Normally, there isn’t much thought that needs to go into washing clothes. Simply throw them into the washing machine, add the correct amount of washing powder, start the machine, and let it do the hard work. Once the cycle is complete and it has spun, you just have to throw it onto the washing line outside until it’s dried. But, after a day at the beach or when you have kids who love to play outdoors, clothes get sandy. It’s quite stubborn to remove sand from clothing, which is why in this article I want to share exactly what I know about how to wash sandy clothes.
What you don’t want to do is just throw it in the washing machine. The issue is that sand tends to clump up when wet and doesn’t really drain out while in the washing machine. If it gets into pockets, seams, and hems, it will remain there despite being in the washing machine.
To avoid extra work, there are a few things you can do to get rid of the sand from your clothes.
Here’s exactly what you need to do.
6 Tips On Cleaning Sandy Clothes
1. Use cold water instead of hot water
In general, wet sand clumps up and is harder to remove.
It sticks to fabric and is much more dense, especially when exposed to hot water. But, for some reason, cold water helps break up and remove sand from clothes.
Before tossing sandy clothes into the washing machine, consider washing them with cold water and getting as much of the sand out as possible first.
By the time you do use the washing machine, whatever little sand remains will be removed and washed out.
I will caution you that excessive sand can enter the drum and damage your washing machine. So, to prevent this from happening, be sure to wash sandy clothes in cold water first.
2. Prepare the clothes before washing
The last thing you want to do is clump together sandy clothes and throw them into the washing machine. It will not get cleaned even if you run the washing machine for two cycles.
The best way to ensure that most of the sand is removed from the clothes is to prepare them before washing.
Pull out the pockets, open the collars, and unroll the sleeves and folds.
You’ll find that a lot of sand gets trapped in these sections, and unless you pull them out, they will remain covered in sand.
3. Shake it off
It is always a good idea to remove as much of the sand from your clothes as possible before washing.
I tend to shake them off outside and dust them.
If that doesn’t work, I have a hard bristle brush that I use to remove wet clusters or clumps of sand.
Some types of material tend to catch and trap sand more than others, which is why this method of brushing works effectively.
4. Air dry after washing
If you take the time to follow the advice in this article, the majority of the sand in your clothes should be removed.
But, there may be the odd bit here or there. If it’s a really small amount, you don’t have to wash your clothes again.
Rather, allow the clothes to dry in the sun, especially on a day with a good breeze. There’s a strong chance that as the clothes air dry, residual sand will fall off.
If it doesn’t, what you can do is dust your clothes while they’re hanging on the line. This way, you won’t mess up your home, and you’ll be able to remove all the remaining sand with ease.
5. Wash the clothes in the shower
If you’re looking for the quickest and most effective way to remove stubborn sand from clothes, use a shower.
The force from the shower head will be strong enough to disperse and remove sand particles from the clothes.
6. Use the correct amount of washing powder
If you use too little detergent or washing powder, the water won’t be soapy enough to clean and remove sand from the clothes.
If you use too much, it will end up too soapy and foamy, preventing enough movement and flow of water to dislodge and break down clumps of sand.
This is why it’s important to follow the instructions labeled on the cleaning product or your washing machine.
Final Thoughts
That brings us to the end of this article on how to wash sandy clothes.
I’m absolutely certain that if you follow the tips in this article, you should have absolutely no problem removing sand from your clothes.
Just be sure to pull out pockets and open the collars before you clean them to ensure that your clothes are thoroughly cleaned after a trip to the beach.
With that being said, if you enjoyed this article and found it useful, be sure to check out some of our other cleaning articles that I have linked below.
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