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Protocol
Method steps
- Read the wash tub on each care label The number in the care label's wash tub is the maximum washing temperature in °C, which must not be exceeded (GINETEX).
- Change and wash clothes daily Change your clothes, including underwear and socks, every day, and wash them before wearing them again (American Academy of Dermatology).
- Keep towels and bedding separate Use a separate towel for your feet and wash it regularly, and do not share towels, combs or bedsheets with someone who has ringworm (NHS).
- Wash at 60 °C where the label allows it In a lab study, gauze pads washed at 60 °C for 100 minutes no longer grew three tested dermatophytes, while pads washed at 40 °C still did (Akhoundi et al., 2022). Stay within the maximum on the care label (GINETEX).
- Dry fully, without counting on the dryer The domestic and coin-operated dryers tested did not kill the fungi, at the low temperatures they reached (Akhoundi et al., 2022).
Change clothes, underwear and socks every day (AAD) and do not share towels, socks or shoes (NHS). In a lab study, a 60 °C wash removed three tested fungi where 40 °C did not (Akhoundi et al., 2022). The care label’s wash tub is the ceiling (GINETEX), and the dryers tested did not kill the fungi.
Ringworm is a common fungal infection, not caused by worms; it can appear anywhere on the body, including the scalp (tinea capitis) and the groin (jock itch) (NHS (external link)). Athlete’s foot (tinea pedis) and scalp ringworm are fungal diseases caused by dermatophytes (Akhoundi et al., 2022 (external link)). Ringworm can spread through infected objects such as bedsheets, combs or towels (NHS (external link)), and the fungi can survive on objects for a long time (American Academy of Dermatology (external link)).
This page covers laundry only, not diagnosis or treatment. The NHS says to speak to a pharmacist first if you think you have ringworm (NHS (external link)).
What to wash: the item table
Each row names the item and what public-health and dermatology bodies say about it, with the source.
| Item | What the sources say | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Socks | Clean socks every day, cotton socks best; do not share them. Wash socks in hot water to kill the fungus (no temperature given). | NHS; healthdirect |
| Underwear, tights, bras | Change clothes, including underwear and socks, every day and wash them before wearing again. Change socks, tights or stockings and bras every day. | AAD; healthdirect |
| Towels and flannels | A separate towel for the feet, washed regularly. For ringworm, one clean towel for the affected area and another for the rest of the body, washed in hot, sudsy water before reuse. Do not share towels, flannels or bathmats. | NHS; AAD; healthdirect |
| Bedding and pillowcases | Wash towels and bedsheets regularly; do not share bedsheets with someone who has ringworm (no temperature given). Scalp ringworm: all bedding at 60 °C, no sharing of pillowcases. | NHS; BAD |
| Hats, combs, hairbrushes (scalp ringworm) | Hats at 60 °C. Do not share combs, hairbrushes, hats or helmets. Clean combs, hairbrushes and hair accessories with simple bleach or buy new ones. | BAD |
| Shoes | Do not share shoes. Put wet shoes in the sun to dry properly. With athlete's foot, the AAD says to toss footwear worn before treatment started. | NHS; healthdirect; AAD |
Scalp ringworm: combs and brushes
The BAD says the scalp-ringworm fungus can live for long periods in the environment, so infection can occur many months later, and that fungus can live in combs, hairbrushes and hair accessories, so clean them with simple bleach↗ or buy new ones (BAD (external link)). That bleach advice is for combs and brushes, not fabric. Routine sheet care, outside an infection, is in how to wash bed sheets.
How hot: what the care label allows, and what the studies found
The AAD and healthdirect say “hot” without a number. The AAD advises washing the clothes, towels and bedding you use while you have ringworm in hot, soapy water, without a temperature (American Academy of Dermatology (external link)), and healthdirect advises washing socks and towels in hot water to kill the fungus, also without a temperature (healthdirect (external link)). The care label sets the ceiling: the number in the wash tub is the maximum washing temperature in °C, which must not be exceeded (GINETEX (external link)).
Find your item’s label in the first column; the table gives what the studies found at that setting and what they leave open.
| Care label says | What the studies found at that setting | Not settled | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 °C or higher | No growth from gauze pads after 60 °C for 100 minutes, with or without detergent. Worn socks: 6% positive cultures, Aspergillus only. 60 °C eliminated T. rubrum and C. albicans. | The 60 °C programme held 60 °C for only 8 of its 100 minutes; shorter programmes were not tested | Akhoundi; Amichai; Hammer |
| 40 °C machine wash | All gauze pads still grew fungi after 40 °C for 100 minutes. Worn socks: 36% positive cultures, T. rubrum in four. 1 of 13 isolates disinfected. | A longer 40 °C programme was not tested | Akhoundi; Amichai; Skaastrup |
| 30 °C | T. rubrum recovered after a 30 °C wash. An earlier study reported that 30 °C with detergent eliminated T. rubrum, but T. mentagrophytes only at 60 °C. | The two reports conflict | Hammer; Akhoundi (reporting Ossowski) |
| Hand wash (ambient, about 20 to 30 °C, or 40 °C maximum) | Hand washing at either setting was not tested in these studies. A 24-hour soak in one QAC disinfectant cleared 13 of 13 isolates on cotton sock pieces. | The soak was not tested on wool, silk or other delicates, or with washing afterwards | GINETEX; Skaastrup |
| Do not wash (crossed-out tub) | No method was tested in these studies. | No tested route | GINETEX |
| Tumble dryer | Every pad still grew fungi after 100 or 150 minutes in a domestic dryer or 10 minutes in a coin-operated dryer. | A longer, hotter drying cycle was not tested | Akhoundi |
The decoder reads the whole care label, including the maximum wash temperature and whether the item can be tumble dried.
Decode the labelFor everyday loads with no infection involved, temperature choice by fabric is in the laundry temperature guide.
Soap and detergent
The AAD asks for soapy water (American Academy of Dermatology (external link)), so a plain laundry detergent↗ covers that. In the Akhoundi study, results at 40 °C and at 60 °C were the same with or without detergent (Akhoundi et al., 2022 (external link)), so no detergent is presented here as antifungal.
What four laundry studies found
Each study below used its own fabric, fungi and machine; its scope is given with its result.
Akhoundi et al., 2022: gauze pads in a home machine
A 2022 lab study washed cotton gauze pads carrying three dermatophytes (Trichophyton rubrum, T. tonsurans and T. interdigitale) in a domestic washing machine; the pads carried a burden of spores far higher than the environment of an infected patient. No fungus grew from pads washed at 60 °C for 100 minutes, with or without detergent. All pads washed at 40 °C for 100 minutes still grew the fungi. In the 60 °C programme, the water was at 60 °C for only 8 of the 100 minutes. The authors conclude that washing linens at 60 °C is essential for removing the dermatophyte spores (Akhoundi et al., 2022 (external link)).
Amichai et al., 2013: socks worn by people with athlete’s foot
A 2013 study laundered 81 socks worn by people with athlete’s foot at 40 °C or 60 °C and dried them at room temperature. After the 40 °C wash, samples from the socks gave 29 positive fungal cultures (36%); Trichophyton rubrum was isolated in four specimens. After the 60 °C wash of the same socks, samples gave 5 positive fungal cultures (6%), and only Aspergillus species were detected. The authors conclude that laundering at low temperatures is not effective in eradicating fungal pathogens, which requires laundering at 60 °C (Amichai et al., 2013 (external link)).
Hammer et al., 2011: the laundry basket and 30 °C
In a lab simulation of storage in a clothes basket, about 10% of the infectious material moved from contaminated textiles to sterile ones. T. rubrum could be recovered after washing at 30 °C, while washing at 60 °C eliminated both T. rubrum and the yeast Candida albicans, which did not survive any of the tests (Hammer et al., 2011 (external link)). Akhoundi’s paper notes an earlier study that reported washing with detergent at 30 °C eliminated T. rubrum, while T. mentagrophytes was eliminated only at 60 °C (Akhoundi et al., 2022 (external link)).
Skaastrup et al., 2022: a disinfectant soak
A 2022 Danish lab study inoculated cotton sock pieces with 13 Trichophyton isolates, including terbinafine-resistant ones, using a load the authors expect to greatly exceed the fungal material in the socks of people with athlete’s foot. Soaking the pieces in a quaternary ammonium (QAC) disinfectant detergent, diluted 1:10 as its maker instructs (0.3% QAC in the soak), left no growth for all 13 isolates after 24 hours, for 11 of 13 after 2 hours and for 6 of 13 after 30 minutes. A domestic wash at 40 °C with detergent disinfected 1 of 13 isolates, while a 40 °C steam wash and freezing at −20 °C for up to 24 hours disinfected none. The study did not test whether washing the sock pieces after the soak changes the result. The authors propose laundering socks at a minimum of 60 °C, or soaking them in a QAC-based detergent for at least 24 hours before laundering (Skaastrup et al., 2022 (external link)).
Drying: dry it, but do not count on the dryer
Heat drying did not kill the fungi in the Akhoundi study: every pad still grew them after 100 or 150 minutes in a domestic dryer or 10 minutes in a coin-operated dryer. The recorded temperature in the domestic dryer stayed at about 20 °C, and the coin-operated dryer reached 60 °C for only 2 of its 10 minutes, so these trials do not test a longer, hotter drying cycle. Freezing at −20 °C for 24 hours, 48 hours or one week, and dry heat at 60 °C for 10, 30 or 90 minutes, did not kill them either (Akhoundi et al., 2022 (external link)).
A crossed-out dryer on the care label means the item is unsuitable for tumble drying (GINETEX (external link)). Dryer settings by fabric are in how to tumble dry clothes.
After the treatment ends
The NHS says to keep following this advice after finishing treatment to help stop athlete’s foot coming back (NHS (external link)).
Mistakes to avoid
- Counting on the dryer. The domestic and coin-operated dryers tested did not kill the fungi, at the low temperatures they reached (Akhoundi et al., 2022).
- Freezing clothes instead of washing them. Freezing at −20 °C did not kill the tested fungi (Akhoundi et al., 2022; Skaastrup et al., 2022).
- Going above the label. The number in the wash tub is a maximum that must not be exceeded (GINETEX).
- Sharing towels. For athlete's foot, the NHS advises not sharing towels, socks or shoes (NHS).
Related reading
- Laundry temperature guide — choosing 30, 40 or 60 °C for everyday loads.
- How to tumble dry clothes — dryer settings and the care-label dots.
- How to wash bed sheets — routine sheet care.
- Care symbol decoder — read any care label.