All of my white cotton clothes have started turning an aqua shade of blue after being washed in my washing machine. I also have this same color in my tub and shower. A neighbor told me it's the copper water pipes that cause the discoloration. CLR gets the tub and shower clean, but nothing I've tried (bleach, Oxi-Clean, Borax) gets the stains out of my clothing!
By Marcy from Aberdeen, NC
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Just a thought, if CLR gets the stains out of the tub, why don't you try vinegar in the wash? They are both acids; it may do the trick, and you can use it all the time.
I too have had dark blue stains appearing on my red and orange coloured tops after washing. My lovely orange top first developed the blue stains whilst I was touring West Australia & washed it in the resort washing machine in our unit. which was brand new. I dried them by spreading on towel then hanging on hanger but top ruined with blue stains. Then since coming home to our rural acerage which is fully supplied by rain water, my good red jumper and another two red polyester- jersey tops both ruined although carefullly washed by hand. Ive tried several liquid & powder laundry detergent & both warm and cold water washing. Still same problem. I had the house replumbed but no different.
I have posted before and still have blue water, but no longer get spots in my laundry. I changed the anode rod in the hot water heater and the blue dots went away. I still have blue water, but the anode rod must be taking the 'edge' off the copper level. The City of Raleigh tested my water at multiple points inside and out and the report said the copper levels were normal. I had an electrician test the grounding on the house and that was fine (bad grounding can cause electrolysis of copper pipes and create the blue water).
Now I know in a few years to change the anode rod again or the blue spots will be back. The anode rod costs about $50 for my hot water heater. Also, try not to add Oxi-Clean and other items that create oxidation in the water. That makes the blue dots worse because blue release from the pipes comes from oxidation, so adding these items to the laundry exacerbates the water condition.
I am going to go with the fact that it is laundry soap. In the past I have had problems with this. For months I've been using Purex free & clear detergent, and the other day I had my husband pick up some laundry soap and he brought home just some regular Purex that is blue. Well, of course loads later when I go to pick out clothes I notice these horrible stains.
The stains are from the blue Downy fabric softener.It has to be the dispenser in the machine All i want to do is get the blue stains out of my clothes.
I would try vinegar and then if not work would try soaking the fabric in hydrogen peroxide then wash with regular dish soap. I was very successful in getting an ages old blood stain out of a sheet by doing this.
The linking factors for blue clothing seem to be:
1) Tide liquid detergent (or P&G liquid detergent products)
2) Soft water
For what it's worth, I've noticed more immediate blue staining on brand new synthetic white fabrics than older cotton whites.
How did you resolve with this issue? Do you have to change the detergent?
I have well water. I never use any detergents with color, they are all dye free. I don't use shout or softener.
In a load of white towels (kitchen and bath towels) the bath towels and a white t shirt grabbed the color, but the kitchen towels remained white.
Any kind of detergent, chlorine bleach, ammonia, borax, or oxygen cleaner binds the copper blue in the water to fabric in the laundry. If you fill the tub with water and detergent and agitate to mix before adding the laundry, things will get a uniform bluish cast, rather than dark areas where the water runs onto concentrated detergent on the laundry. The loger you wash a load, the more copper is laid into the fabric. Even the products (white vinegar, Calgon) suggested by a university extention site did not work. THe ONLY thing that did work was an old bottle of The Works (not the one put out by Clorox) but by HomeCare Labs.
Get some Rid color remover and use it to get the color out. I've used it several times on all colored clothes that had stains like that. Another thing I found when I wash my clothes on gently cycle is to add another rinse cycle. Sometimes liquid detergent will not completely come out with just one rinse.
I have had success with baking soda. Buy the big box in the baking aisle and use in the bathtub and in the wash.
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