How to Wash Lab Coats: A Practical Care Routine for Clinics and Labs

Wash lab coats separately from personal clothes, at the hottest temperature your workplace policy requires and the fabric's care label allows, with a good detergent, then dry them promptly and iron or press while slightly damp. Empty the pockets, close the fastenings and treat stains before the coat goes in. Whether coats can be washed at home at all is a decision for your infection-control or safety team, so confirm that first; the routine below works for both home and facility washing.

First: who is allowed to wash the coats?

Before any washing advice, settle where coats are laundered. This is a policy question, not a fabric question.

Setting	Common arrangement	Who decides
Hospital wards and clinics	Hospital laundry or staff home-washing, depending on policy	Infection prevention and control team
Clinical and diagnostic labs	Controlled laundry; home washing often not allowed	Lab manager, biosafety officer
Research labs	Central or contracted laundry; contaminated coats handled separately	Safety office
Pharmacies, opticians, consulting-only roles	Often home-washed	Practice manager, within any group policy
Food QC and hygiene staff	Business-controlled laundry	Food safety team

If your coats may be contaminated with chemicals, biological material or blood, follow the facility's procedure for that coat rather than this general routine. A visibly contaminated coat should be handled according to policy before it reaches a normal wash.

The everyday washing routine

Step by step

1. Take the coat off at work and carry it home in a clean bag if home washing is allowed. Do not wear it on public transport or in shops.
2. Empty every pocket. Pens are the most common cause of ruined loads. Check inside pockets as well.
3. Close the fastenings. Do up press studs or buttons so they do not snag other coats or lose their shape.
4. Treat stains straight away. Rinse fresh marks in cold water and apply a stain remover. Hot water can set protein stains such as blood. For specific stains, see removing stains from white lab coats.
5. Wash coats separately from personal clothing, and do not overload the machine. Coats need room to move for detergent and water to work.
6. Choose the temperature set by your workplace policy, within the limit on the care label. If your policy does not set one, use the hottest temperature the label allows.
7. Use a good-quality detergent at the dose the manufacturer recommends for the load and water hardness.
8. Dry promptly. Do not leave wet coats in the drum.
9. Iron or press while the coat is slightly damp for the crispest finish.
10. Hang on a hanger in a clean place until the next shift.

Temperature: why it matters and who sets it

Higher temperatures generally do more to remove micro-organisms and body soil, but they also put more stress on fabric, embroidery and fastenings. Healthcare uniform policies often specify a particular hot wash for clinical workwear, and some industrial laundries use their own thermal disinfection cycles. Because the right figure depends on your policy and the coat's fabric, check both your infection-control policy and the care label, and use the stricter of the two that the fabric can tolerate. If the two conflict, raise it with your infection-control team; it may mean the fabric choice needs revisiting at the next order.

Detergent, whitening and fabric softener

• Detergent: a standard biological or non-biological detergent works for most coats. Biological detergents are good on protein and body soils, which are common on clinical coats.
• Bleach: frequent chlorine bleach weakens fibres and can yellow some finishes and poly-cotton blends over time. If you need to whiten, use an oxygen-based whitener and follow the instructions. Check the care label first.
• Fabric softener: use sparingly or not at all. Softener can leave a residue that dulls white fabric and may reduce the effectiveness of any special fabric finish.
• Overdosing: too much detergent leaves residue that attracts soil and can make whites look grey.

If your white coats are going yellow or grey despite washing, the causes are covered in why white lab coats turn yellow.

Drying and ironing

Drying

• Tumble drying on a medium setting is fine for most poly-cotton coats and helps reduce creasing if coats are removed promptly.
• High heat can shrink cotton-rich coats and stress embroidery. Check the label.
• Line drying in the UAE sun dries coats quickly, but strong sunlight can fade coloured coats over time. Turn coloured coats inside out, or dry in shade.
• Do not leave coats damp in a bag or drum, which causes odour and mildew.

Ironing

• Iron poly-cotton on a medium setting and cotton-rich on a higher one, following the label.
• Iron embroidery from the reverse side, or with a cloth over it, to avoid flattening or scorching the thread.
• Do not iron directly over press studs.
• Many clinicians find that hot ironing gives a crisper, more professional finish; it is not a substitute for an adequate wash.

Coloured coats, embroidery and special finishes

Coloured coats

Wash coloured coats with similar colours, inside out, to reduce fading. The first few washes may release a little dye, so keep new coloured coats away from white coats.

Embroidery

Embroidered logos and names are durable, but they last longest when coats are washed inside out, not overloaded and ironed from the reverse.

Fluid-resistant or other finishes

If a coat has a special finish, follow the supplier's care instructions closely; some detergents, softeners and temperatures can shorten the life of a finish. See fluid-resistant lab coats for more.

How often to wash

How often coats are washed depends on your policy and the work. Common practice in healthcare is to change into a clean coat at least daily, and immediately when visibly soiled or contaminated. Consulting-only roles may be allowed a longer interval. Whatever the rule, staff need enough coats to follow it: if a coat must be changed daily and it takes two days to wash, dry and press, each person needs more than two.

When to retire a coat

Washing cannot fix everything. Retire a coat when:

• It has holes, tears or frayed cuffs
• Stains remain after proper treatment
• White fabric has turned permanently yellow or grey
• Fastenings are missing and cannot be repaired neatly
• It no longer fits the person it was made for

Keep a few spares so a retired coat can be replaced straight away.

Care checklist

• Confirm where coats may be washed
• Empty pockets and close fastenings
• Treat stains before washing
• Wash separately, without overloading
• Temperature per policy, within the care label
• Correct detergent dose, minimal softener
• Dry promptly, iron while slightly damp
• Hang in a clean place
• Retire damaged or stained coats

Choosing coats that wash well

The easiest way to make washing simpler is to start with coats suited to your laundry routine. Poly-cotton holds its shape, dries faster and creases less; cotton-rich fabric is softer and cooler but needs more ironing. MISHAREN makes lab coats to order in both fabrics, so you can match the fabric to how your team actually washes.

For a quotation, tell us how your coats are laundered through contact, or see the options on our lab coats page.