How to Wash Colored Clothes with Bleach
If you happen to have stained clothes you’d like to make bright and shiny again, then you might be thinking about using bleach to get the job done.
Though this is a good idea, there are a few things you must pay attention to when using bleach to make your colored clothes look new again. Neglecting the following tips in this article could ruin your clothes – just saying.
Here’s a short rundown of how to use bleach safely and effectively to wash your colored clothes:
Read the care label/tag before using bleach. You’ll find a crossed-out triangle symbol on the tag if the garment isn’t meant to be bleached.
Check the colorfastness of the item before bleach washing. Use a cotton swab to test the bleach on a part of the item that’s concealed when worn.
Always dilute bleach in water before use. Never pour bleach directly on clothes.
Use preferably only oxygen bleach and stay away from chlorine when bleaching colored clothing.
Use the correct amount of bleach for the size of your load. Too much bleach can damage textile fibers and make their colors look faded.
Wash bleach-treated clothes in cold water to help them retain their color.
Never bleach wool or silk garments, as bleach will damage these fabrics.
Let bleach-treated clothes air dry away from sunlight to prevent fading.
Obviously, there’s much more to say than what is just described in these 8 bullet points. We’ll deep-dive into the details in the following paragraphs but first, we have to mention one or two things.
Keep bleach out of the reach of children and pets. Bleach is a dangerous chemical and should be handled with caution.
All types of bleach react with stains (and clothing for that matter) on a chemical basis. If there are other chemicals present in the washing machine that react undesirably with bleach, your clothes will come out looking worse than before. This does happen, so pay attention.
Only opt for bleach if nothing else works to get rid of stains. There are better/safer/easier alternatives nowadays.
With these pointers out of the way, let’s get to it, shall we?
Can Colored clothes be Bleached?
Yes, colored clothes can be bleached if it says so on their care tags. Many colored clothing items are not suitable for bleaching. Those that are, should preferably only be treated with oxygen bleach (sodium percarbonate).
Bleach is a powerful cleaning agent that can remove stubborn stains and sometimes disinfect clothes. It is a chemical product that comes in both liquid and powder forms.
When used correctly, bleach is a safe and effective way to clean clothes. However, it is important to follow the safety instructions on the care label and to test the colorfastness of your clothes before using bleach.
Liquid and powder bleach can both be diluted with water according to the instructions on the container. Experts suggest mixing one cup of bleach with one gallon of water (1:10).
Use a bleach-safe bucket of sorts when mixing bleach and water and try not to inhale too much of the fumes.
Luckily, you’re using color-safe bleach (oxygen/sodium percarbonate), right? This type of bleach is much less harmful than chlorine which you shouldn’t be using to remove stains on colorful clothing anyway.
The bleach-water mixture should be used immediately. Soak your colored clothes in the solution or add a cup or two of the solution to the washing machine.
Throw your freshly bleached clothes into the washer.
Once bleach-treated, it is important to wash the clothes in cold water to help them retain their color. Hot water can cause the bleach to work too well and may cause the clothes to fade.
We have two full guides on why clothes’ colors fade and how to wash clothes so they don’t lose their color. Click the links to read them. Don’t worry, they’ll open as pages in new tabs – you can still continue reading this one first.
Will Bleach Ruin Colors?
If you follow the instructions on both the care tag of the garment and the container of the bleach you wish to use, then you will not ruin the colors of your clothing.
Should you fail to do so, then we wish you the best of luck. Welcome to the world of high-stakes washing.
If you’re unsure or have never applied bleach to clothing before, then test a small area of the fabric before using bleach on an entire load of laundry. You’ll quickly find out if you’ll ruin the item(s) in question or if it’s safe to proceed.
Simply take a cotton swab, dip it in a small cup of diluted bleach (follow the instructions of the product), and dab the solution on the inside of the garment. Choose a spot that you can’t see when the item is worn.
If the spot hasn’t changed its color after a few minutes, you can wash out the solution with clean (cold) water and safely bleach the whole piece. If you notice some discoloration, then wash out the solution immediately and refrain from bleaching entirely.
What Bleach is Safe for Colors?
Bleach is a powerful oxidizing agent that can remove many types of stains. However, it can also bleach the color out of clothes if not used correctly. For this reason, it is important to choose the right bleach to use when washing colored clothes.
There is only one type of bleach that is safe for colors: oxygen (sodium percarbonate) bleach.
Sodium percarbonate is made from sodium carbonate bound to carbonic acid and hydrogen peroxide. These components react with water to create oxygen and soda ash. This process helps to extract stains from textiles whilst conserving dyes.
There are two more types of bleach: Chlorine (sodium hypochlorite) and pure hydrogen peroxide. Sadly, neither is really suitable for use with colored clothes.
The risk of discoloration and color fading is too great with chlorine and hydrogen peroxide. This is why we seriously suggest you stick to oxygen bleach.
Plus, there are some added bonuses! Oxygen bleach:
Is the most environmentally friendly
Is safest for your health
Damages the fibers of textiles the least
Can be mixed with other cleaning products
There are two drawbacks, though. Oxygen bleach is not a disinfectant, so it can’t be used to rid contaminated clothing of germs. Also, it is much less effective when it comes to whitening (because it doesn’t fade colors, remember?).
The primary use of oxygen bleach is as a laundry additive to brighten colors and whites by reducing overall staining. And that’s exactly what you should use it for.
Unless you’re a pro, chlorine bleach should never be used to put in the washing machine together with colored clothes, as it can cause them to turn a different color or even fade completely.
Always check the label on the garment to see if it can be bleached with oxygen or rather shouldn’t be bleached at all. And if you’ve cut those pesky labels off already, then it’s best to assume you can’t bleach at all (or test first).
How to Bleach Colored Clothes Without Ruining Them
So, by now we’ve learned a lot, haven’t we? Let’s sum it all up in a few short paragraphs.
You may have bleach in your laundry room for whitening clothes, but if you want to bleach colored clothes, there are a few things you need to do to make sure the bleach doesn't ruin them.
The first step is to test the (oxygen) bleach on a small area of the fabric to make sure it doesn't cause any discoloration or fading. If it does, then you'll need to find an alternative means than bleaching the clothes.
Once you've determined that the bleach won't harm the fabric, mix the full amount with water in a ratio of 1:10 (bleach:water).
Then, soak the clothes in the bleach and water solution for about 30 minutes before washing them out in cold water. Be sure to rinse them well afterward to remove any bleach residue.
White clothing can be left in the solution for up to 10 hours but this isn’t recommended for colorful textiles.
To get the most out of the stain removal, throw the affected piece of clothing into the washing machine right after the rinsing process. This makes for a nice stain-strain double-whammy!
If you want to clear away a stain locally, you can apply the bleach solution directly to the stain and let it sit for about 10 minutes before washing it off manually.
Follow what we’ve outlined in this article, and you can’t really ruin your colored clothes with (oxygen) bleach. Just be careful when handling chemicals – there are worse things than ruining your clothes’ colors.
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