How to bleach a T-shirt at home

Snow-white wardrobe items are pleasing to the eye and are worn with pleasure, however, as a result of frequent washing or improper care, they eventually lose their original appearance, become gray or acquire a yellowish tint.

What to do if a white T-shirt turns yellow and how to whiten it when tough stains from sweat, oil, grass appear? Industrial compounds and folk remedies come to the rescue, which are easy to prepare at home.

How to wash a white T-shirt

If the stains on the T-shirt are fresh, they will most likely be removed with a standard machine wash or by hand. However, hostesses often remember about the presence of dirt and yellowness too late, so ordinary detergent is not enough.

Most of the products are made from synthetic fabrics, for which the use of chlorine-containing compounds is contraindicated. The same goes for washing at maximum temperature and evaporating. Useful tips, following which, you can wash a white T-shirt without damaging it:

• wash white clothes separately from bright and colorful ones;
• delicate fabrics are washed exclusively by hand;
• after washing, the item must not be dried on a radiator, heated towel rail or heater of any type;
• when soaking, add a small amount of hydrogen peroxide to the water;
• add a few tablespoons of soda to the water for hand washing;
• for bleaching in automatic mode, use industrial oxygen bleach by adding it to the powder compartment.

Whitening methods

If the T-shirt has old or complex stains, it has turned gray or yellowed, has lost its snow-white, simple machine or hand wash will not help. It is recommended to pre-soak a heavily soiled product. Ordinary boiling will save you from sweat stains and other stubborn traces.

If your washing machine has an intensive wash mode, you can use it. Please be aware that high temperature steaming and washing are not suitable for delicate fabrics, wool and synthetic fibers.

Soak

Pre-wetting the fabric makes the main wash easier and shortens the operating time of the washing machine. If the stains are old and difficult to remove, this step is indispensable.

Basic Soaking Tips:

• depending on the degree of pollution and the composition used, the thing is soaked for 1-6 hours;
• before boiling, the T-shirt can be soaked in soapy water overnight;
• rinse soaked clothing with clean water before starting to wash.

Important! Soaking does not always precede other bleaching steps. Sometimes it is enough to hold the thing in the ready-made solution for several hours, rinse thoroughly under running water and dry it on the balcony.

Digestion

The T-shirt can only be boiled down if it is made of cotton or linen. Ideal composition for boiling: 200 g of coarsely grated laundry soap and 5 liters of water. For greater efficiency, you can add 2 tablespoons to the boil mixture. hydrogen peroxide or ammonia.

The digestion time depends on the density of the fabric. If the material is thin, it is enough to bring the mass to a boil. Strong products are cooked over low heat for about 20-30 minutes after boiling.

At the end of all manipulations, you need to wait for the solution to cool. The product should be thoroughly rinsed under running water.

Intensive wash

If there is no time and energy for boiling or soaking, you can select a special mode of the washing machine. It is recommended to bleach only cotton and linen using the intensive wash method.

The removable detergent drawer must be filled or poured with detergent and then a professional bleach (such as whiteness, Vanish) added to it. You need to wash the T-shirt at a temperature of at least 70 degrees, at maximum speed and with spinning.

To many housewives, this method seems uneconomical. First, the wash cycle takes much longer. Second, more powder is required than usual.

Important! Laundry gels can only be used with liquid bleaching compounds; only bleaching powders should be added to powdered detergents.

Folk remedies

Modern industrial formulations work wonders and easily help wash yellowed and gray T-shirts with traces of sweat and other dirt. However, until recently, the assortment of household chemicals stores was not so wide, and housewives had to use folk methods.

The use of peroxide, soda, laundry soap, mustard and other means allows you to return the product to its original appearance without significant material costs and large labor costs. Several methods have been shown to be effective in combating stubborn stains that cannot be cleaned with household chemicals.

Laundry soap

Such a product allows you to whiten and remove traces of sweat or old stains even delicate fabrics. A yellowed, dirty, oily T-shirt should be slightly moistened and well lathered with laundry soap, and then sent to a plastic bag.

It is necessary to wrap it tightly so that air does not enter. The product is left in this form for a day, after which it is rinsed with tap water. You can wash your clothes if you wish.

Important! Laundry soap does not leave a smell on wardrobe items. Even if wet things have a slight soapy aroma, after completely drying in the fresh air, there will be no trace of it.

Hydrogen peroxide

To remove small yellow spots, it is enough to pour a little peroxide on the dirt and leave it for half an hour until it is absorbed. Then the thing needs to be rinsed under running water.

Synthetic and cotton fabrics with stubborn stains, gray or yellowed ones are cleaned with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and ammonia in a ratio of 2: 1. It is necessary to prepare 30 ml of a solution from the substances in the indicated ratio and mix with 2 liters of water.A soiled T-shirt is soaked in liquid for several hours.

To achieve maximum effect, it is necessary to periodically stir the clothes. After soaking, the item is rinsed thoroughly.

White

The concentrated substance can be used for bleaching only if the item is made of dense, durable fabric. It is better to wash tablecloths, towels, bed linen with whiteness, and not T-shirts, which are most often contraindicated to be exposed to aggressive compounds.

How to properly wash a white T-shirt using this bleach:

1. wear gloves to protect the skin;
2. fill the basin with 3.5 liters of cool water, add 1 tbsp. whiteness and stir;
3. soak the T-shirt in soapy water, add the resulting solution;
4. leave the thing in the liquid for 15 minutes (if the fabric is very dense - for 20);
5. rinse the shirt thoroughly.

Important! If the whiteness is not rinsed well enough, further wearing of these garments can lead to an allergic reaction. After washing, it is advisable to dry the T-shirt on the balcony or in another place with constant fresh air circulation.

Boric acid

The shirt must be washed before using this method. 1-2 tbsp the substances are dissolved in 3 liters of warm water, then the product is rinsed in the resulting solution for several minutes. Soaked clothes should be thoroughly washed under running water, and they will become snow-white again.

Soda

Soda is one of the most affordable whitening and whitening products.

A versatile substance can be used in several ways:

• In the washing machine. Pour a standard amount of detergent into the powder compartment and add ½ cup of baking soda there. You must select a mode suitable for the material of the T-shirt and wash it in the washing machine.
• Handwash. It is worth preparing a solution of 5 liters of warm water, 5 tbsp. hydrogen peroxide and 2 tbsp. soda. The T-shirt is soaked in the resulting liquid for 3-4 hours. In the absence of peroxide, it is enough to mix only water and 10 tbsp. soda, and then soak the thing in the same way.
• Boiling. Add 3 tablespoons to a pot of water. soda. It is necessary to boil the dirty T-shirt in the solution, and it will become snow-white again.

Laundry soap and manganese

If the clothes have acquired a grayish tint and no longer pleases with crystal whiteness, you can use the method that has been used by experienced housewives for more than a decade.

Procedure:

• grate a piece of laundry soap on a coarse grater;
• pour the resulting shavings into a basin with 2 liters of warm water;
• add potassium permanganate until a light pink solution is obtained;
• dip the T-shirt completely into the liquid, cover the basin with a towel or plastic wrap, leave it overnight;
• wash clothes in any way - in a typewriter or by hand.

Using this method, you can whiten old yellow things. Soap and manganese are effective against stubborn stains.

Mustard

The tool helps to cope with the yellowness or grayness of white clothes. It is necessary to dissolve mustard powder (5 tablespoons) in hot water (5 liters), strain the liquid and dip a T-shirt into it, leave for several hours. After the specified time has elapsed, the product is thoroughly rinsed with water and dried naturally.

If there are stains on the shirt, you can use the mustard in a different way. Mustard powder is mixed with water to obtain a gruel. The mass is applied locally to dirt, then the thing must be folded into a plastic bag and left overnight. In the morning, wash the product by hand or in a washing machine.

Acetylsalicylic acid

If you don't have industrial bleach on hand, aspirin will come to the rescue. It is necessary to dissolve 5 tablets in 7 liters of pure water. The T-shirt should be lowered into the resulting liquid for 8-10 hours (you can overnight).

After removing the thing from the solution, you need to wash it in any way (automatically or manually).

Important! Experts recommend additionally adding a few acetylsalicylic acid tablets directly to the washing machine drum.

Lemon acid

This method is not suitable for bleaching delicate fabrics and wool. In order to lighten a white T-shirt, you must:

• dissolve citric acid granules in boiling water (1 tbsp of substance per 1 liter of water);
• soak the product in the solution for 5-6 hours;
• rinse under running water.

Important! Citric acid (1 tablespoon) can be replaced with freshly squeezed juice of two lemons.

Some housewives put several bags of citric acid into the drum of the washing machine before washing. The detergent is added as usual to the special powder compartment. Then you should start washing at the maximum temperature mode. Things become snow-white again, so you can remove gray tint and yellowness.

Professional remedies

In household chemicals stores, there are many industrial compounds that show high efficiency in whitening wardrobe items.

There are several types of professional products, the choice of which depends on the composition of the fabric, the degree of pollution and other factors:

• Oxygen bleaches. They are suitable for all types of fabrics and can deal with all kinds of stains. Cons: short shelf life, high price.
• Chlorine. Chlorine bleaches are the most effective and readily available. However, they should not be used to wash synthetics, woolen T-shirts and delicate fabrics. Chlorine-containing products should not be added to the washing machine; moreover, they often cause allergic reactions.
• Optical. Such formulations do not cope with dirt, but create the illusion of a T-shirt whiteness. The spots are masked with special reflective particles.

How to bleach a printed T-shirt

If the image is thermal printed, white clothing can be bleached in any way. It is not so easy to lighten a product with a print. In no case should whiteness and other aggressive substances be used.

Otherwise, the pattern may fade or leave stains on the snow-white surface. It is better to use professional oxygen or optical brighteners, such compositions will gently whiten the fabric and will not affect the image.

Important! Before bleaching a T-shirt with a print, you need to take care of its safety. The pattern will be fixed and will not creep in the future if, before the very first wash, hold the product for several hours in warm water with the addition of salt.

How to remove tough stains

For stubborn and stubborn stains that cannot be washed with regular powder, the following method will help:

1. add 2 tablespoons to a basin with 4-5 liters of water. ammonia and 150 g of baking soda, stir until the soda crystals are completely dissolved;
2. soak a T-shirt in the solution and leave for 3-4 hours;
3. wash a thing in a typewriter in standard mode.

Vinegar will help with yellow sweat. Procedure:

1. mix vinegar essence (3-4 tablespoons) and warm water (about 250 ml) in a container, heat a little;
2. dip the T-shirt in the solution for a few minutes;
3. make a gruel from salt, soda, hydrogen peroxide and vinegar;
4. apply the resulting paste to the dirt and wait 20 minutes;
5. wash the thing in the usual way.

How to care for white clothes

For snow-white things, proper care must be taken. Otherwise, they will quickly fade or yellow.

Useful recommendations, the observance of which will help to preserve the attractive appearance of the product for a long time:

• The right way to dry. It is advisable to dry white T-shirts in the fresh air (not in the sun). The exception is synthetic clothes, which are best hung up to dry at home.
• Clean iron sole. You should constantly monitor the cleanliness of the surface and, if necessary, use special pencils or other means.
• Dry clothes. You shouldn't put your T-shirt in the closet if it's not completely dry. It is necessary to periodically air the shelves with things by opening the doors for several hours.
• Sorting. Before washing your white T-shirts, it is important to sort out all the items not only by color, but also by type of fabric. Cotton clothes that are machine washed with synthetics are likely to take on a gray tint.
• Compliance with the manufacturer's recommendations. Before you clean and bleach a white T-shirt at home and start ironing, you need to study everything that is written on the tag.
• Compliance with hygiene standards. Sweat marks are very noticeable on snow-white clothes and are difficult to wash. In order for them not to appear, you need to follow the rules of personal hygiene and take measures to reduce sweating.
• Water softening. If water with a high degree of hardness flows in the house, you should soften it before washing with citric acid or table vinegar. When the T-shirt is hand washed, you can pre-fill the basin with water and leave it overnight. After settling, it will become softer.

Snow-white clothes get dirty and dull very quickly, so fans of such wardrobe items should be ready to take care of T-shirts and bleach them in special ways. Do not despair if your favorite thing has turned yellow from time to time, or stubborn greasy spots have appeared on it - there are many effective ways to return the product to its former attractiveness at home.

Video: how to whiten a T-shirt