Only 3% of Brits know what all the laundry symbols mean
If you’ve ever ruined clothes due to confusion over laundry labels, this quiz will really get your head spinning – or maybe you’re a ‘Washing Wizard’ who’ll score a perfect 100%.
This comes as research commissioned by ihateironing, the creators of the quiz, revealed that millions of adults confess they have no clue what the laundry signs on their clothes signify.
A survey of 2,000 adults responsible for doing the laundry in their homes found that only 3% know the meaning of all symbols on garments, while 20% confessed they ‘don’t know very many’.
The ‘hand wash only’ sign is the most recognised (79%), followed by ‘dry clean only’ (61%) and ‘do not wash’ (50%). However, ‘dry in the shade’, ‘tumble dry gentle’ and ‘delicate’ are the symbols least likely to be recognised.
Consequently, 43% have ruined or damaged clothes in the washing machine, by shrinking them (78%), dyeing them a different colour (48%) and causing the material to bobble (26%). Meanwhile, 51% admitted they pay little or no heed to advice on clothing labels.
Matt Connelly, founder of the on-demand dry cleaning and laundry service celebrating its 10th anniversary, has claimed: “Knowing how to wash your clothes is essential to keeping them in their best condition and avoiding the despair of ruining a beloved item.”
He added: “As a business which has seen over one million items collected, cleaned, and delivered by our experts, we know just how much people’s clothes mean to them and the level of care they want their clothes to be treated with.
“However, there still seems to be a lot of confusion when it comes to doing laundry at home around what the various symbols on clothing labels mean, leading to a lot of laundry mishaps that ruin items for good.”
The study also revealed a staggering 38% of Brits aren’t confident they understand all the functions on their washing machine, with three quarters typically sticking to the same setting for every wash. Additionally, 46% confessed they have knowingly washed a garment which was ‘dry clean only’, risking irreparable damage.
Other common laundry errors included not separating white and coloured items (26%) and not measuring out the correct amount of detergent (35%). Worryingly, 65% have left items in pockets when washing clothes, 40% have completely filled the machine, and 31% have let wet garments sit in the drum for hours.
The typical household does three loads of laundry each week, taking an average of two and a half hours to complete each one – from treating stains to folding. According to a survey, the most tedious aspects of laundry include ironing (45%), putting away clean clothes (36%), and sorting items (17%).
The average respondent in the OnePoll.com survey admitted to ruining five items in the wash, with 12% now outsourcing their laundry to professional dry-cleaners.
Matt remarked: “It’s clear as a nation we don’t enjoy the task of doing laundry and ironing, and many people find the process overwhelming with all the different symbols and methods of cleaning.”
“While people care about their clothes, a lot simply don’t have the time to spend hours sorting through theirs and their family’s garments, or running several different cycles depending on what settings are needed.”
“We know laundry is just one task in a long list of never ending household chores which is why we’ve taken on the task of professionally cleaning, ironing and delivering clothes, saving people the laundry-symbol guessing game and the heartbreak of a ruined item.”
