Second-hand clothing: How to avoid the risks of used garments

Second-hand clothing: How to avoid the risks of used garments

If you jumped on the vintage wave and now only buy used clothes, you should know that you can't always find them in the best conditions. Ropa de segunda mano: Cómo evitar los riesgos de las prendas usadas Ropa de segunda mano: Cómo evitar los riesgos de las prendas usadas

Depending on where it is, how it was stored, for how long, and where you bought it, second-hand clothes can collect a lot of dust, bugs, and could even spread certain diseases.

Lice, mites and chemicals are the most common and could cause dermatitis, ringworm, scabies and even in some cases could transmit gonorrhea.

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To avoid these problems - some quite serious - it is best to properly disinfect clothing before wearing it.

First step

Before thinking about how you are going to disinfect it, you must find a piece that you love. When you are in your favorite used clothing store, or receive your order, the first thing you should do is look for traces of animals. Yes, and it will not always be easy.

Ropa de segunda mano: Cómo evitar los riesgos de las prendas usadas

Bed bugs are a type of pest that feeds on human blood and bursts when exposed to light. That is why you should check the hems and seams in search of eggs, larvae or residue that these critters may have left as evidence.

How can I disinfect it?

The disinfection method will depend on the garment you want to treat. Many times we get excited about the discoveries in American clothing, that we do not notice that not everything can be thrown in the washing machine.

What you can wash, try to do it at the highest temperature that the clothes and the washing machine allow. If you are not sure how to wash it, you can first check what the garment label says.

You can give it the last touch of disinfection by leaving the clothes hanging in full sun, so the last bugs and bacteria will go away. Also, you can invest in a commercial laundry sanitizer.

If it is a piece that cannot be wet, you have a couple of options. If the label allows it, you can put it in the dryer, set on the highest temperature possible.

Another tip, which has been recommended, is to put the clothes in a hermetically sealed plastic bag. You can line it with packing tape if you want to make sure, and freeze it for 5 days to a month in the freezer. Once the time has elapsed, you can shake it vigorously to drop the remains of the bugs that remain.

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