While there are many references to Vinegar as the Green Stain Removal alternative, it is important to only use only Distilled or Brewed white vinegar.
The acid in white distilled vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics, yet strong enough to dissolve the alkalies in soaps and detergents. Besides removing soap, white distilled vinegar prevents yellowing, acts as a fabric softener, a static cling reducer and attacks mold and mildew.
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| 1926 Skipping Girl Vinegar advertisement |
Here are some ways Vinegar is useful in the laundry and in removal of stains.
Eliminate manufacturing chemicals from new clothes by adding 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar to the water.
Remove scorch marks and coffee stains from clothes by applying undiluted white vinegar to the stain.
Wool and silks take on a yellow tint over time. Fill a bucket with 1 pint of warm water and add a tablespoon of vinegar.
Prevent lint from clinging to clothes by adding 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar to the wash cycle.
To remove soap residue that makes black clothes look dull use white distilled vinegar in your final rinse.
Get stained white socks and dingy dishcloths white again. Add 1 cup white distilled vinegar to a large pot of water, bring it to a rolling boil and drop in the articles. Let soak overnight.
Before washing a mustard stain, dab with white distilled vinegar.
Attack spaghetti, barbecue, or ketchup stains with a white distilled vinegar and water solution.
Remove perspiration odor and stains on clothing, as well as those left by deodorants, by spraying full-strength white distilled vinegar on underarm and collar areas before tossing them into the washing machine.
Forgot that you left wet laundry in the machine and it now smells moldy? Pour a few cups of white distilled vinegar in the machine and wash the clothes in hot water. Then run a normal cycle with detergent.
Remove musky smells from cotton clothes by sprinkling them lightly with white distilled vinegar and then pressing them.
Remove smoky odors from clothes by filling the bathtub with very hot water and 1 cup white distilled vinegar. Hang the garments above the steaming water and shut the door so the steam can penetrate the fibers.
Get water and salt stains off shoes and boots by wiping them down with a solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and water.
Get cleaner laundry! Add about 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar to the last rinse.
Remove soap scum and clean the hoses of your washing machine with white distilled vinegar.
Periodically run the machine with only a cup of white distilled vinegar in it—nothing else added to the wash cycle.
Bring out bright colors by adding 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar to the rinse cycle.
Fluff up wool or acrylic sweaters (hand- or machine-washed) and rid them of soap smell with 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar in the last rinse water.
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| Cornwell's White Vinegar |
Vinegar is also usefull in caring for your Iron.
Keep the steam iron clean and in good working order by getting rid of mineral deposits in steam vents and spray nozzles. Fill the water chamber with a solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and distilled water. Set it in an upright position and let it steam for about 5 minutes. When the iron is cool, rinse the tank with water, refill and shake water through the vents onto an old cloth. Test before using.
Remove scorch marks from an iron by rubbing it with a warmed-up solution of equal parts white distilled vinegar and salt. If that doesn’t work, use a cloth dampened with full-strength white distilled vinegar.
These links were checked at the time of publishing and found to be accurate.