If you've ever tried to wash a load of white clothes with a few colored items mixed in, you know the results can be disastrous. Here's why it happens and how to avoid it.
When laundry is washed in hot water, any loose dye molecules are released and disperse throughout the wash water. When laundry is then dried, these same dye molecules become trapped inside the fibers of the fabric, causing what is known as dye transfer. Dye transfer usually happens with brightly colored or dark clothing, like denim jeans, but can also occur with lightly colored items like white T-shirts if they're washed with other colored items.
To prevent dye transfer from happening in your laundry, always sort your clothes before washing them. Make sure to wash whites separately from colors, using the hottest water temperature that is safe for the fabric. You may also want to add an extra rinse cycle to your wash cycle to remove any residual color from your clothes.