How to Bleach Whites With Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide can also be used in the laundry room.

If you are looking for an alternative for chlorine bleach, look no further than your medicine cabinet. That little brown bottle of hydrogen peroxide is not just used to help heal cuts, it also can help keep your whites white as well. Bleaching your whites with hydrogen peroxide instead of traditional bleaches does not require any extra work. Wash your clothes as normal -- adopt some good laundry habits if necessary -- and you should be able to keep your whites white.

Things You'll Need

• 3 percent solution of hydrogen peroxide
• Measuring cup
• Laundry detergent

Instructions

1. Fill the washing machine with hot water. Read the care tags for exact water temperature recommendations for your particular items. Hot water keeps whites whiter than washing them in warm or cold water.

2. Add an appropriate amount of laundry detergent for the size load you are washing and submerge your clothes in the water. Add more water, if necessary. Using less detergent than recommended on the label will result in grayer, dingier whites over time.

3. Pour 1 cup of hydrogen peroxide in the bleach dispenser of your washing machine. If your machine does not have a dispenser, add the hydrogen peroxide along with the laundry detergent after the machine fills up with water.

4. Close the washer lid and wash and dry the white laundry as normal.

References

• Greenfield Community College; Launder with Hydrogen Peroxide Instead of Bleach; March 2009
• Ohio State University; Quick 'n Easy Stain Removal; Janis Stone
• Fort Valley State University; Gray Dingies in Your Laundry; Mark Latimore Jr.
• New Mexico State University; Getting Clothes Clean; Susan Wright; April 2006