How To Use Bleach in Laundry the Right Way

Who taught you how to do laundry? Often, we learn from our moms, dads or other family members, incorporating tips and tricks learned over their years spent managing a household. My mom is a chlorine bleach fiend, so I’ve been bleaching things for years. I’d barely heard of oxygen bleach until last year, when I started talking to Patric Richardson, the Laundry Evangelist, host of HGTV’s The Laundry Guy and author of multiple books on laundry, including “Laundry Love: Finding Joy in a Common Chore.”

Turns out laundry bleach has multiple formulations and uses, and knowing what’s what will make your whites white, your colors bright and your stains disappear. (Find out how to separate laundry.)

Here’s the scoop on bleach, according to Richardson and the experts at Clorox.

What Is Bleach?

Bleach is a chemical compound that whitens and sterilizes. It’s used for laundry and for industrial processes like paper manufacturing. Before chemical formulations, people bleached their clothes with sunshine and time. Luckily, we now have quicker methods.

Types of Bleach

Bleach comes in two varieties for laundry: chlorine bleach and non-chlorine bleach. Both use what are called oxidizing compounds to clean clothes. (Oxidizing means to accept electrons from other molecules, such as pigments that hold color.)

• Chlorine bleach: Commonly called liquid bleach, chlorine bleach is a dilute (mixed with water) solution of sodium hypochlorite, a corrosive chemical compound that sanitizes as well as removes color and stains from clothes.
• Non-chlorine bleach: Often sold as oxygen bleach or color-safe bleach, non-chlorine bleach also whitens and removes stains. It bleaches with chemicals called peroxides, usually hydrogen peroxide and sodium percarbonate.

How To Use Bleach in Laundry

While many people (like my mom) swear by regular household bleach, laundry experts love oxygen bleach for its safety and stain-fighting ability. Using too much chlorine bleach can actually make whites yellow.

“Natural white is kind of beige,” Richardson says. That vivid white of brand-new sheets and towels is actually a blue dye. “When you start bleaching your sheets, and they get yellow, it’s not because they’re dirty, it’s because you’ve bleached the color out of them.”

To treat stains with oxygen bleach, Richardson recommends mixing the bleach with one tablespoon to a quart of water.

“Red wine, blood, fruit juice, if the baby has an accident — you just dip it in, it literally changes color, and you just toss it in the wash,” Richardson says. “It’s super easy.”

To whiten whites, Richardson recommends one tablespoon of oxygen bleach per load. You can add it to the drum or the dispenser, depending on the kind of washer you have. This solution is perfect for dingy sheets and towels, and “that oily spot where your dog sleeps,” Richardson adds. “It just kind of brightens all of that up.” Bonus: it’s not just for whites. The Laundry Guy even uses it on his black sheets. “It’s completely color-safe.”

If you go with liquid household bleach, add one-third cup for a standard, normal-soil load, according to the experts at Clorox (for heavy soil, you can up it to two-thirds cup). For standard washing machines, let the washer fill up halfway, then add the bleach and detergent. As the washer fills up, add laundry. Alternatively, dilute bleach in a quart of water and add to wash five minutes after the cycle starts. For high-efficiency washers, add bleach to the line on the dispenser compartment.

Chlorine bleach sanitizes laundry, too. Use one-half cup for a standard washing machine, and one-quarter cup for high-efficiency machines. Hot water is the traditional choice for sanitizing, but always follow the directions on the clothing label.

Bleach Tips and Tricks

If you’re ready to brighten whites and make colors pop, follow these bleach best practices for best results:

• Always dilute liquid chlorine bleach before adding clothing, or use the dispenser specially designated for bleach.
• Check clothing labels before using bleach of either kind.
• Test for colorfastness before using chlorine bleach on non-white clothing: Add two teaspoons of bleach to one-quarter cup of water. Turn the item inside out and apply a tiny drop to a hidden area. If the color doesn’t change, your garment is color-safe.

Bleach Don’ts

It may go without saying, but never pour a glug of liquid chlorine bleach onto a pile of dry clothes. Here are some more bleach don’ts:

• Don’t overfill the washing machine. You want plenty of room for the bleach and water to circulate.
• Never mix liquid chlorine bleach with ammonia. This releases a toxic gas that can be fatal.
• Don’t use too much of either kind of bleach. Less is often more when it comes to laundry.

Wondering why does your washing machine smell? Find out here.