How to Clean Your Compression Stockings to Make Them Last Longer - Compression stockings for varicose veins are expensive and fragile. Yet, if you have varicose veins, they make your life a lot easier. In fact, once you start wearing them, you can't live without them. So how can you wear compression stockings without having to buy a new pair every month because the one you had lost its elasticity? The answer is actually simple and most people do it wrong. You can make your stockings last a lot longer by cleaning them correctly. Read this article to find out how.
The fabric of your compression stockings is sensible to heat, chemicals and stretching. So every step of the cleaning process, from the water you use to the way you dry them, can wear your compression stockings faster. I'll explain to you the best way to wash and dry your stockings to keep them working for as long as they should.
First, the water temperature you use can make a big difference. Always use cold to lukewarm water when cleaning your compression stockings. Remember that your stockings are sensible to heat. Any heat can reduce the elastic property of your stockings, making them useless. So always use cold to lukewarm water during the entire cleaning process.
Second, you need to use the right soap. Most soaps are too harsh to the fabric of compression stockings. So make sure to choose a gentle soap that does not contain artificial colorants, synthetic perfumes or softener. Those chemicals can remove the elastic property of the fabric and therefore make your compression stockings less effective. With the wrong soap, your stockings could lose their elasticity after only one washing.
Avoid using a washing machine, since the fast spinning could stretch your stockings. Since you already stretch them during the day, you want to avoid doing that while washing them. Hand wash them for at least a minute and then rinse them one by one with cold water to remove any soap left.
To dry your compression stockings, do not put them in the dryer nor hang them. Both drying methods will wear your stockings faster than the method I'm about to describe. To dry your stockings while maintaining their elasticity, lay them flat and use a fan to dry them. One big mistake that people do is to lay them flat in direct sunlight. Avoid lying them in the sun, as the heat would destroy their elasticity.
Follow this cleaning method and you should be able to use the same pair of stockings longer, making you a little bit richer along the way.
And finally, if you are interested to know where to buy compression stockings, please check out the Online Varicose Veins Support Group at http://www.varistop.com/.
The fabric of your compression stockings is sensible to heat, chemicals and stretching. So every step of the cleaning process, from the water you use to the way you dry them, can wear your compression stockings faster. I'll explain to you the best way to wash and dry your stockings to keep them working for as long as they should.
First, the water temperature you use can make a big difference. Always use cold to lukewarm water when cleaning your compression stockings. Remember that your stockings are sensible to heat. Any heat can reduce the elastic property of your stockings, making them useless. So always use cold to lukewarm water during the entire cleaning process.
Second, you need to use the right soap. Most soaps are too harsh to the fabric of compression stockings. So make sure to choose a gentle soap that does not contain artificial colorants, synthetic perfumes or softener. Those chemicals can remove the elastic property of the fabric and therefore make your compression stockings less effective. With the wrong soap, your stockings could lose their elasticity after only one washing.
Avoid using a washing machine, since the fast spinning could stretch your stockings. Since you already stretch them during the day, you want to avoid doing that while washing them. Hand wash them for at least a minute and then rinse them one by one with cold water to remove any soap left.
To dry your compression stockings, do not put them in the dryer nor hang them. Both drying methods will wear your stockings faster than the method I'm about to describe. To dry your stockings while maintaining their elasticity, lay them flat and use a fan to dry them. One big mistake that people do is to lay them flat in direct sunlight. Avoid lying them in the sun, as the heat would destroy their elasticity.
Follow this cleaning method and you should be able to use the same pair of stockings longer, making you a little bit richer along the way.
And finally, if you are interested to know where to buy compression stockings, please check out the Online Varicose Veins Support Group at http://www.varistop.com/.
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