WE'VE DONE OUR HOMEWORK, SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO
Read on to learn about the crazy impact we made together.
Did you know that 2/3 of your clothes' carbon footprint occurs in the use phase?
That is actually great news: you have the power to make a difference and we are here to give you the tools to do so.
It's simple. We create products that you can wear more, wash less and keep longer. You spend less, create less waste, save water and electricity. But how much can you actually save?
We ran the numbers and calculated how much water and energy we saved this year. Below you will read all about the impact and saving potential our clothing has, compared to traditional clothes. We then multiplied that with the total number of items you bought.
Look at the crazy impact we made, together. In 2021 we saved:
361,988 kWh of energy & 15,610,742 L of water
Wear more in-between washes
The average number of times a garment is worn before it's washed:
Wash & iron less
The average number of times a garment is washed and ironed per year:
Extend lifespan & reduce waste
The 3 key contributors to your clothes' carbon footprint during the use phase are washing, drying and ironing, according to the European Commission (Source 4).
Our innovative textiles allow you to wear your clothes longer between washes, therefore you wash and iron less, and save water and electricity.
Frequent washing is also the main reason your clothes wear out. With LABFRESH you keep your favourites in top shape for much longer, as you wash less. As a bonus you also reduce waste in the process.
Number of wears during its entire lifecycle
Save water and energy
Amount of water used per year in litres
You save up to 540 more litres of water during the lifespan of a LABFRESH t-shirt vs. a regular one. That's 9 months of drinking water for the average adult.
In perspective:
- Bath: 150-300 litres
- Shower: 50-100 litres
- Flushing a toilet: 10 litres
- Washing dishes by hand: 23 litres
- Dishwasher: 20-40 litres.
- Washing machine: 40-80 litres
Amount of energy used per year in kWh
In addition we recommend washing at 30°C maximum, as 90% of the energy used by washing machines goes to heating the water. Another tip? Skip the dryer! Preserve the quality of your clothes longer and save an additional 315kg CO2 emission per year.
(Source 5)
What can you do with 1 kWh?
- Charge your phone for 2 hours per day, for an entire month
- Blend 200 smoothies
- Toast 160 slices of bread
This report was written by LABFRESH and published on 20 January 2021.
Number of wears before having to wash for regular t-shirts and regular shirts (Table 6 from Source 1)
Number of wears before having to wash for LABFRESH shirts and t-shirts is from our Customer Satisfaction survey with 1500+ respondents (Source 3)
Life span
Average lifespan of a shirt is 35-50 washes (Source 6)
Regular t-shirt
No. of wears before washing x lifespan of a shirt in washes = 53-75 wears
LABFRESH t-shirt
No. of wears before washing x lifespan of a shirt in washes = 122-175 wears
Regular shirt
No. of wears before washing x lifespan of a shirt in washes = 70-100 wears
LABFRESH shirt
No. of wears before washing x lifespan of a shirt in washes = 122-175 wears
Water usage
Water use per kg of laundry is 13,8L/kg (Table 4 from Source 1)
One t-shirt is 175g so; (13,8 x 175)/1000 = 2,40 L water used / t-shirt / wash
One shirt is 200g so; (13,8 x 200)/1000 = 2,76 L water used / shirt / wash
365 / Number of wears before having to wash it = Number of washes / year
Number of washes / year x Water used / wash = Water used / year
Energy usage
Energy use is 0.32 kWh per kg (Table 4 from Source 1)
One t-shirt is 175g so; (0.32 kWhx x 175)/1000 = 0,056 kwh energy used / t-shirt / wash
One shirt is 200g so; (0.32 kWhx x 200)/1000 = 0,064 kwh energy used / shirt / wash
365 / Number of wears before having to wash it = Number of washes / year
Number of washes / year x Energy used / wash = Energy used / year
kWh usage examples from Source 2
Sources
1: Does Use Matter? Comparison of Environmental Impacts of Clothing Based on Fiber Type (Kirsi Laitala, Ingun Grimstad Klepp and Beverley Henry, 2018)
2: https://auth.novec.commonspotcloud.com/Save/1-kWh.cfm
3: LABFRESH Customer Satisfaction Survey:
https://labfresh.typeform.com/report/ZSVt9z/Rh9UQdCaJJq8xYw2
4: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2019/633143/EPRS_BRI(2019)633143_EN.pdf
5: https://www.treehugger.com/htgg/how-to-go-green-laundry.html
6: https://customer.mydrycleaner.com/BattistonsCT/content/shirts-lifespan