Separating laundry and washing the whites is a staple chore within every household. As a basic task it is easy to overlook and underestimate both the importance and difficulty involved. While it is easy to assume that keeping your whites clean is an easy task, when one considers how many different types of whites a single household can contain the chore can become significantly more difficult. Items ranging from towels, socks, sheets, pants, shirts, dresses can all fall within the single category of whites. Often, though each of these items will fall within the same color family they can vary in what shade of white they are and what fabric they are made out of.

There are many different methods available for keeping whites clean, or returning dingy whites to their former glory. The most common method for cleaning whites usually involves bleach. This method can be highly effective under the right set of circumstances particularly for items such as socks and towels. It is not, however, a good solution for an item such as a white silk shirt. It is always important to consider the care instructions for the item you are cleaning before choosing the best method to clean or brighten your whites.

Methods for cleaning your whites

1. Bleach

• Adjust temperature setting on washer to “hot”.
• Adjust the washer’s setting to “whites”.
• Allow the washer to fill until it is a least half-way full with water.
• Stop washer and add bleach (measure out to the recommended amount for the size of your washer/load of laundry).
• Add laundry (making sure all items are white and check laundry tags to make sure they can be washed with bleach).
• Allow laundry to soak for approximately 20-30 minutes.
• Run the remainder of the wash cycle as normal.

2. Lemon juice (note: this method is best used to brighten whites)

• Run laundry as normal.
• During rinse cycle, stop washer and add approximately 1 cup of lemon juice.
• Run the remainder of the rinse cycle as normal.

3. Baking soda and vinegar

• Place whites in washer and add the normal amount of detergent.
• Add a half cup of baking soda and run the wash as normal.
• During the rinse cycle, stop washer and add .5 cup white vinegar.
• Run the remainder of the rinse cycle as normal.

4. Professional dry-cleaning

• Some clothes are best handled by the professionals. Getting a nice, bright white on soiled, delicate, or more difficult fabrics can be difficult if not impossible at home. At best the end result might be a less than desirable color, at worst the treatment can damage the item. With Cameo Cleaners this will not be a problem. Bring soiled, delicate or difficult whites to us to ensure the brightest whites possible!

Please contact us for more information.