Notice your clothes haven’t been really clean since you’ve started doing your own wash? We’ve got some tips and tricks that will make your parents ask your for advice.

Sometimes, you don’t need fabric softener
Fabric softener and dryer sheets cannot be used with every type of fabric. If you’re using these products with towels, workout clothes, microfiber fabrics or flame-retardant children’s clothing, you are actually ruining the fabrics. Wicking fabric, microfiber and fluffy towels are coated by softeners and lose their ability to absorb or wick moisture when you use fabric softener. If used on children’s sleepwear, softeners will actually make them more flammable instead of flame retardant!

Separate fabric types
Mixing the wrong colors is not the only thing you need to worry about in the wash. Mixing fabric types can be just as damaging to clothing as reds mixed with whites. Rough fabrics like denim or corduroy should not be washed with soft fabrics like cotton or jersey knits. Mixing fabric types can cause pilling and premature wear.

Don’t dry delicates
Even if delicate garments say on the tag that it is okay to tumble dry them, this is one of the times you should not follow instructions. Consider either hanging the garment or laying it flat to dry instead. Even tumble drying causes fabrics to rub together.

Keep colors bright
Not washing over-dyed pants and other garments on gentle can cause the colors to bleed out faster. Even though the fabric can likely withstand a normal wash cycle, the increased agitation causes fabrics to rub together releasing more dye. Warm water temperatures can also lead to more color bleeding.

Skip the spin
Letting clothes go through a spin cycle in the wash can ruin their shape. If you are washing garments that contain stretchy or delicate fabrics, skip the spin cycle and do not wring them out over a sink. Instead, get a clean towel that won’t bleed color or accept color from your garment, lay the garment flat on the towel and then roll the garment into the towel to gently remove excess moisture. Then lay flat to dry.

This article is courtesy of the makers of Downy Ball. With the Downy Ball, fabric softener is automatically released during the rinse cycle. To enjoy the convenience of Downy Ball just pour the Downy fabric softener of choice up to the right fill line in the Downy bottle cap, pour into the ball, seal it and drop it in at the start of the wash on top of fabrics.