I resisted line-drying my towels because they always came out so stiff! Here are some easy ways to green your laundry.

In a standard top-loading washing machine, mix 1/2 cup of baking soda and 1 cup of vinegar per load of laundry. The baking soda and vinegar combined help give the clothes a softer feel and reduce static buildup.

In my High Efficiency (HE) washer, I simply put vinegar in the "fabric softener" tray. This way after my biodegradable detergent has gone to work, the machine adds the vinegar to the rinse cycle. Detergent remaining in clothes and towels after they are washed gives them that stiff feeling when line-dried, and vinegar removes this buildup very effectively. If you use and launder your own cloth diapers, a vinegar rinse also has the added benefit of making them more absorbent! As you can imagine, a coating of detergent eventually erodes diapers absorbent properties.

Do not mix the vinegar with bleach, as this creates a toxic reaction. To promote a more healthy environment in my septic system, I do not use bleach in the laundry.

I use the Safeway store brand of oxygenating bleach called Oxygen Pro, which brightens my whites, has no harsh chemicals, is just as effective and is substantially less expensive than the name brand Oxy Clean sold on TV.