Net Curtains - Do They Perish Eventually?

[joko]

at the back of my house there is a little unused indoor toilet - today i washed the net curtain from there - it was very grubby and old.

it looked fine otherwise and i thought itd come up quite nice - so i put it in with a load of towels.

it shredded to pieces - some even seemed to 'weave' threads into the towels - its was like plant roots all over the towels.

so, did this happen because its just an old net that had basically 'decayed' over time - gone brittle etc?
or because i put it in with too many towels?
i think i may have put it on a 60 heat setting too... did that 'melt' it?

i have other nets to wash from elsewhere in the house, and now im wondering if its safe to put them in the machine...
i know some people do and they are fine - but i dont want them to all end up ruined and have to replace them all, because they are too old.

whats the best way?

thanks

[diddlydo]

It has rotted! If you want to save the others I suggest a gentle handwash. Or just bin them.

[jourdain2]

As above - I once washed (on a very gentle wash) and ancient door curtain and the same thing happened. Eventually, fabric rots.

[sherrardk]

I recently washed some nets/voile panel things (which were long overdue - I have a history of shrinking them). I followed advice off the net - soak in warm water with bicarbonate of soda and wash at 30 with some white towels, hang back up while still wet and it worked a treat.

[jackthehat]

I had to buy Mrs JtH some new nets for her flat shortly after we met.
I thought I'd do her a favour and 'freshen them up' although they weren't really in need of a wash.

Totally disintegrated them....they were about 8 years old.

[ubasses]

I soak mine in the bath with a whitener, they are floor to ceiling, wall to wall, then put them in washing machine at 30 degrees and gentle spin. They are 25 years old. No problems yet.

[joko]

thanks all i think it soak them

[queen 1954]

i wash mine often with a smoker in the house and always soak them in the sink for an hour.then rinse and use fabric conditioner.usually drip dry them and have no problem but they do rot eventually.

[atalanta]

I once washed some not-two-years old nylon nets, and they dissolved.