Bleaching white linens etc

[Evelyn]

• Lines and towels go on sale in January and August/September, so I will say wait until then to replenish.

• Bleach affects the integrity of fabrics. It makes it weaker and towels and sheets will not last as long. I used to use bleach in every load and now I only use it if I have a stain.

• Like others, when I use bleach I fill the machine with water, detergent, and bleach. Let it spin and then add the clothes.

• Here is a webinar I did where I speak about laundry:

Cleaning your Airbnb Like a Pro Webinar Recap - Laundry

[anon67190644]

My machine actually has four little buckets for stuff. The one I use… detergent, and then [it turns out] one for pre-wash, a different one for bleach, and a final one for fabric softener. Three little buckets wasted on the likes of me!

[Arlene_Larsson]

Has anyone ever used the “Mrs. Stewart’s bluing” on their whites? I read about that somewhere else and was thinking of ordering some.

[jaquo]

@Arlene_Larsson

Has anyone ever used the “Mrs. Stewart’s bluing” on their whites? I read about that somewhere else and was thinking of ordering some.

Yes, I have and it’s brilliant. Although I use bleach on stained towels and bedlinen, I’ve never had a problem with yellowing because when items are being washed without bleach, I add some Mrs Stewart’s.

[Arlene_Larsson]

Thanks! I will go ahead and order some. We are new and our whites are still bright. I want to keep them that way and don’t want to use bleach that much.

[Gardenhost]

Thanks so much for all the helpful replies! Maybe you laundry experts could help me with this one? One of the reasons I’ve decided to go for white is because this keeps happening… any idea what this is from?? It looks like bleach, but I’ve only ever used regular detergent. This happened with another set of sheets we had too. They’re the same brand. Our washer is less than a year old and we haven’t had this problem with clothes or anything else. It’s just the sheets. Pillow cases and towels done in the same load of washing are fine. Mystified!

[jaquo]

It looks like that stuff (I can’t remember the name) that is used in some skin preparations. As far as I recall, this is used mostly in an acne cream so it makes no sense that it would be on the sheet but not the towels. Could it be that the guest had been using a self-tanning lotion or similar? (Could it also be a certain bodily fluid???)

[Gardenhost]

@jaquo

It looks like that stuff (I can’t remember the name) that is used in some skin preparations. As far as I recall, this is used mostly in an acne cream so it makes no sense that it would be on the sheet but not the towels. Could it be that the guest had been using a self-tanning lotion or similar? (Could it also be a certain bodily fluid???)

Acne cream crossed my mind but wouldn’t it then be on the pillows too? Self tanner… hmm… we get mainly backpackers/outdoorsy types who to be honest probably wouldn’t bother with fake tan. But who knows I guess!
it definitely looks more like the colour has been taken out rather than a stain.

[jaquo]

@Gardenhost

it definitely looks more like the colour has been taken out rather than a stain.

Yes, it looks like that to me too. Has bleach worked?

[Gardenhost]

@jaquo

@Gardenhost

it definitely looks more like the colour has been taken out rather than a stain.

Yes, it looks like that to me too. Has bleach worked?

These are dark grey coloured sheets, so can’t bleach them

[KKC]

Benzoyl peroxide and that is what is looks like.

[EllenN]

I’ve gotten that when I wash cleaning rags along with other clothes/linens. The Chlorox from the cleaning rags bleaches whatever else is in the washing machine with it. Sometimes even the next load gets bleach stains.