How To Get 200+ Washes Out Of Your T-Shirts & Undershirts

Ever wonder how you can make your t-shirts or undershirts last longer? Want to get 200+ washes out of them?

How To Get 200+ Washes Out of Your T-Shirts

DSTLD Black Tee
DSTLD Black Tee

Courtesy of a reader, this is how he makes his t-shirts and undershirts last through 200+ washes.

HAND WASH

Hand washing is the key to 200+ washes. Use baby shampoo in cool or tepid water and air dry on towel so shape is never compromised.

A box fan will greatly speed this [drying time] up.

One can also lay T-shirt on towel, and roll it up inside to wick away moisture.

LINT

Linting represents the mechanical destruction of your clothes. Machines scrub clothes against each other, strong detergents and rubbing and scrubbing over bend and twist weak fibers.

High heat causes more degradation.

Lint means death of clothes.

MOTHS

BTW not washing your lucky T-shirt or jeans is a sure fire way to attract moths.

Moths can smell human oils oxidizing on stored unwashed t-shirts, a moths antenna can smell a single molecule of oxidized skin oil.

A moth has the most sensitive nose in the world located on its antenna

If the above is true, theoretically, you could wash a t-shirt once per week, every week, for 4 years, and it would still look as good as new.

That would be cool.

Thanks to Omar for sharing his secret to long lasting t-shirts & undershirts!

How Do You Care For Your T-Shirts & Undershirts?

How do you care for them, and how long do they last?

How often do you replace your undershirts?

Let me know in the comments section below.

5 thoughts on “How To Get 200+ Washes Out Of Your T-Shirts & Undershirts”

  1. As to the making your shirts last, I know that hand washing is by far the least destructive to clothing in general.

    I must say that I just do not have the time to hand wash all my t shirts, but I will tell you that I do not use a dryer on them as I hang them up to air dry over night and this works very well.

    A clothes dryer is the most destructive of all because of the rolling of the clothing and the heat at the same time.

    The evidence to the damage is found in said lint filter.

    Reply
    • +1. i find myself hang drying many of my items — mostly to prevent or minimize shrinkage (i don’t like tight fitting clothes), but the byproduct of that is that the clothes that i air dry seem to be looking better longer.

      oh, and we kinda stay away from chlorine bleach in this household. we usually use some form of oxygenated non-chlorine bleach.

      Reply
    • I had heard that cedar wood chips in a closet will stop moths, although I have never tried this but I have heard that it works. I do not know that I would be partial to cedar smell though.

      Reply
      • yes, i have heard this too.

        we used to use ceder chips in our closets growing up, though i haven’t used them in years.

        we also used to use “moth balls”, but those stunk like holy hell.

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