that it is better suited to be dried outdoors in the fresh air, on indoors on a drying rack.

So, the symbol might be a circle inside a square, with an ‘X’ over it, which represents ‘Do Not Tumble Dry’.

Ironing options guidelines

The ironing symbol will tell you whether the garment can be ironed, and the most appropriate heat setting.

For instance, the garment may instruct you to ‘Iron on Reverse’, which means you should turn the item inside out before ironing it.

Dry cleaning options guidelines

Your garment may be a ‘dry clean only’ item, which means it should not be washed in water, but professionally dry cleaned: here, the symbol would be a plain circle.

The care label may warn against certain types of chemical solvents used for dry cleaning.

Alternatively, your garment may not be suitable for dry cleaning at all; in which case, there will be a circle with an X over it, with wash instructions provided.

A circle with a letter inside it is an instruction for professional dry cleaners to know which method chemical wash to use.

Flammability

The care label may contain a warning to ‘KEEP AWAY FROM FIRE’. This is really important, because a clothing item could easily catch fire if it is near an open flame, which is very dangerous.

The TV presenter Claudia Winkleman has campaigned for stricter flammability standards for children’s Halloween costumes. She was motivated to speak out about the topic after her eight-year-old daughter’s witch costume caught fire, causing the child to suffer severe burns and undergo several surgeries.

Where can I access laundry and dry cleaning services?

Here at Love2Laundry, we are an on-demand laundry service, serving London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bolton and Bury.

We will do the laundry, so that you don’t have to.

We provide a door-to-door service, so we will collect your dirty laundry we will wash, dry and fold or hang them up, and then deliver them straight to your door!

We also offer ironing services across London, as well as dry cleaning, shoe repairs, upholstery cleaning and alterations.

All you have to do is make an order online on our website, or through our mobile app (which is available for iOS and Android).

You can choose a location and time slot that works for you, and our friendly couriers will collect your laundry items. We will then professionally clean your items and return them to you – all within 24 hours!

Our prices are affordable – for example, the ‘wash, dry, and fold’ package starts from £2.65 per kg.

See the prices on our website here.

At Love2Laundry, we are not your typical launderette. We operate a cashless system, so you will pay for your order via our mobile app or online via our website. We accept various forms of payment including American Express, Visa and MasterCard.

No more worrying about finding the correct change, or physically dropping off your laundry items- simply input your order with just a click of your fingers, and the rest is up to us!

How do you hand wash clothes?

To hand wash your garments, you should:

Always read the care label of your garments, to check that hand washing is suitable.
Fill a tub or sink with cold or lukewarm water.
Add a teaspoon of laundry detergent or soap powder. Mild, unscented ones are best.
Use your hands to swish the garments around the water.
You can knead the garments gently with your hands, but don’t scrub them harshly, as this can destroy the fibres in the fabric.
Rinse and repeat.
Avoid wringing the garments harshly.
Allow the garments to fully dry, by air-drying outside in fresh air, or in a well-ventilated area indoors.

How can I get stains out of ‘dry clean only’ items?

We all have those clothing pieces in our wardrobe or household furnishings where the care label says ‘dry clean only’.

But what if you don’t have the time to get your favourite outfit dry cleaned, but the care label says ‘dry clean only’?

Well, here are our handy tips to remove stains from your ‘dry clean only’ items, without actually dry cleaning them:

Always scrape off the excess blobs on a stain, using a butter knife.
Grab a clean cloth and dip it in cold water. Blot the stain gently.
If water is not enough to lift the stain, then make a cleaning solution of equal parts white vinegar and washing up liquid. Dab a clean cloth in this cleaning solution and then blot it gently on the stain.
If the stain on your garment is greasy or oily, then sprinkle a small amount of bicarbonate of soda or cornstarch on the stain. Use a clean cloth or clean brush to work the powder into the stain. Wait a few minutes- this should hopefully absorb the stain.

Read similar content like this

We at Love2Laundry know that many people spend time online, searching for the answers to frequently asked questions about laundry.

That is why we update our blog with articles to help people find the information that they need about laundry, dry cleaning, ironing and home hacks.

You may find it useful to read our blog articles on:

About Love2Laundry

Love2Laundry is one of the leading laundry service providers in the UK, serving London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bolton and Bury.

We have an array of services to make things easy for you: from laundry and dry cleaning, to linen services, ironing, shoe repairs, upholstery cleaning and alterations.

We hope you now have the answer to the question ‘what is triangle laundry?’

For more content like this, check out our blog here to read more articles.

Find out more about Love2Laundry’s dry cleaning and laundry services by visiting our website here.

Download our Love2Laundry app on the Apple App Store here or on Google Play here.