Mastering Laundry

flowerpower *

What is your solution for: hypoallergenic, non-toxic, perhaps home made, cold water washing, sanitizing, color reviving, stain removing, eco friendly laundry products and methods?

I have switched from hot to cold water washing - which detergents work?

How can we santize our clothes without relying on a hot wash or hot dryer, say if we wash in cold, then air dry?

How do we keep our whites nice and white? Do you think bleach can be an acceptable choice?

What are your tips for stain removers that are not toxic? Grass. Mud. Chocolate. Coffee. Tea. Lipstick. Blood. Mustard. Rust.

annbeck62

I make my own laundry soap and wash everything in cold water

1 4.5 oz bar castile soap

1 C borax

1 C washing soda (or baking soda)

grate the soap in a food processor with the shredding blade. Put in S blade. Return soap with remaining ingredients and process to blend. Optional can add essential oil of choice.

I recently read but haven't yet tried that to remove stains sprinkle with borax then spray with a 50/50 vinegar water mixture and scrub in with a toothbrush.

LaurieLovesLearning

I used to make my own dry laundry soap, but found that with our hard water, it did not clean as well as I would have liked, especially in cold water.

The sun is a great sanitizer...but it needs to be out. The other thing is that I have wondered about the surfaces that are actually not directly exposed to the sun. Yes, things dry, but if you are looking for sanitizing, it won't be complete, considering.

The other thing with line drying is that you can get insects on it, dust, and bird poop. Again, if you are looking to sanitize, this won't be a foolproof option.

I never use bleach for anything. First, it's highly toxic. Secondly, it weakens the clothing fibers.

I also am not too concerned about whites. They are not a huge part of our clothing choices.

I have never had any stain removers work, even those that others swear by. Hydrogen peroxide can help lift blood if you use it correctly. That's about as great as our stain removing has worked. Our water is very hard, and I know that that plays into it. Stains are just a fact of life around here. If it becomes too bad or super noticeable, it becomes a "home clothes" item.

We have been using these strips below for about 6 months. They seem to work well. I believe that it is a Canadian company.

https://www.tru.earth

I watched a review that said chocolate, ketchup & barbeque sauce came out of a dishtowel but not mustard. But...you need to know the composition of the cloth. Some cloth holds stains more than others. Also, there is soft water and varying degrees & composition of hard water. Also, mustard might be artificially colored or have turmeric added. I can't imagine much gets turmeric out.

@jolanta.wittib has posted many good discussions & comments on natural herbal alternatives.

MaryRowe

Making all my own cleaning supplies is a goal, but I'm not there yet, particularly with laundry. I have experimented with making laundry soap from ivy leaves and from soapwort, fine for lightly-soiled laundry but not up to serious challenges. The only real success I've had in the laundry department so far is felting my own wool dryer balls from the leftover wool not good enough to spin into yarn--and those are only useful when the weather is bad and I use the dryer instead of the clotheslines. (The felting part is easy: just pack the toe of a old sock with the wool as tightly as possible, ties it off and run it through the washer with the regular wash, then through the dryer. You end up with a nicely felted dryer ball that will soak up the essential oil of your choice.)

While I continue to experiment with home-made laundry soaps, I have found Thrive Market a good source for laundry supplies as my transitional phase to greener, healthier laundry routines. They offer several eco-friendly laundry soaps free of dangerous and harsh chemicals, made by small US companies (along with a wide range of foods and household goods --all organic, healthy, made by small US companies. Mail order, excellent service. They are environmentally and community-conscious, and have several community programs going. This is their laundry page:

https://thrivemarket.com/c/laundry

.

Torey

Hard water certainly does make it more challenging. If I use a powdered detergent, I have to dissolve it in hot water before adding it to the machine. I don't buy anything white if I can avoid it. Even light colours will look dingy after awhile.

I have seen soap nuts sold at markets but don't know anyone who has used them, other than the vendors that were trying to sell them. I see varying reports on line as to how well they work.

I like borax for removing odours from clothing. Vinegar will help to santize. Hanging clothes out in the sunlight will help to remove odours, sanitize and bleach (so be cautious with dark colours in the sun).

I hang my duvets outside in the winter when it is very cold (-20C or colder), either with a fine snow and strong wind or bright sunlight and a strong wind. They will get 24 hours of that treatment. Same in the summer time. A hot sunny day with a strong wind.

kbmbillups1

I have been buying Molly's Suds for a couple years. It works really well on our clothes. One funny thing is that our washing machine is cleaner as well as our clothes & they don't get blue marks on them anymore. Before I started using Molly's Suds I was using regular laundry detergent packets and had started using dye free ones or sensitive skin whatever it was called in order to not have blue marks on our clothes.

frogvalley

I don't do the laundry in our house, my husband does, and he tells me that he uses white vinegar. I've done it once or twice and I love it. It goes in the cup for fabric softener. I LOVE it! It makes things soft. I'm not sure about the other particulars as I'm not one to dwell much on the other attributes of laundry.

LaurieLovesLearning

Just a comment that I want to add is that just as in dishwashers, you need to be careful using vinegar in your washer as it can harm rubber seals.

I must be tired. I had to add "rubber" to the sentence, but it didn't make what I saw written any better. 🤔 I have never heard of vinegar harming seals and I cannot imagine coming across rubber ones bouncing around in the arctic.

I guess that we need to ban vinegar to protect both the regular and rubber seals from extinction.

I think I need to go to bed.

jowitt.europe

@flowerpower * I wash with soapwort, with horse chestnut and with ivy (hedera) leaves.

I have written a “discussion” on each of these how I use them. I am really satisfied with all three. I have not tried out to wash in cold water, but I think it might work same as in warm. I use not more that 40C.

I have tried soapwort decoction as shampoo and shower gel and it works very well. And I clean leather furniture with it. To my mind it is very ecological and I am satisfied.

Tave

I use a recipe similar to @annbeck62 and add a cup of lacto to the machine with the soap. I don't wear white, and if something needs to be sanitized, I soak it in a mild vinegar solution, then add it to the wash.

annbeck62

@Tave what is lacto that you add?

Tave

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYyOBSMDA6o

@annbeck62 It's made with rice. It's a great probiotic and disinfectant.

annbeck62

@Tave thanks for sharing the video. Very interesting and seems fairly simple to make. I'm definitely going to try making some.

annbeck62

@Tave thanks for the link on the lacto. I went on the website and saw all the different uses. So in addition to laundry I'm using it to water my garden. It may be my imagination but I swear my plants seem happier.

Tave

@annbeck62 I'll have to try watering my plants with it. I do throw some on my compost pile once in a while. And I use it as a disinfectant for vegetables.

Voodoo Flóra

@flowerpower * where I'm currently at is using:

https://mygreenfills.com/

Filling the laundry bottle per directions and I'm going to experiment with orange essential oil drops...I've found a few good essential oil shops:

https://www.floracopeia.com/shop/body-skin?gclid=Cj0KCQjwmIuDBhDXARIsAFITC_5LQYbVYN9dhDb4YkYp8M9bc4smxq-OUvZGHFIQF1W77hN7MuORc0IaAu5oEALw_wcB

and:

https://www.essentialoil.com/

Finally, I absolutely love Dr. Z and his wife Mama Z they really turned me onto using essential oils regularly and it's been an awesome experience so far I just olfactorally discovered frankincense yesterday!!!

https://naturallivingfamily.com/

ltwickey

I have made my own stain remover for over 20 years now and it takes out everything without bleaching anything!!

1/3 part lemon dish soap

1/3 part ammonia

1/3 part water

mix all 3 in a spray bottle and use as needed

Sharie

I use a 4 ingredient organic product. Less than a teaspoon per wash and it comes in a bag, not a box or plastic jug so one bag will last a few years. It's called Happi and comes from Australia. I'm not super happy with it but at least it's not toxic for the grey water and septic. I normally add vinegar and a few drops of doTerra Purify oil to take out any odors. I don't have a hot water option. It's like our "cold" water, almost lukewarm. My water quality is terrible and brownish looking so nothing really works well. When our house is built there will be a proper filtering system. Even using a good magnet can help wash clothes better. I have a laundry ball for that purpose.

shllnzl

I just got a new type of non-toxic laundry detergent as part of an environmental subscription discovery box. It seems to work well and I certainly cannot complain about the convenient form.

https://www.tru.earth/Store/Tru-Earth-Eco-strips-Fragrance-free-Platinum-32-Loads

flowerpower *

I guess another part of the good laundry: freshening and de-staining is the outdoor clothes line. Personally I love the traditional old clothes lines, but that is not often tolerated in bylaws. Not that I enjoy seeing people's underwear hanging in the breeze which is what many people seem to like to air in public. ;)

I have a folding clothes drying racks which I can use for a few items in varying locations, even in the winter. However I would like to get one of the umbrella drying lines, maybe setting it in a concrete base for stability. Does anyone have a DIY pattern for making an folding umbrella clothes line?

flowerpower *

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/893660#Comment_893660

@ltwickey I do not usually have ammonia on hand. I am wondering about how to use the stain remover. Would you glove up and use it in a well ventilated room? Would you rub it in? How long would you leave it on before rinsing it off?

I have heard that ammonia and bleach cannot be used together or toxic chlorine gas will be produced, so just throwing the item into the wash after using the stain remover does not seem like a good habit. Maybe Ammonia fumes are caustic to breath or smelly?

ltwickey

@flowerpower * the ammonia is in such small amount and diluted it does not have any caustic fumes. I do not use store bought bleach, I make my own from vinegar, water, and lemon juice. So no risk of chlorine gas. I have used the spray on whites and then laundered in the washing machine with regular store bought bleach and had no problems at all. Again, I use it in such small amounts there is no risk or smell at all.

To use: I shake the bottle and spray the area enough to wet the area and then scrub for 30-60 seconds. If carpet, I let dry, no need to rinse. If clothes, I launder as usual.

flowerpower *

Sapindus mukorossi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapindus_mukorossi