How to Prevent Pilling on Sweatshirts, Sweatpants, and Your Fall Favorites

There’s nothing quite like the first cool day when you can finally pull your favorite sweatshirt out of the closet.

You remember it being soft, cozy, and practically made for fall. Then you put it on and notice something: tiny little fuzz balls have appeared across the sleeves, sides, or wherever the fabric tends to rub.

Yep. Pilling.

It can make a relatively new sweatshirt or pair of sweatpants look worn long before you’re ready to replace it. Fortunately, a few changes to your laundry routine can help.

If you’ve been wondering how to prevent pilling, it starts with understanding why it happens—and how you wash and dry your fall favorites can make a difference.

Why Do Clothes Pill in the First Place?

Those little balls of fuzz aren’t appearing out of nowhere.

Pilling happens when fibers on the surface of a fabric rub together, loosen, and become tangled into small balls. Some of the most common causes include:

• Everyday friction from areas like sleeves, underarms, thighs, and sides rubbing together
• Washing with rougher fabrics like jeans, jackets, or items with zippers
• Overloading the washing machine, which can cause clothes to rub together more
• Agitation during washing, especially with more intensive wash cycles
• Tumbling in the dryer, which creates additional friction
• Certain fabrics and fabric blends that are naturally more prone to pilling

While some friction is unavoidable simply from wearing your clothes, washing and drying habits can contribute to pilling, too.

The goal isn’t necessarily to guarantee that your favorite sweatshirt never develops a single pill. Instead, good laundry habits can reduce unnecessary friction and help your clothes look better longer.

How to Prevent Pilling When Washing Clothes

Before tossing everything into the washer, a few simple steps can help protect your clothes.

Turn Sweatshirts and Sweatpants Inside Out

This is one of the easiest changes you can make.

Turning clothes inside out helps protect the visible outer surface from some of the rubbing that happens during a wash cycle. It can be especially helpful for sweatshirts, sweatpants, hoodies, and other cozy fall staples.

Separate Rough and Delicate Fabrics

Your soft sweatshirt probably doesn’t need to spend the entire wash cycle rubbing against jeans, jackets, and other heavier fabrics.

When possible, wash similar fabrics together. Keeping softer items away from rougher materials can reduce friction during the wash.

And don’t forget to close zippers and fasteners that could rub against other clothing.

Choose the Right Wash Cycle

More agitation isn’t always better.

Check the garment’s care label first. When appropriate, a gentler wash cycle can reduce some of the friction that contributes to pilling.

Following the manufacturer’s instructions for water temperature is also important. That little tag inside your sweatshirt may not be exciting reading, but it can tell you a lot about how the garment should be washed.

Don’t Overload the Washing Machine

Trying to squeeze one more sweatshirt into an already packed washer may save you a load, but it isn’t necessarily doing your clothes any favors.

Clothes need room to move during the wash cycle. An overloaded machine can prevent items from washing and rinsing properly while creating additional rubbing between fabrics.

This is one area where using a laundromat can be especially convenient.

At Loads of Clothes Laundry, our commercial-grade equipment includes larger-capacity machines that make it easier to choose a washer that fits your load instead of cramming everything into a machine that’s too small.

How to Dry Sweatshirts Without Encouraging More Pilling

Washing is only half of the equation.

Dryers also create friction as clothing tumbles, and excessive drying can be tough on some fabrics.

Again, start with the care label. If your sweatshirt or sweatpants can be machine dried, use the recommended settings and avoid leaving clothes tumbling much longer than necessary.

For items that call for air drying or lower heat, follow those instructions. Your favorite hoodie might take a little longer to dry, but protecting the fabric can be worth the wait.

Can You Fix Clothes That Have Already Pilled?

What if the pills are already there?

Don’t toss your favorite sweatshirt just yet.

A fabric shaver or sweater comb can help carefully remove pills from the surface of some garments. Work gently and follow the product instructions so you don’t damage the underlying fabric.

Once you’ve removed the existing pills, adjusting how you wash and dry the garment may help slow down how quickly they return.

Make Fall Laundry Easier at Loads of Clothes Laundry

Sweatshirts, hoodies, blankets, and other fall favorites can add up fast. Loads of Clothes Laundry gives you more room to tackle it all with commercial-grade equipment at two convenient locations:

• Donelson: Speed Queen washers and dryers with high-capacity options for bigger loads
• Hermitage: Electrolux washers and dryers with high-efficiency washing and fast drying
• Both locations: Wash, Dry & Fold service when you’d rather leave the laundry to us

With convenient locations near shopping, dining, and everyday errands, you can get laundry done while you’re already out and about.

Your favorite sweatshirt may not stay brand-new forever, but knowing how to prevent pilling can help it look better longer.

Visit Loads of Clothes Laundry in Donelson or Hermitage and make your next laundry day easier.

Frequently Asked Questions About Clothes Pilling

Does washing clothes inside out prevent pilling?

It can help reduce friction on the visible surface of a garment during washing. It won’t guarantee that pilling never occurs, but turning susceptible clothes inside out is a simple protective step.

Does the dryer cause clothes to pill?

The tumbling action of a dryer creates friction, which can contribute to pilling. Follow the garment’s care instructions and avoid unnecessarily long drying times.

Why do my sweatpants pill between the thighs?

That area experiences frequent fabric-on-fabric friction simply from walking and everyday movement. Washing can add additional friction, making the area particularly prone to pilling.