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Homemade Laundry Pretreatments

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Homemade laundry pretreatments are cheaper and quicker than taking laundry to the cleaners.

Home laundering saves money and fabric wear versus taking laundry out or paying someone to come to your home to wash, iron, hang and fold your clothes. Yet it is not a favorite activity for busy parents, young career-oriented people or college students. With a little understanding of fabrics, detergents, stain removers and laundering techniques, doing your laundry doesn't have to be an unpleasant chore. Many stains and dirty clothes issues are easy to take care of with homemade pretreatments. Does this Spark an idea?

  1. Common Stain-Removing Agents

    • Many substances that are effective for getting clothes clean are common household staples. Common stain-removing agents include granular and liquid detergent, white vinegar, club soda or carbonated water, ammonia, lemons, salt, rubbing alcohol, chlorine, acetone fingernail polish remover, baking soda and cream of tartar. It's best to treat stains as soon as they occur, but applying a stain-removing agent a couple of times with the right substance and method, such as gentle scrubbing or rubbing, removes older stains as well.

      Never mix ammonia and chlorine bleach to try and get out a stain, as it produces a toxic gas.

    Whites and Colors

    • White and colored clothing, as well different materials and fabrics, require different stain removers. White clothing responds well to baking soda or cream of tartar paste applied to stains, as well as chlorine soaks, rinses and washes. White cotton shirts, undergarments and socks remain bright when washed separately from colors and other types of fabrics after pretreatment by soaking in white vinegar or chlorine. Colored clothing requires gentler stain treatments to avoid fading or removing dyes. Colored clothing stains come out with granular or liquid detergent applied directly on the stain and gentle rubbing or immediate rinsing with cold running water.

    Stain Removal Methods

    • Different methods of stain removal include rinsing the stain under cool to lukewarm running water as soon as it occurs, applying either liquid or paste stain remover directly to the stain and gently scrubbing with a toothbrush and soaking the garment in water mixed with a stain remover, such as chlorine. New stains are more easily rinsed or scrubbed out, while older stains require several soaking treatments to completely remove stains.

    Science of Laundry

    • Laundering clothes involves the interaction of water, dirt and stains and the alkalis in detergents and soaps. Soaps and detergents are made with fats and alkalis that act on the acids in stains and clothing. Grease and oil stains require detergent for removal because water and oil do not mix. Detergent breaks up oil and disperses it, because the alkalis in it work on the chemistry in stains and water.

      A small dab of dish soap makes a good emergency stain application on grease and oil stains until the entire garment can be washed, as it breaks up the oils and prevents the stain from setting.

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