USING bleach can be great for the house – but whilst it does get our homes sparkling, this cleaning product is not so kind to our clothes.
Luckily, if you’ve managed to get some bleach on your favourite top or leggings, there are a few easy hacks to banish the stains – and it’s all thanks to household essentials that are most likely already sitting in your kitchen.
When it comes to removing bleach, you should also know that it’s not really a stain – rather, a patch of pigment that’s been removed from the material, leaving a lighter colour.
Although the harsh truth is that some bleached-stained clothes may be well-beyond repair, especially when it comes to patterned fabrics, you have some options if it’s a solid-colour clothing, such as a black vest.
Before testing out any of these cleaning hacks, it’s vital you neutralise the bleach with baking soda – this step, the experts at Love to Know explained, with ensure the bleach doesn’t spread and remove even more of the colour.
For this, simple mix equal parts of baking soda and water to create a paste and apply the mixture on the stain.
Once the paste has dries, rinse and launder.
When bleach touches your white garments, it can oftentimes leave a yellow residue on the material – which can be saved with a bit of white vinegar.
To remove the yellow colour, rinse the piece of clothing for several minutes with cold water to ensure the bleach has come out completely.
Next, put the vinegar right onto the stains and allow it work its magic for five or so minutes, before rinsing the area with cold water again.
Check the residue has gone – and if needed, repeat the process all over again, before washing and drying as usual.
Warning: Never mix bleach with white vinegar – it will create a poisonous gas. This is why it’s so important to rinse the garment properly.
If you’re not entirely convinced by the vinegar hack, you can also try a dish soap trick that costs just pennies – and is just as effective.
Here, add three to four squirts of your favourite washing-up liquid to a cup of water and mix the two.
Once the cleaning solution is ready, dip the cloth in the mixture and work it in starting from outside in.
Rinse – and again, if necessary, repeat the process until all the residue’s gone.
If it’s a small stain on dark clothes, such as your gym leggings, you can use rubbing alcohol to make the damage less noticeable.
The pros advised to dip a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol and rub it around the bleach stain, pulling the colour from the surrounding areas into the white area.
Continue with this step until the dye has completely been transferred to the bleached stain, and allow the piece of clothing to air dry instead of chucking it inside the tumble dryer.
If none of these have worked, you can also dry fabric markers to hide smaller bleach stains – however, it may prove a little tricky to find the perfect match, so it’s worth taking the stained clothing to the local craft or fabric store.
If you’ve managed to find a marker that matches perfectly with the piece of clothing, use it to colour in the bleached stain and follow the laundry directions on the packaging.
Here are some tips to help you clean your home like a pro:
