Do any in washing machine stain removers work? Plus general laundry advice please?

carolinosourus

Lol tell me about it, my boyfriend seems to think the floor is the washing basket... I'm 23 but have had to do my own washing for some time!

At the moment I use the drawer of the machine for liquid and softener, it just seems slightly easier to me. Also, I use about half that's recommended on the bottle/box as you're less likely to get powder residue, it's cheaper and less harmful to the environment (I really should start using ecover stuff), but it still seems to clean just as well. And make sure your machine is rinsing properly, if you're using too much powder it can sometimes clog/gunk up the machine!

You can get separate powder/liquid for colours and whites, to be honest I've got a bottle of biological washing liquid as that dissolves fats and grease stains, and a bottle of non-biological that I use on occasion, though not very often. If you have sensitive skin then it might be worth washing something heavily stained with biological, then washing it again in non-biological. One of my friends has to do this so she does her best to save everything with stains up and do it in one load instead of doing that for every item of clothing!

Another tip, if you're washing towels, don't use fabric softener as it makes them flat, if you put a bit of vinegar in the drawer they come out nice and fluffy!

Bluing is basically a blue dye that makes white clothes which have gone a bit dull look bright white, apparently the blue counters the faint yellow/grey that white takes on after a few washes. I've never used it though, and have no idea where you could get it from, I don't know if anyone else around can help on that one?

Fire_Fox

Ecover is not that 'green' any more - the brand got sold off to an evil conglomerate. Bio-D is apparently the most all round ethical, and can be bought in bulk online. The cheapest is Footprint which intermittently appears in Home Bargains for 50p! You are only supposed to use one little spoonful so it lasts ages. I don't find any of the biodegradable products get your white's white hence the Smartprice bleach.

bonsibabe

Hiya!

Soda crystals are basically washing soda. You can buy it in any supermarket. I tend to get it from tesco. Its quite cheap. heres an example from tescos website http://www.tesco.com/superstore/xpi/0/xpi51592810.htm

Another thing i used to do was once a month, wash the whites with glo-white. I know this is supposed to be for net curtains, but it works to make the whites lovely.

erichamster

carolinosourus wrote: »

Lol tell me about it, my boyfriend seems to think the floor is the washing basket... I'm 23 but have had to do my own washing for some time!

I know, the most annoying thing with mine is that its the floor just next to the basket :mad: he can aim an air rifle just fine but can't actually put things in the basket!

I suppose when I actually think about it I've been doing our washing for a couple of years but that started before we had a washing machine and I was hand washing everything, that was not fun, but it was at least before the chef whites came home and I still wasn't that good at it lol. So I guess now I just want to get actually good at washing, I've just been avoiding buying white things because I can't keep them white!

Thanks so much for all your and everyone elses advice, my shopping list just got longer! x Does anybody buy their washing stuff in lidl? As thats where I'm trying to get most of our shopping so it would be great if I could get some of the stuff there but if not then we have a big morrisons and a small sainsburys I can go to.
Thanks again, everyone's so helpful on this board x

Rikki

I use NAPISAN it's what you use to soak nappies in but works the same as vanish but its a lot cheaper.

You can get it a most Supermarkets and Boots etc.

EDIT: You can use it to soak stubborn stains and add it to the washing machine wash.

weary

does anyone have an idea how to get mould out its a yellow and white check dress so im ruling out bleach?

Sue-UU

Hi weary. If you've already washed it and the mould remains, moisten with some lemon juice, then spread with salt and leave in the sun to dry, before rinsing thoroughly.

You can use bleach, but go steady. Try 2 tablespoons mixed with a quart of warm water and then sponge onto the stain or even soak the stained area in the solution. Leave it for 10-15 minutes before washing.

Good luck.

Sue

lil_me

Soda crystals or Napisan as suggested is great for whites. Never wash them with other stuff. Make sure your machine is clean. Sunshine whenever possible. Lidl stuff works well for the normal powder but you won't get soda crystals/napisan. Actually cheaper than Napisan usually is Boots own make Nappy Soak. Hottest temperature they can be washed at, then moan to the boss he wants funky coloured ones!

My gran used to swear by denture tablet soak for bad stains on whites, she cleaned her nets with them too.

Depends what the stain is as to what is best, if he can give you an idea then you can google say 'tomato stain' for ideas.

Mould either bleach or eucalyptus oil if you want something more natural.

Lugh_Chronain

As lil_me says it depends what the stains are. I tend to use a combination of Vanish and/or Ariel Biological automatic powder for stained garments and supermarkets own non-bio washing powder for regular washes - depending which supermarket has a good offer on. Also, do a wash at the max it says on the washing instructions inside the uniform. I think this has already been pointed out though.

Have a look here for tips on stain removal.

As already pointed out you can claim tax back for washing your uniform at home. Though you might not be able to claim if the company your OH works for has washing facilities etc although I'm not 100% sure about that.

weary

Sue-UU wrote: »

Hi weary. If you've already washed it and the mould remains, moisten with some lemon juice, then spread with salt and leave in the sun to dry, before rinsing thoroughly.

You can use bleach, but go steady. Try 2 tablespoons mixed with a quart of warm water and then sponge onto the stain or even soak the stained area in the solution. Leave it for 10-15 minutes before washing.

Good luck.

Sue

thanks sue
i'll give it a whirl