Did you know that a single item of clothing can shed up to 7000 microfibres in a single wash? Did you also know that there are between 5 and 50 trillion microplastics in the oceans? And our washing machines have a lot to do with this, read on to find out all about it.

It all starts in our wardrobes, and for this we are all to blame. More and more of our clothes are made of plastic (be it nylon, polyester, etc.).

What are microplastics or microfibres?

Microplastics, as the name suggests, are very small fibres. They are tiny fragments that come off clothes.

Have you ever noticed that when you peel adhesive tape off your clothes, it looks like little hairs? Well, that's what microfibres are.🙂

And are they all harmful?

No, not all of them are harmful, only those that are made of plastic.😆 These microfibres are from the material of the garment, so if we have a T-shirt whose composition is 100% cotton, it will also release microfibres, but as they are made of organic material, they decompose in the sea without any major problem.👍🏽

The problem comes when the composition of the garment contains plastic, these microplastics will then end up in the sea, decomposing and contaminating the sea with chemicals such as Bisphenol A or remaining in the oceans for several years.

How does this affect us ?

Initially, it does not present any problem, as this garment will be used for a long period of time and it is not as polluting as single-use plastics. The problem comes when it comes to washing them: in each washing machine it is estimated that up to 700,000 microfibres are released and end up in the sea, as the filters cannot retain them.

How can we solve this ?

Now comes the part we all wanted to get to - is there a solution to this problem? Of course it can.

With a series of little tips we can reduce the fibres that come out of the garments in our washes. And I'm going to tell you more about how to prevent them from going into the sea by using our laundry bag.

Tips for reducing microplastics or microfibres when washing clothes

1. Wash at low temperature, short wash cycles and use fabric softener.
2. Fill the washing machine to the maximum and wash it fewer times. Some garments, such as jeans, do not need to be washed every time they are worn, reducing the number of times each garment is washed will also reduce the number of microfibres shed in each wash.
3. Use our laundry bag: our laundry bag is specifically designed to retain the microfibres released by the garment.

Why a laundry bag?

This laundry bag is the best solution when it comes to preventing microplastics from ending up in the sea. 🌊 It is specifically designed with a very small mesh allowing you to wash your clothes perfectly but also capturing these microfibres.

The bag also has the advantage of taking better care of the clothes, as it avoids the rubbing of the clothes against the drum, reducing wear and tear (I personally put my favourite clothes in it as well). 

How to use it ?

It's very simple to use: fill the sustainable laundry bag halfway, and no more, with those clothes made of plastic and your favourite clothes 😊.

Then, close the bag with the zip and put it in with the rest of the laundry, it's that easy!!!👌🏽 Once the washing machine has finished, just take the clothes out of the bag and manually remove the microfibres from the bag, which are usually left at the ends of the bag and the seams (important because otherwise you'll think there are no microfibres😂😂).

What I usually do is to keep these microfibres in a small jar and then throw them in the domestic waste, unfortunately they cannot be recycled 🙂 I hope you enjoyed this blog, and above all, that you discovered a new world 😳 as I did when I found out about this problem with such a simple solution.

I hope you have enjoyed this blog and, above all, that you have discovered a new world 😳 as I did at the time when I found out that this problem had such a simple solution 😄.

Here you can get your laundry bag and become a little bit more sustainable 😉🌱.