http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=353x2586Oh my. More.
eleny (1000+ posts) Tue May-05-09 01:58 PM
Original message
Has anyone used hydrogen peroxide instead of bleach to wash whites?
A while back I got one of those emails about how to use a particular thing in new ways. This one was for hydrogen peroxide. It was asserted that it was better to use for a whites laundry since it did a good job and was easier on the environment.
I've used it several times and the bottoms of the white ankle high athletic socks don't come any cleaner with bleach. So I guess it works. But I wonder if using nothing but soap would do the same.
wakemeupwhenitsover (1000+ posts) Tue May-05-09 02:21 PM
Response to Original message
1. Isn't oxyclean just dried hydrogen peroxide?
I would love to get away from bleach also. Does anything else disinfect as well as bleach or is the hot water enough?
If one hangs clothes out to dry--during all four seasons, not just summer--no need to use bleach.
eleny (1000+ posts) Tue May-05-09 06:02 PM
Response to Reply #1
2. I wash the whites in cold water since the dryer gets everything hotter than heck
And the hp is supposed to disinfect. I figure that if I use hp for minor scrapes and cuts, it should be good enough to help cleanse the cotton sheets.
In the warm weather I hang the wash outside to dry. I figure that the hot sun does some disinfecting during those months.
Wimp.
Mom, the Polynesian queen primitive, the primitive woman bothered by cold weather:
troubleinwinter (1000+ posts) Fri May-08-09 12:28 PM
Response to Original message
3. I don't know about HP in laundry.
But I used to keep a bottle at the work office... one or another of us frequently arrived at work with a coffee stain on clothes from the morning drive. A few applications and stain was gone, never harming colored or print fabrics. I also use it on carpet stains... never discolors the carpet.
Liquid HP in laundry sounds expensive to me.... to get enough of it into the machine to have much effect?
The Oxyclean stuff seems to work pretty well on organic stains/dirt.
eleny (1000+ posts) Sun May-10-09 05:59 PM
Response to Reply #3
5. I found large bottles of it at Walmart very cheap and use about 1/4 cup for whites only
We don't have more than one whites wash here for the two of us. It's our cotton sheets, pillow cases and a few tee shirts. So it's lasting a long time. It's probably a little bit pricier than bleach. But the large bottles of HP were under a dollar each.
Warpy (1000+ posts) Sun May-10-09 05:51 PM
Response to Original message
4. The only thing I've used it for is removing fresh blood from clothing. It doesn't work well on dried, but will cause fresh blood stains to fizz and vanish.
(Don't look at me like that. I was a NURSE.)
eleny (1000+ posts) Sun May-10-09 06:02 PM
Response to Reply #4
6. That's good to know!
We do our own yard work around here and I'm always getting minor scrapes and boo-boos.
Having been a nurse you've seen a few boo-boos.
