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Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

swinburne.edu.au

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Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#111

Post by matwood »

chpatrick wrote: post #78
taeric wrote: post #6

It has been ages since I had clothes shrink on me. To the point that I had assumed something must have gotten better in modern dryers. Is that not the case? Edit: Quickly searching, this appears to be the case? Specifically modern moisture sensing dryers that stop appropriately goes a long way to never having something shrink on you.

Modern heat pump dryers also work at a lower temperature because they cool the air to evaporate the moisture so they don't need to be as hot to start with.

I was about to write this. Heat pump dryers take a little longer, but they are so much gentler on clothes.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#112

Post by mrspuratic »

jarjoura wrote: post #100
troyvit wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't have any clothes as old as yours though for sure, but line drying generally helps your clothes last longer. I'm so glad I live in Colorado. It's a warm winter, but it takes like 3 hours to dry stuff on the line (especially synthetics). Of course that means all my synthetic fibers are literally billowing into the air I guess. Still, we've been going without a dryer for about five years now and I've had no regr…

I had a european friend introduce me to indoor drying racks, and since, anything I plan to keep long term, I hang dry as well. I've found my clothes last longer and look nicer. Only thing I've found doesn't work well are towels.

I got a Foxydry (Italy) wall-mounted rack a few years back, best €100 I spent that year. Bottom rack folds up flush to the wall, top rack raises nearly to the ceiling. Towels dry fine spread over extra bar or three to allow for better air circulation.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#113

Post by dlcarrier »

rurp wrote: post #33
taeric wrote: post #6

It has been ages since I had clothes shrink on me. To the point that I had assumed something must have gotten better in modern dryers. Is that not the case? Edit: Quickly searching, this appears to be the case? Specifically modern moisture sensing dryers that stop appropriately goes a long way to never having something shrink on you.

I've had the opposite problem where I hadn't had shrinking issues in years until I got a new LG dryer with one of those auto sensing modes that it defaults to. The "smart" feature is terrible . I had a number of shirts shrink on me because it sometimes goes absurdly overboard with the drying. Once we figured out the problem and stopped using all of the smart features it started working fine. Unfortunately the interfa…

I have a kitchenaid dryer from the 80's with multiple selections for dryness levels and it works great every time. I can leave the clothes a little moist if the air is dry and I'm going to hang them immediately or set them to completely dry, in case I'm going to be away when they are ready.

My parents' modern dryer is awful, just like yours. The craziest part is that it starts a countdown timer when there's tens of minutes left, as though the designers new the sensor was awful and decided to add some extra drying time to cover it up.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#114

Post by stevenwoo »

saghm wrote: post #89

Growing up I was always told that cotton would shrink in the dryer but polyester wouldn't, and I should just check the tag on a shirt to find out if it would shrink (which usually would say something like 100% cotton, 100% polyester, 50% cotton/50% polyester, etc.). Seeing the title on this article made me think that it would be a refutation of that conventional wisdom, but it sounds like what I was taught growing up…

Uniqlo and Patagonia specifically test their products through wear and tear and wash//dry cycles sources (others, too) - https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/09/22/inside-uniqlos... and Let My People Surf. I think most other stuff we commonly see at retail has degraded to fast fashion and meant to only last a short time. The lifetime warranty and repairs offered by Patagonia speak for themselves I think.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#115

Post by FuriouslyAdrift »

cryzinger wrote: post #74
michaelbuckbee wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I still find it to be the case that most 100% cotton shirts shrink over time (even pre-shrunk) and have switched to blends just to get some more longevity out of them.

If you have 100% cotton garments you want to get more longevity out of, washing on cold water + letting them air dry is the way to go (although sticking stuff in the dryer for ~5 minutes on the lowest possible setting before putting it on a hanger is fine to help fluff out any wrinkles). This also goes for anything "nice" that you want to keep in the best possible shape, even if it's not 100% cotton--don't forget tha…

Linen typically means flax fibers.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#116

Post by madaxe_again »

benrutter wrote: post #24

I am tall enough that shrinking t-shirts is a constant annoyance! (though I have to admit I haven't ever tried the 'conditioner and water' trick, even though I've heard of it before). Low temperature washes and avoiding tumble dryers works. I've also noticed thicker material t-shirts seem to definitely shrink a lot less! Much thinner cottton t-shirts seem to shrink a lot more, my mental model is that there's less mat…

Yes. It works. I bought my wife’s cashmere jumper back from child-sized. Pins, a sheet of ply, and a bunch of time.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#117

Post by Loughla »

helterskelter wrote: post #107
vyaa wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have any brand recommendations?

$.02: - American Giant is pretty good for their pullover hoodies. They'll wear out at the cuffs first, but I've kept a single hoody in use for like five years with some repair stitching. - Standard Issue makes good waffle knit shirts. They'll last a few years depending on how often you wash them. - Duluth Trading makes some good cotton shirts and boxers. Quality has declined slightly, but they're the best plain cotto…

Darn tough for socks and Brunt for hoodies, I would add to this list. I'm hard on clothes and they survive me.

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#118

Post by dgacmu »

ortusdux wrote: post #102
dgacmu wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have pointers to good sources you've found about that? I've been wondering about exactly this from an optimization-of-the-laundry perspective. (I've been tempted to just yolo buy one to try it out but installing it in my house is a pain in the rear because of the location.)

As I understand it, many people prefer the heat pump dryers because they are easier to install. Most are 110v and don't exhaust moisture, so you can just shove one in a closet if it has sufficient electricity. You do need to remove the water reservoir and pour it down a drain after every few loads of laundry.

Oh, that part of the installation is easy, it's literally just physically getting a large, heavy rectangular cuboid navigated through my basement to the laundry room. The last time I brought one in I put a hole in the door (by accident).

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#119

Post by FuriouslyAdrift »

kevinmchugh wrote: post #64
benrutter wrote: post #24

I am tall enough that shrinking t-shirts is a constant annoyance! (though I have to admit I haven't ever tried the 'conditioner and water' trick, even though I've heard of it before). Low temperature washes and avoiding tumble dryers works. I've also noticed thicker material t-shirts seem to definitely shrink a lot less! Much thinner cottton t-shirts seem to shrink a lot more, my mental model is that there's less mat…

Higher rise pants help. I have a long torso and started buying higher rise pants for the aesthetic difference, but they also make me less concerned about a t shirt becoming a belly shirt

Or get shirts made for people with longer torsos... YMMV

https://www.landsend.com/shop/mens-tall-t-shirts-tops-tees/S...

Re: Why some clothes shrink in the wash and how to unshrink them

#120

Post by chao- »

dylan604 wrote: post #66
troyvit wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't have any clothes as old as yours though for sure, but line drying generally helps your clothes last longer. I'm so glad I live in Colorado. It's a warm winter, but it takes like 3 hours to dry stuff on the line (especially synthetics). Of course that means all my synthetic fibers are literally billowing into the air I guess. Still, we've been going without a dryer for about five years now and I've had no regr…

I use my line in Texas, and 3 hours would see the clothes go from wet -> dry -> melted! And that's in the shade! Unfortunately, the line dried clothes are not soft, so I end up fluffing them in the drier using the air dry setting. Still cheaper than running the heating element, but hasn't eliminated the drier for me.

Hah! I live in (I presume) a different part of Texas, and 3 hours on a line might not even see clothes go from "wet" to "damp" in the shade!
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