5 Cheap and Easy Natural Ways to Bleach Towels
Rags and towels are very useful in any home, not only because they dry our bodies, but also because we can use them to clean up spills.
However, it’s common for these rags and towels to become stained over time despite being washed repeatedly with regular detergent.
Stains caused by foods, dead skin cells, sweat, as well as other types of dirt, give rags and towels an unpleasant appearance, which makes you consider throwing them away.
Nonetheless, there are many natural stain-removers that can help to make your clothes and towels look better. This will prolong their life and keep them looking radiant.
Although some of these stain-removers contain chemicals and are expensive, there are cheaper homemade alternatives that can give you similar results.
In this article, we want you to take note of five cleaning secrets to bleach towels with things you have at home.
Take note!
1. Sodium silicate to bleach your towels
Sodium silicate is an inorganic product that’s often used in the production of detergent or other cleaning products. According to information from the Spanish National Institute for Safety and Hygiene, you shouldn’t inhale it and make sure it doesn’t come into contact with your skin, as it can cause redness and irritation.
In this case, we suggest that you combine a small amount of sodium silicate with some dishwashing liquid. This way, you’ll be able to bleach your towels and keep them soft, white, and clean.
Ingredients
- 2 liters of water.
- 2 tablespoons of dishwashing liquid (20 ml).
- 1 tablespoon of sodium silicate (10 g).
What to do
- First, wear gloves and a mask and warm up two liters of water with the dishwashing liquid and the sodium silicate.
- When the mixture boils, soak the towels in it for 20 minutes approximately.
- After this time, rinse off the towels with warm water and let them air dry.
Don’t forget to read: 5 Simple Tricks To Get Soft Towels
2. White vinegar to bleach towels
White vinegar is a 100% organic and natural product. Furthermore, it’s not only able to clean and disinfect areas, but it can also be used as a medicinal home remedy. This study conducted by Arizona State University states it.
It’s an ideal product to use for cleaning towels, as it helps to keep them fluffy, absorbent, and free of bad odors or mold.
Ingredients
- 1/2 a cup of white vinegar (125 ml).
- 1/4 of a cup of laundry detergent (62 ml).
What to do
- For each towel you want to bleach, add half a cup of white vinegar and a quarter of a cup of laundry detergent in the main wash compartment of the washing machine.
- Choose the cold wash cycle and then air dry the towels.
- For more difficult stains, apply the white vinegar on the affected area.
- Leave on for 30 minuts before washing the towel.
3. Baking soda to bleach towels
Applying baking soda to your towels is a good way to keep them soft and to get rid of any stains they may have, just as this investigation conducted by the University of North Carolina.
Ingredients
- 1/4 of a cup of baking soda (62 g).
- Hot water (1000 ml) per towel.
What to do
- Heat up the water add a quarter cup of baking soda for each towel that you’re going to wash.
- Soak the towels for 60 minutes and then put them in the washing machine to wash on a normal cycle.
- If there are difficult stains on the towels, wet a tablespoon of baking soda with lemon juice and rub it directly on the affected area.
4. Sunflower oil to bleach your towels
It’s true that sunflower oil is oily. This is why we think that it stains fabrics. However, the truth is that you can combine it with laundry detergent and dry bleach to keep towels white and spotless. However, there’s no scientific evidence that this works. If you still want to try it out:
Ingredients
- Water (as much as you need).
- 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil (30 g).
- 2 tablespoons of dry bleach (20 g).
- 1/2 a tablespoon of ecological laundry detergent (5 g).
What to do
- Boil a sufficient amount of water and add the sunflower oil, the dry bleach, and the laundry detergent.
- Soak the towel that you want to bleach and leave it in the mixture for a couple of hours.
- Hand rinse it or put it in the washing machine to rinse.
Do you want to know more? Effective Ways to Remove Mold from Your Washing Machine
5. Ammonia and vinegar to bleach your towels
Adding a mix of ammonia and vinegar to a rinse cycle will leave your towels clean, soft and free of unpleasant odors.
Ammonia is used for cleaning and stops laundry detergent from staying on fibers.
Furthermore, white vinegar, as we mentioned above, will disinfect the towel and leave it feeling soft and smelling fresh.
Ingredients
- 1/2 a cup of white vinegar (125 ml).
- 1 tablespoon of ammonia (10 ml).
How to use it
- Put the vinegar in the laundry detergent compartment of the washing machine and then pour in the tablespoon of ammonia.
- Remember to protect yourself when handling these products.
- Start a full washing machine cycle. After the cycle has finished, you’ll find that your towels will look radiant.
Are you ready to try some of these tips? Choose the one that catches your attention the most and stop spending your money on expensive stain-removers that contain aggressive chemicals.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
- Organización Panamericana de la Salud. (2008). Manual de esterilización para centros de salud. Manual de esterilización para centros de salud.
- Limpieza, P. D. E. (2012). Limpieza y desinfección Cap.7. Instituto Nacional de Aprendizaje. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-84-458-1898-5.50007-9
- Kahrs, R. (2013). Principios generales de la desinfección. Organización Mundial de Sanidad Animal.
