White clothes can lose their brightness and even turn yellow over time.They are vulnerable to stains.You can bleach them to restore their original brightness.If you want to bleach your white clothes, you can either soak them, pop them in the washing machine, or spray them lightly with lemon juice.
Step 1: Check the labels on your clothes to see if they are safe to bleach.
If your clothes are white, it doesn't mean they can be bleached.You should check the tags on the clothes to make sure you can bleach them.There should be information about how to care for and wash the clothing item.It is important to keep this information in mind.You can find washing instructions online for certain brands of clothing if you can't find them on a tag.
Step 2: To make sure the clothes are safe to bleach, test them.
If there is no tag or you don't know if the clothes are safe for bleach, you can test them by putting a small amount of bleach on a hidden location like the inside of a collar, cuff, or pant leg.Wait to see if the spot is damaged by adding a small amount of bleach.The clothes are safe to bleach if not.It is possible that clothes made of silk, spandex, or wool won't bleach well.If they are safe to bleach, check the label.
Step 3: In a bucket, mix 1 part bleach to 5 parts of hot water.
All of your clothes can be covered with hot water by filling a large bucket.The bleach should be put into the water in the bucket.The water should be hot to mix with the bleach in order to remove stains from your clothes.All fabric bleach is safer to use on clothes than chlorine bleach.The water needs to be hot, but you don't need to boil it.
Step 4: Leave the clothes in the bleach for 10 minutes.
If you want to fully submerge the clothes into the bleach mixture, you have to wear a pair of protective gloves.Put the clothes in the bleach water.Allow them to soak for a while.If you still see stains on the clothes after 10 minutes, you can let them soak for an additional 5 minutes.
Step 5: The bleach can be removed by rinsing the clothes with cold water.
Remove the white clothes from the bleach water and rinse them with cold water.The fabric can be damaged if it is exposed to bleach for too long.It is important to rinse the clothes with cold water.If necessary, wash the clothes a few times.
Step 6: The bucket should be filled with 1 part hydrogen peroxide and 5 parts cold water.
Add enough cold water to a bucket to fit all of your clothes.If your clothes have been soaked in hot water and bleach, fill your bucket with cold water so you don't damage them.The mixture should be combined with the water.
Step 7: Take the clothes and put them in a bucket of water and hydrogen peroxide.
Put your clothes in the mixture.You can mix them around in the bucket.If you bleach your clothes, the peroxide will help to whiten them and prevent damage from over-bleaching.After the clothes are wet, rinse them with cold water.
Step 8: You can dry the clothes in the dryer or hang them up.
The stains on your white clothes should have faded by now.The only thing left to do is dry them and wear them.You can either hang them up on a clothesline or machine-dry them.
Step 9: If the clothing labels are machine and bleach safe, check them.
Not all clothing can be washed in a washing machine.You should check the tags of any white clothes you plan to wash.Check that your clothes can be washed in hot water.
Step 10: The temperature of the washing cycle should be hot.
When used with hot water, bleach is most effective at removing stains.The hottest wash cycle is when the dial on the washing machine is turned.Follow the directions on the label.Don't set your washing machine to a hot wash cycle if the label says it cannot be washed in hot water.
Step 11: Put the clothes in the machine.
Before you turn on your washing machine, you need to put all of your clothes in it to make sure they fit.If you cram your clothes into the washing machine, it will affect how well they are bleached.If necessary, you can divide them for another wash.
Step 12: Put detergent in the detergent dispensers.
The effectiveness of bleach can be increased by laundry detergent.If you are washing a lot of white clothes, use the right amount of detergent.The detergent should slide out of the machine if it is put into the slot that holds it.Many bottles of liquid detergent have a cap that you can use to measure the amount of detergent you need to add.If your washing machine doesn't have a tray to add detergent, you can put it on top of your clothes.
Step 13: The bleach should be put into the tray.
The bleach can be added to the slot in your washing machine.When pouring bleach, be careful not to splash or spill it.Don't pour bleach directly onto the clothes because it will damage them.You can add bleach to the water of your washing machine if it doesn't have an automatic dispensers.
Step 14: The washing machine needs to be turned on.
After you put your detergent and bleach in the detergent slot, turn on the washing machine.The machine will wash your clothes and the bleach will remove stains.Do not repeat the cycle if your clothes are not as bright as you want them or if you still see stains after washing.Before washing the clothes again, dry them completely.
Step 15: Clothes can be dried on a clothesline or in the dryer.
Take the clothes out of the machine and dry them.You can either hang them on a clothesline or machine dry them.They may shrink if you dry them in a machine.During the washing cycle, the bleach will not affect the clothes.
Step 16: The clothes should be soaked with water.
You can either wash the clothes or pour water on them.Clothes will bleach better in the sun if they are wet.They should be damp, but not sopping wet, by ringing out any excess water.If you use water that has chlorine in it, it will cause the clothes to be discolored in the sunlight.
Step 17: The clothes can be hung out in the sun.
Put your wet clothes in the sun.They should be exposed to the light evenly so that they don't bleach their clothes.The sunlight covers all of them if they are placed out from each other.You can put the clothes on the ground if you don't have a clothesline.To lay them on, be sure to flip them so that they bleach evenly.
Step 18: The clothes can be sprayed with a mixture of water and lemon juice.
In a spray bottle, combine 2 cups of water and 4 cup of lemon juice and shake it up to mix it.It is a good idea to lightly spray each item of clothing.You don't want to end up with spots if you coat all of them evenly.When exposed to sunlight, the citric acid in the lemon juice can be used as a bleaching agent.
Step 19: The clothes should be left in the sun for 3 hours.
For up to 3 hours, allow the clothes to soak up the sun.The fabric of your clothes can be damaged by exposure to sunlight.Before damage can occur, remove the clothes from the clothesline.If you are satisfied with the results, you can check the clothes after an hour.If you put your clothes on the ground, be sure to rotation them.