As a laundry owner, Floyd Cooper said he sees all sorts of customers use the washers and dryers.

Cooper said he also sees customers make laundering errors that could end up costing them money.

“Probably using too much soap in our new equipment we got is the main thing,” said Cooper, owner of Leisure Way Laundry, 301 S. York St. “Our machines use less water, and with less water you use less detergent.”

Whether at the laundry, the dry cleaners or at home, there are things you can do to save money and keep your clothes clean and in good shape for years.

The key to making your clothes last and look good is to follow manufacturer’s washing instructions on the garment’s label, said Alta Crockett, manager of Archer Cleaners and Shirt Laundry, 700 W. Okmulgee Ave.

That’s what employees at the cleaners must do with nearly every garment they wash, she said.

“If we are unsure of what is on the label, we may have the customer sign a release or we may turn it down,” she said.

Crockett said that when employees get clothing to be washed in regular fashion, not dry cleaned, they first sort the clothing according to darkness level.

“We wash the jeans together, the light clothing together, the dark clothing together and the dark jeans together,” she said.

Crockett disagrees with the money-saving advice of always washing clothes in cold water.

“You want to wash white clothes in the warmest temperature the label allows,” she said. “Dark clothing you can wash in cold water and never use chlorine bleach. We recommend Biz Bleach, but it is a powder.”

The Web site Thriftyfun.com suggests washing dark clothes in cold water with tablespoon of salt in the water.

The site offered other money-saving tips, including using white vinegar as a substitute for fabric softener.

Thriftyfun.com also said many items tagged as “Dry Clean Only” can be hand washed by using mild soap such as Woolite and cold water.

However, Crockett said clothes marked as “Dry Clean Only” must always be dry cleaned.