# Is it safe to tumble-dry coloured clothes with white clothes? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 3, 2016, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064 "2016-01-03T14:10:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/1 "2016-01-03T14:10:30Z")
Subject asks it all, really. I’m just looking to save some time but don’t want my shirts ending up pink or blue! ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/2 "2016-01-03T15:13:46Z")
I’ve always washed/dried all my colors together, as long as it’s a cold cycle, and I’ve never had any problems. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/3 "2016-01-03T15:19:15Z")
When I do laundry, I just dump everything together. No problem. But then I don’t own anything white, except a couple of old t-shirts. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/4 "2016-01-03T15:30:02Z")
Whites are fully integrated with colors under my roof. 😉 I’ve never had anything bleed. I just wash on cold, new pieces of clothing are washed separately the first few times, and never buy clothing made of bright red fabric. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/5 "2016-01-03T17:02:12Z")
> [@Rachellelogram](#): > > Whites are fully integrated with colors under my roof. 😉 I’ve never had anything bleed. I just wash on cold, new pieces of clothing are washed separately the first few times, and **never buy clothing made of bright red fabric**. Well, that’s no way to live. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/6 "2016-01-03T18:39:06Z")
Bleeding color isn’t the problem that it once was unless you mix something new with deep color with bright whites. Quality clothing that has been washed a few times is almost always color stable and washing it together is usually not a problem. Drying it together is even less of a problem. I separate pure whites I but that is only because I add a little bleach to their wash sometimes. YMMV but all it takes is a little good sense. Don’t mix that new cheap purple T-shirt that your aunt bought for you on a beach in Mexico with the rest of your clothes until you know it won’t bleed for example. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/7 "2016-01-03T19:37:57Z")
I’m relieved to hear that nobody is advocating “separate but equal” for whites and coloreds. [ETA: oops, I see somebody already did that] ---
**Author:** ![Ranger\_Jeff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranger_jeff/32/2065_2.png) [@Ranger\_Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranger_Jeff)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/8 "2016-01-03T22:14:03Z")
I don’t really think you’d get any bleeding from any temperature drying cycle. I’d avoid washing them together in hot water, especially something boldly colored for the first few times. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/9 "2016-01-03T23:16:27Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I’m relieved to hear that nobody is advocating “separate but equal” for whites and coloreds. > > [ETA: oops, I see somebody already did that] I still separate them, but frankly, the only things I’ve had fade on me have been towels. ---
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/10 "2016-01-03T23:32:21Z")
Grey is such an understated style… ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2016, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/11 "2016-01-03T23:39:58Z")
I still separate my whites and colours. It’s not that they bleed colour and noticeably stain; it’s just that whites washed with colours take on a greyish hue. I see it with the kid’s socks. The ones I’ve washed are white; the ones their dad has washed are off-white. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/12 "2016-01-04T23:01:11Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Is it safe to tumble-dry coloured clothes with white clothes? Dear Quartz’s next of kin… ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2016, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/13 "2016-01-04T23:53:26Z")
> [@Ranger\_Jeff](#): > > I don’t really think you’d get any bleeding from any temperature drying cycle. I’d avoid washing them together in hot water, especially something boldly colored for the first few times. I agree that clothes don’t usually bleed in the dryer, but some clothes shed lint and others pick it up easily. So you might want to separate clothes on that basis. ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2016, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/14 "2016-01-05T01:14:38Z")
They make a handy dandy little dryer sheet that picks up any random color that dislodges from clothing being dried. If I have any doubts about colorfastness of anything I’m drying, I toss one of those in there. [http://http://www.shoutitout.com/en-us/products/pages/shout-color-catcher.aspx](http://http://www.shoutitout.com/en-us/products/pages/shout-color-catcher.aspx) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2016, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-safe-to-tumble-dry-coloured-clothes-with-white-clothes/742064/15 "2016-01-05T01:27:48Z")
That seems designed for use during the washer cycle, not the dryer cycle.