White clothes cannot be missing in any wardrobe. A basic white shirt, as well as white t-shirts and sneakers are part of the capsule wardrobe perfect, the one that will always accompany us and that ensures that we are always fashionable.
But white clothing brings with it a drawback and that is that it can have a tendency to lose its tone and go from white to yellow or gray, thus shortening its useful life as a garment. Nothing that can’t be fixed if we know how to whiten white clothes to make them look like new and that it continues to be part of our ideal wardrobe.
Why white clothes lose color and how to avoid it
Before we dive into explaining how to whiten your white clothes, you need to understand why white clothes can yellow or lose that shade of white that you like so much, because if we know why it happens we can prevent it from happening to us with some of the garments.
Washing white clothes incorrectly can affect their color
Loss of pristine white clothing can be caused by laundry white with colored clothes (even if they are light colours), that is why you must always separate white clothes from colored clothes, and within colored clothes, black clothes from the rest. The same would happen with the fabrics. Not all white garments are washed the same or at the same temperature, so check the label on how they are washed (these are label symbols explained in case you have any doubts).
Using products not suitable for white garments can cause them to yellow or not cleaning possible stains correctly, causes the fabric to deteriorate and stains appear that can become irreversible. The ideal is to use a detergent for white garments, or even a natural and chemical-free soap to keep the white intact for longer.
It is important too wash clothes in cold water as far as possible. If it is not very dirty, we do not need to do it at high temperatures and we must always think that hot water damages the fabrics more, which inevitably shortens the useful life of the clothes. One last tip: Overfilling the washing machine is also not a good idea because the clothes will not wash properly.
Maintain the color by using a natural bleach in every wash of white
Another trick to prevent the white from losing its tone is to add in full load washes (with the washing machine full) half lemon cut in a tied sock or in a closed cloth bag in the washing machine drum, or pour the juice of half a lemon into the detergent drawer.
You can also use half a cup of baking soda or half a cup of cleaning vinegar in the prewash drawer, to get whiter whites when you do the laundry. Once washed, it is best dry clothes in the sun, except acrylic garments.
Using chemicals on white clothing can damage it
The use of chemicals such as spray deodorants, which can leave stains in the armpits, or the colonies that we can put on clothes, can produce chemical reactions on the fibers of the fabric that change its natural tone. Avoid chemical deodorants as much as possible and switch to natural deodorantsand avoid putting cologne or perfume on your clothes, only on your skin, following this trick to make the smell last longer.
Leaving white clothes in the sun for too long can turn white clothes yellow.
To achieve the white we see in fabrics, optical brighteners are used during manufacturing that can be affected if the garment is left in the sun for too long. UV rays manage to break down the chemical bonds present in the white garment and transform the white into a yellowish color. Avoid leaving clothes in the sun for too long It will avoid that loss of color.
Storing white clothes incorrectly can cause them to lose their color
Save the clothes from one year to the next when we change the wardrobe it can also be a reason for the garment to lose its target. It is important wash clothes before putting them awayto prevent possible stains from remaining on the fabrics for months.
According to Claramunt dry cleaning, plastic should never be used as a long-term storage solution. “Many plastics produce fumes that often lead to yellowing. It’s best to cover garments in acid-free tissue paper and place it in an acid-free box.”
Also humidity can cause the formation of fungus on garments and cause microbial growth that secretes substances that they eat the white color, giving way to a gray that will tarnish the garment. That is why it is important to store the garment in a dry place and even put some moisture wicking bags or take advantage of silica gel sachets that come when we buy some clothes.
Pack x 5 anti-humidity bags dehumidifier hanging hanger for closets bedroom garage storage rooms bathroom kitchen motorhomes.#1 in dehumidifiers.High absorption eliminates humidity and bad odors
Absorb King – Silica Gel anti-humidity bags, Pack of 100 units of 1g. desiccant Eliminates humidity and bad odours.
Tobacco smoke spoils clothes, especially white ones
It’s not just that tobacco is bad for healthis that the smoke from it can also cause white garments to turn yellow. Nicotine can remain on fabric surfaces for days or even weeks, reacting with the fibers to oxidize them, leaving yellowish stains.
How to whiten white clothes so they look like new
There are hundreds of whitening products for clothes, but not all of them are suitable for all white fabrics and in some cases, we can damage clothes if we misuse them. Garments like silk are more delicate than cotton, for example, and we cannot use the same tricks for all types of fabrics.
Bleach bleaches do not harm natural fabrics such as cotton, linen or wool, but they can destroy a synthetic garment. Just as there are specific products to whiten our garmentsThere are also home remedies that we can make at home with just a couple of ingredients.
Home remedies to whiten clothes according to their fabric
Remove yellow stains from cotton with vinegar and baking soda
There are some foolproof tricks to remove yellow stains from clothesWhat mix vinegar and baking soda in equal parts and apply this paste on the stain, leaving it to act for an hour for it to take effect, just as we would do when clean white conversesomething that works especially well on cotton garments.
Lemon, baking soda and vinegar to whiten cotton clothes
Another option is mix the juice of half a lemon and two teaspoons of baking soda in a bowl of hot water, and leave the garment inside for an hour. After that time, we take out the garment and empty the basin to fill it with cold water and a good splash of vinegar, leaving it in this mixture for another two hours. Once the time has passed, we wash as usual in the washing machine (with cold water).
Percarbonate or active oxygen to whiten clothes
Percarbonate is a chemical compound made with natural raw materials free of toxins. It is a natural chemical. It is in the form of a white granulated powder, and must be dissolved with water for use, at which time it breaks down into sodium carbonate (very effective as a detergent), and hydrogen peroxide with a bleaching effect.
And best of all, it is found in Leroy Merlin (€4.99) or Amazon (€21.90). serves for clean the bathroom curtains, remove stains from pillows
Sodium percarbonate IMPACT 500 gr
Wave Washing Percarbonate – Natural Whitener – 100% PLASTIC FREE – 1 kg – 100 washes – Sanitizing – Ecological – Biodegradable
Milk and hydrogen peroxide to whiten silk
Ideally, silk should always be washed inside out and in warm water, using specific products for this delicate fabric. We can even take her to the dye. But if the garment has already yellowed and we want to whiten it, we are going to make a solution of equal parts of milk and hydrogen peroxide: two tablespoons of each for every liter of cold water. Let soak for a few minutes and rinse with cold water. In this case, we will dry in the shade so that the sun does not damage the garment.
Milk or hydrogen peroxide to whiten the wool
Although wool is not a fabric that needs to be washed often (airing it many times is enough), it is possible that it has lost that white and you need an extra to recover it. This time we are going to give you two options. The first is to soak the wool garment for a day in a basin with cold water in which we will have poured hydrogen peroxide (one tablespoon per three liters of water). Once the 24 hours have passed, we rinse and wash as usual.
Another option is use unpasteurized milk (it is essential that it is not pasteurized), in which we will soak the garment for two hours and then rinse it and wash it as usual.
The best white clothes whitening products
If you do not want to try natural remedies, you can use a chemical bleach, always reading the instructions for use of each one and the labels of our garments beforehand to avoid misfortunes.
We can use bleach to whiten cotton or linen clothes and only if they are completely smooth, without any color. In this case we will take the bleach in the box along with the detergent and we will wash the clothes at no more than 30 ° C.
Mercadona optical brightener
It’s practically a miraculous product that manages to remove yellow and sweat stains of white garments, and recover that nuclear target. It has a price of €1.80 in Mercadona.
nuclear target
we can find it powdered either in geland is used in washing and together with the detergent, to keep white or to recover color in yellowish or gray garments.
Iberia Blanco Nuclear – Whitening powder, 6 sachets, 120gr
Nuclear white, more white impossible
Vanish Oxi Action Powder Stain Remover
In addition to stain remover, this chemical has a whitening effect and eliminates odorsused together with the detergent in the washes and with a price of €12.14.
Vanish Oxi Advance Stain Remover and Whitener, 800g
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Photos | Leroy Merlin, Mercadona, Jasmine Chew, Dinh Ng., Angelina Yan, Megan Lee, annie spratt Y Planet Care in unsplash