Old style laundry - hints and tips

Austin_Allegro

I'm pretty sure the old timers didn't have all the flashy stuff we have for laundry.

However I have two main queries:

How have people found economy soap powders? I have found Sainsbury's (58p a box) to work just as well as more expensive ones. The only difference is it has no smell - that makes me wonder if it's 'cut' with non-soap materials. I've heard you can cut soap powder with soda crystals, but economy soap powder is actually cheaper than soda crystals anyway.

What's an old school method of whitening clothes? I currently use a bit of bleach for whites. Now and then I buy Dylon's clothes whitener, that has an optical brightener that works very well in reviving whites.

I've heard of some stuff called 'blueing' which I think is an old fashioned form of optical brightener,but it doesn't seem to be readily available in the UK.

Awaiting useful hints for vinegar, bicarb, etc...!

Lillibet_2

Don't know if this is the old way of doing things but this is what I have found to work for me :


Pre-soak heavily soiled items in cold water first.
Only use soap powder, not tablets etc as you can't measure these to your own requirements.
Use less soap powder than the box says, it just clogs up the machine. I currently use 2 table spoons for a full load plus a splash of vinegar to kill germs & soften. I am currenty using Tesco value soap powder, mixed with whatever freebies I get (Several crushed up Fairy tablets & 2 asample packs of bold) & find it as good as Tesco colours powder.
Don't use fabric softner. It's a con.
Once every couple of months run your washing machine without any soap powder to flush out all the spare stuff clogging up the pipes.
I only wash in cold water as I firmly belive the vinegar, which is an anti-bacterical agent, kills any germs & bacteria, however I know some people would not consider washing their sheets or towels in cold water.
If something is stained, after pre-soaking apply stain remover straight to the stained area, don't load it into the dispenser as this requires more.
Spin on as fast a speed as possible then air dry, either out doors if possible or indoors over an airer or radiator if not.

HTH

r.mac_2

hiya,

I cleaned my washing machine last weekend by setting it on a 90 degree wash with nothing in it - using vinegar. It is now sparkling inside and teh soap scum (which I inherited from the machine's last owner) has all gone.

I have very sensitive skin, but use Tesco's own washing liquid (not the value range). It is sold in 1.5 litre bottles for about £2.30. I use one small capful per wash. This roughly equates to 2-3 tablespoons per load. Most brands make me itch too much, and I am very allergic to some economy brands. Tesco's is the best I have tried. For some reason liquid is less irritating than powder.

I ahve always used fabric softener. I suffered from home sickness when I moved away from home when I was younger. One thing that helped 'settle' me was using the same fabric conditioner that my mum used! However, seeing what it did to the washing machine 'tray' and reading the posts on this board, I have given up using it by pouring a capful in every wash.

Instead I am using a tablespoon of vinegar - works as well softwise, but doesn't give a smell. So I have diluted some softener with water, put in a spray bottle and spray things like my bedding and towels with a little when I hang them up to dry. This leaves a faint smell and hardly costs anything.

WOuld be interested to hear what others do.

MATH

Tips to remember when using bio powder.
You can cut bio powder with soda cystals or borax. The harder the water the better the effect they produce.
If you start the water off scalding hot it will kill a lot of the enzymes. This is a problem I have with my machine cos it's hot fill with no internal heater. Most front-loaders fill tepid or cold and gradually increase the water temp (called a profile wash) so as not to shock the enzymes in bio powder.
Adding bleach will also kill the enzymes so if you want to use bleach add it for the last few minutes of the wash when the bio action has done its job and not at the begining. (this only applies to old fashioned liquid bleach and not oxygen bleach like astonish or vanish) hth

My laundry is Ol'Style cos I have a top-loader agitator type machine just like ya gran would have used but without the mangle (even I ain't that Ol'Style)hehehe I don't have to worry about over-sudsing so can use pretty much anything to wash clothes.

I usually make up a batch of laundry gloop. I use it alone to wash dark colours on a 6 minute wash and non-stained pastles on a 12 minute wash. Stains are pre-treated with an ordinary bar of soap and a good scrub. For heavy soiled washes I add a cup of borax or bio powder and stop the machine to rest for 1/2 hr to let the bio action work. Whites are washed in gloop and always have a splash of bleach to keep them bright and keep kitchen linen germ and smell free. I have from time to time used 'dolly blue' which is a little sachet you add to the rinse water (you can buy them on american laundry websites- blueing is still popular in the US but died out here about 50yrs ago) I wouldn't recomend using them in a front-loader they are not really designed for them as they do not take enough water into the drum and the blueing effect will be far tooooo strong.

vanoonoo

oooh I remember judi discussing this a while back

she had some great tips regarding the stuff you soak nappies with

I have really dodgy skin (eczema and psoriasis type fing) so I have to be soooooo careful what I use, however I have thru trial and error found that fabric conditioner is a nightmare for my skin so I use white vinegar in the rinse to soften that water. I dont use very much at all - probably not even a tablespoonful.

with regard to soap powders and the like - I do tend to stick to brands that I know,having tired and tested them over the years and have now got it down to a selection of liquid soaps that I am ok with. and I use a really small amount on a not too hot wash - by small I reckon its about a shot glassful - seriously. and I dont think I smell too horrible (most of the time anyway). I am quite strict about separating out whites and darks and colours too so my whites always are quite white and dont pick up any residual colour from other things.

the vinegar also works to cut out the limescale and soapscum in the washing machine so it means you dont have to spend money on things like calgon or similar (afaik)

vanoonoo

r.mac wrote:

hiya,

I cleaned my washing machine last weekend by setting it on a 90 degree wash with nothing in it - using vinegar. It is now sparkling inside and teh soap scum (which I inherited from the machine's last owner) has all gone.

I have very sensitive skin, but use Tesco's own washing liquid (not the value range). It is sold in 1.5 litre bottles for about £2.30. I use one small capful per wash. This roughly equates to 2-3 tablespoons per load. Most brands make me itch too much, and I am very allergic to some economy brands. Tesco's is the best I have tried. For some reason liquid is less irritating than powder.

I ahve always used fabric softener. I suffered from home sickness when I moved away from home when I was younger. One thing that helped 'settle' me was using the same fabric conditioner that my mum used! However, seeing what it did to the washing machine 'tray' and reading the posts on this board, I have given up using it by pouring a capful in every wash.

Instead I am using a tablespoon of vinegar - works as well softwise, but doesn't give a smell. So I have diluted some softener with water, put in a spray bottle and spray things like my bedding and towels with a little when I hang them up to dry. This leaves a faint smell and hardly costs anything.

WOuld be interested to hear what others do.

lol I think we were writing at the same time - I completely agree!

Austin_Allegro

The fabric softener in a spray bottle is a brilliant idea - I will use this! What are the best proportions for use with concentrated softener - or is it just trial and error?

However I always understood that hot water got rid of more dirt, or is this a myth? I have experimented with both hot and cold washes and found not much difference between the two.

My collars and cuffs are always filthy anyway, probably caused by London's air pollution. Vanish pre-wash is the only thing that makes the slightest difference to this.

System

I have found this for you.

suki1964

Austin_Allegro wrote:

I've heard of some stuff called 'blueing' which I think is an old fashioned form of optical brightener,but it doesn't seem to be readily available in the UK.

Awaiting useful hints for vinegar, bicarb, etc...!

I remember my mum buying this. Came in a little net - rather like the blu blocks for the toilets and your hands got covered in the stuff. Didnt make the washing white - rather it gave a slight blue hue to whites making them appear to look whiter. I remember thinking they just looked grey white rather then yellow white

Edited to add, it was only meant to be used on 100% cotton, probably why you dont see it about now

Austin_Allegro

Thanks Judi will definitely give Napisan a go. Who knows I might be able to use it to impress single mums, like Hugh Grant in 'About a Boy'.

Lillibet_2

Austin_Allegro wrote:

However I always understood that hot water got rid of more dirt, or is this a myth? I have experimented with both hot and cold washes and found not much difference between the two.

My husband is a countryside ranger & his work clothes can be absoutly filthy, mud/stagnant water/grease/grass/manure/god knows what else.
I find a cold water pre-soak for an hour or so followed by a cold wash works wonders, however I do rely on the vinegar to kill bacteria & germs. I even find I can get his cricket whites clean in cold water, subject to a very little stain remover on the grass stained areas!