Conserving water and energy by choosing the right clothes

skyl4rk · 09-10-10, 06:07 PM

The choice of clothes makes a big difference in how much water you need to wash them, and how long they take to dry.

A lesson learned while backpacking in Europe, when there were far better things to do than find a place to wash clothes: synthetic fiber clothes dry quickly and are easy to wash by hand, using far less water than is needed for natural fiber clothes.

Blue jeans are notorious for not drying out for days after a hand washing in a hotel.

Wilderness backpackers in the US have a mantra: Cotton Kills, due to cotton not drying out quickly and causing hypothermia in cold or windy weather. Synthetics wick the moisture from your body and dry quickly.

If you choose polyester or nylon fabric clothes, you can easily wash them in a washbasin and hang them out to dry over the tub. They will generally be dry the next morning. It helps if there is some air flow in the room.

You can find synthetic clothes anywhere from Wal-Mart to Patagonia. Backpacking clothes are often very good but expensive. Cheaper synthetics are available as soccer shorts and tees, fleece sweaters, 50% polyester 50% cotton blend khaki pants, underwear and button down shirts. If you can't find the clothes in 100% synthetic, go for the blend, it still dries out quickly. Nylon socks work well. For serious warmth, wool is still a good material because you can wear it over synthetic fiber clothes and it doesn't get dirty very quickly.

With the right selection of clothes, you could do a quick hand wash every other day and never need a washing machine. You can hand wring the clothes, or buy a hand powered wringer. Because they dry quickly, even indoors, a dryer is no longer needed. You can reduce the energy needed to wash and dry clothes to the heating of water for a washbasin. Less soap and less water is needed because the dirt is easier to get out of the synthetic fiber. Even the clothes themselves can be made out of recycled materials. One of my favorite shirts has a label 100% recycled polyester.

Daox · 09-10-10, 06:41 PM

Thats very interesting. I've really never thought about my clothes in this aspect. Any downsides to going high/100% synthetic clothes?

skyl4rk · 09-10-10, 07:55 PM

Style?

Synthetics absorb and wick your sweat, so they pick up body odors quickly.

Polyester t-shirts don't have as much insulation as cotton, but you can cover with a fleece sweater, which is very warm.

For winter conditions, a good system is a wicking base (t-shirt, khaki pants) covered with fleece sweater and pants, and that is covered with a nylon wind or rain pants and jacket.

Another disadvantage is for work clothes, heavy cotton jeans can take more abuse and protect you from abrasion better than synthetics.

Nylon wind pants and coats are sometimes noisy, as you brush your sleeves against the coat for example.

Xringer · 09-10-10, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyl4rk

Style?

Synthetics absorb and wick your sweat, so they pick up body odors quickly.

Polyester t-shirts don't have as much insulation as cotton, but you can cover with a fleece sweater, which is very warm.

For winter conditions, a good system is a wicking base (t-shirt, khaki pants) covered with fleece sweater and pants, and that is covered with a nylon wind or rain pants and jacket.

Another disadvantage is for work clothes, heavy cotton jeans can take more abuse and protect you from abrasion better than synthetics.

Nylon wind pants and coats are sometimes noisy, as you brush your sleeves against the coat for example.

You are describing what I wear for comfort. Wick-away shirts in summer are great for bicycling,
mowing the lawn etc and are nice in the winter under fleece. Keeps you dry and warm..

During the last few months, I have also been wearing a lot of light cotton t-shirts and light khaki shorts..
Not the coolest, but close enough..

Here's an old folks trick for getting more comfort out of t-shirts with big scratchy seams inside.
If you aren't going out anywhere but the back yard, try wearing your T-shirt inside out.

Maybe my skin is over-sensitive? I don't know.. But I've got a few T-shirts
that I will only wear inside out.. No seams feels great..
It seemed like a nutty idea at first, then I tried it. Liked it..
Hey, I just looked at the shirt I'm wearing right now.. Guess what!

RobertSmalls · 09-11-10, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xringer

Maybe my skin is over-sensitive? I don't know..

Probably not. I won't wear wicking fabrics or noisy nylon pants unless I'm getting some exercise outside, or on a long car trip with minimum A/C usage. The texture of wicking fabrics is a constant reminder of their presence, and while I like wearing them when I'm sweating, I find it more relaxing to wear cotton.

Another downside: they are incompatible with pets' claws.

I never really thought about the energy required to wash and dry the fabrics, though.

Piwoslaw · 09-13-10, 05:15 AM

The Wife and I are also hikers, so the only cotton stuff we take is what we sleep in. We also are big fans of fleeces.

When biking in the summer I sometimes jump in a lake/river in my shorts and shirt. That rinses the sweat off and dries quickly in the wind when I take off again.

My synthetic hiking shirt (not an expensive model, either) took a beating in the Fagaras mountains in Romania last year. Six days in one shirt, no washing, but it didn't even smell bad (or maybe noone was clean enough to notice?). I wouldn't try that at home, though.

I've seen high-end outdoors clothes with a silver thread to keep the smell down (silver is supposed to kill bacteria).

I've never thought about choosing synthetics over cotton for their ease of washing and drying, but then we only hang dry our laundry.

09-10-10, 06:07 PM	#1
skyl4rk Helper EcoRenovator Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 66 Thanks: 3 Thanked 6 Times in 4 Posts	Conserving water and energy by choosing the right clothes The choice of clothes makes a big difference in how much water you need to wash them, and how long they take to dry. A lesson learned while backpacking in Europe, when there were far better things to do than find a place to wash clothes: synthetic fiber clothes dry quickly and are easy to wash by hand, using far less water than is needed for natural fiber clothes. Blue jeans are notorious for not drying out for days after a hand washing in a hotel. Wilderness backpackers in the US have a mantra: Cotton Kills, due to cotton not drying out quickly and causing hypothermia in cold or windy weather. Synthetics wick the moisture from your body and dry quickly. If you choose polyester or nylon fabric clothes, you can easily wash them in a washbasin and hang them out to dry over the tub. They will generally be dry the next morning. It helps if there is some air flow in the room. You can find synthetic clothes anywhere from Wal-Mart to Patagonia. Backpacking clothes are often very good but expensive. Cheaper synthetics are available as soccer shorts and tees, fleece sweaters, 50% polyester 50% cotton blend khaki pants, underwear and button down shirts. If you can't find the clothes in 100% synthetic, go for the blend, it still dries out quickly. Nylon socks work well. For serious warmth, wool is still a good material because you can wear it over synthetic fiber clothes and it doesn't get dirty very quickly. With the right selection of clothes, you could do a quick hand wash every other day and never need a washing machine. You can hand wring the clothes, or buy a hand powered wringer. Because they dry quickly, even indoors, a dryer is no longer needed. You can reduce the energy needed to wash and dry clothes to the heating of water for a washbasin. Less soap and less water is needed because the dirt is easier to get out of the synthetic fiber. Even the clothes themselves can be made out of recycled materials. One of my favorite shirts has a label 100% recycled polyester.

09-10-10, 06:41 PM	#2
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Thats very interesting. I've really never thought about my clothes in this aspect. Any downsides to going high/100% synthetic clothes? __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

09-10-10, 07:55 PM	#3
skyl4rk Helper EcoRenovator Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 66 Thanks: 3 Thanked 6 Times in 4 Posts	Style? Synthetics absorb and wick your sweat, so they pick up body odors quickly. Polyester t-shirts don't have as much insulation as cotton, but you can cover with a fleece sweater, which is very warm. For winter conditions, a good system is a wicking base (t-shirt, khaki pants) covered with fleece sweater and pants, and that is covered with a nylon wind or rain pants and jacket. Another disadvantage is for work clothes, heavy cotton jeans can take more abuse and protect you from abrasion better than synthetics. Nylon wind pants and coats are sometimes noisy, as you brush your sleeves against the coat for example.

09-13-10, 05:15 AM	#6
Piwoslaw Super Moderator Join Date: May 2009 Location: Warsaw, Poland Posts: 961 Thanks: 188 Thanked 110 Times in 86 Posts	The Wife and I are also hikers, so the only cotton stuff we take is what we sleep in. We also are big fans of fleeces. When biking in the summer I sometimes jump in a lake/river in my shorts and shirt. That rinses the sweat off and dries quickly in the wind when I take off again. My synthetic hiking shirt (not an expensive model, either) took a beating in the Fagaras mountains in Romania last year. Six days in one shirt, no washing, but it didn't even smell bad (or maybe noone was clean enough to notice?). I wouldn't try that at home, though. I've seen high-end outdoors clothes with a silver thread to keep the smell down (silver is supposed to kill bacteria). I've never thought about choosing synthetics over cotton for their ease of washing and drying, but then we only hang dry our laundry.