Should laundry be separated by color in the dryer?

Question

And why or why not?

Answer 1

I never do and I've never had a problem.

Answer 2

Technically, the idea that laundry needs to be separated is integral to most rules of fabric care. There are a number of reasons to separate laundry.

Primarily, separating laundry is about ensuring that each type of fabric receives the care that it needs.

Separating also helps to reduce color bleeding, and will ensure that the laundry is evenly distributed with similar laundry in the dryer, so that it will dry more quickly. If you absolutely cannot separate laundry, launder it with cold water and a cool dryer setting to reduce the potential for damage.

http://www.wisegeek.com/why-should-i-separate-laundry.htm

However, the practical reality is, (and this is definitely a man's answer) you can probably ignore this and bundle them all together in the dryer. In most cases, by the time it's noticable, you'll probably have either worn them out or updated to a newer style.

Of course, you still need to separate colors in the washer, where color bleeding from brightly dyed clothes can still tint your entire load.

Answer 3

If you have bright colors, esp new garments, YES you should. Heat from the dryer can cause a wet item to bleed its color just like swishing around in warm water in the washer. Then if the clothes don't get completely dry and sit in a pile in the dryer you get a nice little inkblot on whatever is resting against the new garment.

You can minimize color fading by soaking a new item in a strong solution of cold salt OR vinegar water. Either one should be fine. It sets the color. Then launder as usual in cold water.

Still, I try to keep myself in the habit of sorting by colors whether anything is new or not, and keep colors together. I have a lot of colors and try to keep my warms and cools separate. Purples, blues, turquoises, greens go together, reds, oranges, fushias go together. Yellows aren't really an issue because I don't own anything bright yellow, pastels go with my whites because I don't wash anything in hot.

Answer 4

Not usually. The problem with washing different colors in the washer is that when they are wet the colors bleed. In the dryer, unless they sit together wet for a while, they dry and thus will not bleed.

What you want to be careful about is "delicacy", because there are rougher and gentler cycles, that use different levels of heat, spinning, and time -- all that affect how they treat the fabric.

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Answer 5

I've always separated my laundry by color in the dryer. I don't know why but I just always have. It's just something that I've always done. I just always did them separately since I wash them separately and only have one washer and dryer so I take turns putting them in.

Answer 6

if you have standard laundry then no! About the on ly time would be if you something that might melt or get sticky from the heat.

Answer 7

If you washed them together without the colors bleeding the you will be able to dry them together.

Answer 8

Not really, but it will help keep lint from your whites (Such as towels) from sticking to your colored clothes.

Answer 9

no...the color's don't run the only thing you should worry about is the fabric.