Home   About Us   News   Towel Care   Factory Shops   Contacts   Plain Towels Fancy Borders Embroideries Embellished Embossed Jacquards Beach Baby Kiddies Kitchen Towelling Material Gowns Hospitality - Washing - Drying - Pile Pulling - Contact with Chemicals - Caring for your Velour Towels - Washing Whether you wash laundry by hand or in the washing machine, there are certain guidelines you should follow for the best results and the least chance of damage. Always wash the towels before you first use them. The recommended washing temperature is 60 degrees Celsius and dark colours must always be washed separately from light ones. Only white towels can be washed at very high temperatures to remove stubborn stains. Use a detergent supplied by a reputable manufacturer and preferably one which bears the SABS mark. Always follow instructions given by the manufacturer of the washing powder and the manufacturer of the fabric. Avoid overdosing -it is not only expensive, but could affect the washing results negatively and weaken your fabrics. Do not overload or under load a washing machine - under loading will increase the wear of the fabric and overloading will affect the washing results. When soaking or washing by hand, detergents must be dissolved in the washing liquid before the fabric is added to avoid heavy concentrations of detergent and possible chemical damage to the fibers. Do not sprinkle or pour undiluted detergent directly onto the fabric. Never use bleach on your towels. Use fabric softener sparingly, as too much affects the towels' absorbency. Drying To keep towels soft and fluffy, tumble dry your towels for a short while and be careful not to over dry them. When drying naturally, dry out of direct sunlight to prevent harshening of the towel. When drying on a washing line, make sure you wring or spin out as much excess water as possible before hanging. Hang the towels with the weight evenly distributed to avoid miss shaping. Ensure your towels are dry before folding, and do not store in a damp place as both these factors may cause mildew to attack the cotton. Pile Pulling The number of loops and their height and density influence the feel of the towel. The loops are flexible to give suppleness to the towel. As a result, loops are likely to be pulled when hooked. Take care to avoid contact with sharp objects such as rings or hooks on the washing line. Carefully cut snagged loops off your towels with scissors, to the same height as the others to prevent the loops from being pulled further. Contact with certain chemicals A number of chemicals can cause damage to cotton fabrics, by affecting the fibres or the colour-fastness of the dyes. Colour-fastness tests are undertaken at manufacturing level, following SABS-recommended testing procedures to ensure the towels meet with the required levels of colour-fastness. However, the use of certain chemicals can seriously affect the fabric. One of those chemicals is bleach. Bleaching is the process of removing or destroying colouring matter. Cellulosic fibres such as cotton are sensitive to bleach, so bleaching can cause irreversible damage, and weaken cotton to the extent that over-bleaching may even cause material to rip or create holes. A lot of dyes are also sensitive to bleach. Bleaching can therefore cause the colour to disappear. Although bleaching has disinfecting properties, bleaching agents are not proper stain removes but rather whiteners, and should be used only if recommended by the manufacturers of the fabric and the bleach. Bleach, chlorine and peroxide are found in various home products – from pool chemicals and household cleaning compounds to skincare treatments. Should these products come into contact with towels in concentrated form, they will have the same stripping effect on the colour. If you accidentally spill bleach on your towel, rinse the spot immediately with lots of cold water. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling such products before you dry them on you towels. Caring for you Velour Towels We recommend that you wash your velour towels at least twice before use to eliminate excess fluff. Velour towels should not be tumble-dried for the first few washes to prevent extra fluff being deposited on other fabrics. Once these precautions have been taken, velour towels can be washed and tumbled normally with other fabrics. Remember that it is the side of the towel with the loops which should be used to dry yourself (it is more absorbent) and not the velour side of the towel © Colibri Towels 2006 Designed and Developed by Visual Squared