# How often do you wash "outer clothes" (sweaters, jacks, jackets)? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 11, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792 "2009-01-11T12:03:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/1 "2009-01-11T12:03:27Z")
A friend of mine washes her woolen vests and sweaters every time she wears them. Consequently, they look like shit after six months. Me, I wash my shirts and undershirts frequently, but the jackets and vests I wash, or sent to dryclean, maybe once, twice a year. After wearing, I hang them up to air out, preferably in a drafty place in my home, or outside. Where are you on this scale? ---
**Author:** ![Unsquare\_Dance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b3f665/32.png) [@Unsquare\_Dance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unsquare_Dance)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/2 "2009-01-11T13:24:50Z")
I rarely wash my sweaters, and I never wash coats and jackets. I layer a lot under sweaters so that they stay fresher a little longer, since they become more like jackets than shirts. I end up washing them every few months, but I take great care to keep them looking fairly nice. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/3 "2009-01-11T14:00:40Z")
My main winter coat – once a year. Secondary outerwear jackets – every second or third year, maybe? Sweaters – when they need it – one to three times a season, depending on what color it is and how often I wear it – and, frankly, what it’s made of (cotton sweaters that I can throw in the washer more often than heavy wool sweaters that I need to do by hand). ---
**Author:** ![Audrey\_Levins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Audrey\_Levins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Audrey_Levins)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/4 "2009-01-11T14:31:22Z")
I have several wool winter coats that have probably never seen a dry-cleaner…I live in South Texas which means they get worn perhaps half a dozen times a year, at most… Sweaters I treat like hand-washables. If they are worn throughout the day then they get washed (in a Woolite sweater-bag) and then they are laid flat to dry… But like regular shirts they are not necessarily “dirty” after one wearing. Depending on what I did while wearing them, and whether or not I spilled anything on them, they may be good for two or three wearings before they need to be washed. Jackets/pullovers/cardigans I wash whenever I think about it. Honestly they get washed whenever the fabric gets so stretched out that they won’t stay when I “roll back my sleeves.” Outerwear like heavy wool coats are lucky to see the cleaner once a year. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/5 "2009-01-11T14:42:47Z")
More of the same. I’m a stinkier guy than most, and undershirts & regular shirts are always one wear = one wash even when I don’t work up any sweat. Sweaters get washed 1-2x per season unless I trash one with food or massive sweat. Windbreakers & such get washed every couple years. Heavy coats wear out or shrink out before their first washing, i.e. they never get washed. ---
**Author:** ![incidental](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/22d042/32.png) [@incidental](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/incidental)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/6 "2009-01-11T14:55:05Z")
I agree - shirts that touch skin are one wear one wash. I wash my heavy coat once a year, more or less. I have a couple of hairy cats, so while the lint brush does the job during the year, I feel the need for one good washing yearly. Plus, I’m in a cold state, so it gets pretty consistent wear. My suit jacket is variable. I’m in the middle of interviewing for a job, so I desperately want to look nice. But even then, it depends on how much I sweated during the interview. I’ve gone three interviews without washing it, but that’s the most. Some of that is logistics though - I’ve stacked interviews together and can’t always get to a dry cleaner between wears. ---
**Author:** ![Marienee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@Marienee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marienee)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/7 "2009-01-11T19:56:48Z")
My ski jacket’s outer shell gets washed about twice a season, it is light green and grey in color and shows the dirt. It serves as a rain jacket in fall and spring so I keep washing it then. The inner shell only gets washed once a year. My formal long coat gets cleaned at the end of winter when I put it away for the year, but it does not get daily wear. Youngest’s winter coat gets washed nearly every week but this is because he comes home covered in mud on a regular basis. He is just that kind of boy; Eldest’s winter coat gets washed once a year when it is put away and his jacket is leather (that light brown suede jacket with the wool facing, half holland has one just like it). Sweaters depend on what they are made from. Wool gets washed rarely, treated with conditioner and hung up (because wool gives me a rash otherwise but there is nothing like it to stop the wind). Fleece and cotton sweaters get washed when worn. Dearly Beloved never wears sweaters, really. I dislike vests, other than bodywarmers, so I don’t have any. ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2009, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/8 "2009-01-11T20:01:43Z")
Sweaters I wash once or twice a year. My only real jacket I wear is a leather one that I obviously don’t wash at home, except to wipe it down if it gets looking bad. I have it cleaned every few years though. ---
**Author:** ![Deereman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Deereman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deereman)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/9 "2009-01-12T04:22:04Z")
Frequency of washing depends on how much grease, oil, and diesel fuel I manage to get soaked into the jacket (Carhartt). When I become a walking fire hazard, it’s usually time to wash…😃 If I manage to keep the grime to a minimum, it doesn’t get washed. Maybe ONCE after purchase, but that’s it. ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/10 "2009-01-12T07:45:32Z")
Jackets get washed when and if they look dirty, and before going into off-season storage. Youngest son’s snowsuit gets washed fairly frequently because he still really _plays_ at recess, and that often involves sand, mud, or both. Wool sweaters, when and if they get dirty or start smelling, and before going into off-season storage. And that’s pretty much true of things like hats and gloves as well. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/11 "2009-01-12T08:17:32Z")
> [@Audrey\_Levins](#): > > Sweaters I treat like hand-washables. If they are worn throughout the day then they get washed (in a Woolite sweater-bag) and then they are laid flat to dry… > > Jackets/pullovers/cardigans I wash whenever I think about it. I always seem to need translation help in these clothing threads… What’s the difference between a “sweater” and a “pullover”? To me they’re both the same thing (thing made out of wool that you wear on your chest to keep warm) Anyway, my answer: Anything that’s not on the “touching skin” layer gets washed when I can see visible dirt on it. Which could be two days or two years… ---
**Author:** ![Audrey\_Levins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Audrey\_Levins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Audrey_Levins)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/12 "2009-01-12T11:42:12Z")
A sweater is generally knitted and worn next to the skin, or over an undershirt (if it’s that cold which it generally isn’t) and a pullover is like a hoodie or a cardigan…outerwear that you put on over your shirt/sweater. Made out of stretchy knit. A hoodie without a zipper, I guess, which requires you to…pull it over your head. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2009, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-often-do-you-wash-outer-clothes-sweaters-jacks-jackets/480792/13 "2009-01-12T15:56:00Z")
You wear knitted things next to your skin? Well, there’s a cultural difference right there. How do you tell the difference between knitted-thing-to-be-worn-next-to-skin and knitted-thing-to-be-worn-over-a-shirt when you’re deciding whether to call your knitted thing a sweater or a pullover? Are they generally made out of different types of yarn? (trying strenuously not to further muddy the waters by using the word “jumper” in this thread…)