Cleaning > ClothingMarch 12, 2009

Red Shirt Leaving Pink Stains on Everything

I bought a red shirt about a year ago. Despite how much I wash it, every time I wear it it leaves pink residue on pretty much everything I come into contact with for a prolonged amount of time. Including the rim of my pants and on my skin. How can I wash out all of the extra dye?

Brandi from Canada

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By
03/13/2009

I agree with Glenn's Mom. If you've had it for a YEAR and it's still bleeding, toss it! It can't possibly be that valuable or it would have been made better.

By
03/13/2009

I have to agree with susanmajp. My husband had a red shirt that faded on his undershirts and I tried all the stuff to set the color. I washed it alone (by hand) and tried to see that he wore the same already red undershirt but that got to be a hassle. He didn't take too kindly to being asked to please change his undershirt if he was going to wear the red shirt. If you knew my husband you'd know he NEVER throws anything away (we still have the long johns he was issued when stationed in Korea...in 1949!) so I didn't even try to toss it. It occupies a low-rent place in his closet...right beside the long johns. I'm not going to wash that shirt ever again!

By
03/13/2009

I'm going to contradict everyone else this time. Their ideas work on most garments, but I've had a few that nothing has worked on. Eg: I once had a red flannel nightgown that colored anything it came into contact with. The problem was not washing it separately; that only helped the other clothes stay their original color. Adding salt to the wash did not set its color either, nor did vinegar, or anything else that I tried. The inside of my robe turned pink; my sheets turned pink, a chair I sat on turned pink (and was ruined), it even started rubbing off on my wooden kitchen chair. To make matters worse, it turned my skin pink too. It stained the inside of the container I washed it in. While nice, it could not be salvaged. Tossing it was far cheaper than replacing everything. Usually the other tricks work, this was not one of those times. SORRY!

By
03/13/2009

After soaking the shirt in cold, heavily salted water, hang it on a hanger in the shower and rinse well with cold water. You'll be able to see if dye comes out or not. It may be the only way you'll ever be able to wash it...by hand & alone. By putting it on the hanger and rinsing, it can be left to partially air dry, then toss in the dryer to finish & fluff.

By
03/13/2009

There is a product called "Shout Color Catcher" it collects the extra dye in the wash.

By
03/12/2009

Hi - I'm pretty sure you could use salt in the water to try to set the colour - I would think though it would depend on the type of fabric your garment was made from

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