Whites Aren't White After Washing

I recently requested help with my cloudy coffee which I still have. Now I need to know why all of my whites are a dingy yellow or brown. I use bleach, but that doesn't help. What should I do? I want my white clothing and towels back!

kathleen48 from South Portland

Answers:

Whites Aren't White After Washing

Sounds like your pipes/or area! Contact your city's office for water and they should give you information on what is going on. Try Oxiclean on your whites, I have heard from others that may work, if it isn't your own pipes. I would contact Rainsoft or Culligan about looking in to installing a system, especially with reverse osmosis (that gets rid of any bad microbes/nitrates). (03/09/2006)

By Kelly

Whites Aren't White After Washing

You probably need a water softener, but they are expensive and sometimes that is just out of the question, as with our family. What I use is a product called "20 Mule Team Borax" in with my laundry. It sure seems to help. Also, if there is ever a time when things come out all rusty or dingy looking, I can go to my city water department and they have a product that they will give me that will take the crud out.

I do have to re-wash the items, but unfortunately, this is what comes with living in a city with extremely hard water. If ever there is only a small amount of rust on an item, all I do is use a product called Wink. It takes the rust out right before your eyes. It works great, but don't get it on your skin! Good luck. (03/10/2006)

Whites Aren't White After Washing

I don't know if you know this or not but bleach and laundry detergent don't mix when you put them in the water together. You should let your washer agitate 5 minutes with the soap before you add bleach. Just put the bleach in a container and dilute it with water before you add it to your clothes. I'm sure you will see a big difference in your whites. But adding the bleach and soap together will make your clothes dingy. I also add oxi cleaner to my clothes, and 1 cup vinegar to my rinse. Hope this helps and good luck. (03/10/2006)

By Sheila

Whites Aren't White After Washing

Sounds like you have really hard water with a lot of calcium in it. Use a Brita water pitcher and filter for your coffee, for your wash use washing soda. It really seems to help boost your bleaching power, etc. (03/11/2006)

Whites Aren't White After Washing

I use a product called Mrs. Stewart's Liquid Bluing and my whites come out really white. I get it at the grocery store (Kroger) on the detergent aisle, a little ways down the aisle from the detergents. You wouldn't believe it, a product that turns the water blue, makes your whites really white. (03/11/2006)

By Alice

Whites Aren't White After Washing

We have "iron bacteria" in our district water. The iron bacteria reacts with chlorine bleach and will really stain your clothes, sometimes bright orange! You can buy a product called "Iron Out". I find it at our True Value Hardware store and I used to buy a similar product from my neighbor who sold Amway products. It gets expensive if you have to do this very often.

I learned to not use liquid chlorine bleach. I now use Tide with alternative bleach, Clorox II, Biz (an enzyme cleaner), or an all fabric bleach instead. I really like the "oxi-clean" type additive too. Dollar Tree sells a container of it by Awesome for $1 and it works great. That same size will cost $3 + at WalMart. I wash my whites in the hottest water and usually add half cups of any 3 of the favorites I mentioned earlier. I may let them soak for an hour to 4 hours and then I do an extra rinse at the end. I do this about every 2 or 3 weeks. I guess it works because folks are always asking "how do you keep your whites so bright?"

Another trick I learned along the way is if you have pastels, yellow, pink, blue, or green, you know the pale baby colors, they can start to look dingy so fast. I always wash them with my whites, no chlorine bleach remember and they will come out bright and pretty again. (01/17/2007)

By Marge Mayhew