Distilled white wine vinegar works wonders when it comes to laundry. This inexpensive product can be used for absolutely everything from softening fabrics and removing unpleasant odors to removing stains. In most cases, all you need to do is pour vinegar or a water solution directly into the washing machine.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Washing your clothes
Step 1. Keep your clothes clean with vinegar
Pour 120 ml of distilled white wine vinegar into the washing machine instead of your regular detergent. It will wash your clothes without any of the harsh chemicals found in many laundry detergents.
Step 2. Use vinegar to soften the fabric
Prepare 240 ml of white distilled wine vinegar. When the washing machine has reached the last rinse cycle, pour the vinegar directly into the drum. It works on fabrics as a simple yet effective natural emollient.
Step 3. Treat stains on clothes with vinegar before washing
Dissolve 120 ml of vinegar in 4 liters of water. Spot the stains on the fabric with this solution, while you can work with a cloth napkin or pour the vinegar solution directly onto each stain. Then wash your clothes as usual.
Step 4. Bleach clothes with a vinegar solution
Mix 60 ml lemon juice, 60 ml borax and 120 ml vinegar. Use this solution as a gentle alternative to your usual bleach every time you need to bleach your laundry.
Step 5. Use vinegar to remove unpleasant odors from clothes
If your clothes smell like something, add 120 ml of vinegar directly to the washing machine drum for the last rinse. Doing this will eliminate unpleasant odors from your clothing without making it smell like vinegar.
Method 2 of 2: Protecting the fabric
Step 1. Protect paint from fading
Pour 120 ml of white distilled vinegar into the washing machine just before washing to prevent color fading. This same method can be used to protect dark colored garments, such as black or navy blue, so that they will not fade with repeated washings.
Fabrics can also be pretreated with vinegar to set the dyes to them. Add 120 ml of vinegar to 4 liters of water. To protect clothes from problems with dyes fading during washing, dip brightly colored items in the prepared solution before washing and only then wash
Step 2. Prevent static electricity and lint build-up
Add 120 ml distilled white wine vinegar to the washing machine on the last rinse. This will rid things of static electricity, which makes them unpleasantly stick to your body. In addition, for most fabrics, it also helps to get rid of lint build-up.
Step 3. Wash the residual traces of detergents from the fabric
With regular use of detergents, residual traces of them accumulate in the fabric and cause streaks or hard areas to appear on the clothes. Add 240 ml of vinegar to 4 liters of water. Soak clothes in this solution and then wash. Accumulated detergent residues will be washed away.
Residual traces of detergents are especially noticeable on white items, which begin to turn yellow over time. Black clothing also fades over time. Soak your clothing in a vinegar-water solution to get rid of these unwanted effects
Step 4. Clean the washing machine with vinegar
Residual traces of soap can also accumulate inside the washing machine and sometimes even get on clothes from there. Pour 240 ml of vinegar into the washing machine once a month and run it without loading the laundry. This will remove any residual detergent from the appliance.
Warnings
- Use only distilled white wine vinegar for washing.
- The vinegar solution can be safely applied to most all-natural cotton, wrinkle-resistant pressed cotton and polyester garments.
- If you're not sure how vinegar can affect a particular fabric, apply the vinegar solution to an inconspicuous area of the garment. If no damage appears on the fabric, then you can safely wash the whole thing in a solution of vinegar.