Whites turning Gray!

[TeamCaffee]

I have been fighting trying to keep our summer socks white.

I don't really have enough whites to justify a washer for just a few pair so I was wondering if any one had any ideas? When I go home I bleach the heck out of them but that is not enough.

 

[pelicn]

I fight the same problem and haven't found a solution. For the winter we just buy gray socks LOL I don't like to use bleach very often because it eats the fabric, but I was thinking of trying the OxyClean and see if that worked.

 

[TeamCaffee]

We also wear gray in the winter. I use Oxy Clean with all of my clothes. I posted a long time ago about how we make up small measured baggies of dry soap and Oxy Clean and then we just take in as many baggies as we need for each load. It saves us lots of room in the truck. We don't carry boxes and bottles into the truck stop. If we are going to ruin our socks I am not to worried about the bleach eating them anymore. I had thought about getting a bucket and mixing water and bleach and letting the socks soak till we are ready to wash. Then we will have to carry in the bucket of the bleach socks! It just cannot spill is my worry.

 

[cheri1122]

Um, Linder: why don't you just wear gray socks year round, and save your energy for important stuff, like figuring out a no calorie dessert that actually tastes good?

 

[pelicn]

Hmmm...can OxyClean be mixed with bleach? I would think that if you were to let the socks soak you wouldn't need to have much bleach in the water, and that might keep it from eating the socks.
Also, it would give you extra time for that dessert that Cheri mentioned :+

 

[cheri1122]

If you insist on soaking the durn socks, why not do it in a bigger Ziplock baggie, that you can take to the washer? They're pretty much leak-proof.
Now I'm going to make some banana pudding, with the sugarfree Jello stuff, lowfat milk, and bananas - which is the closest I've come to a low calorie dessert, so far. I was hoping you could come up with a better one...

 

[dieseldiva]

I had thought about getting a bucket and mixing
>water and bleach and letting the socks soak till we are
>ready to wash. Then we will have to carry in the bucket of
>the bleach socks! It just cannot spill is my worry.

Linda wouldn't you now have the same problem.....adding bleached socks to dark clothes possibly contaminating your colored clothes with the bleach?? Still needing a seperate washer??

 

[TeamCaffee]

You are right diesel diva my thoughts where I could delete the water down and not have my real darks in that load such as our uniforms! Cheri trying to find Bob gray socks in the summer and his big feet could be a problem but I think the search is on. That would solve part of my problems. It amazes me I clean the floors often but not every time we get out and back in. We drag more then we think we do into the truck from the parking lots. Poor Molly has to get her feet washed every time she goes out.

 

[greg334]

Fels Neptha

or Borax soap

shave some off the former and mix it with water, soak the socks with it for 30 minutes and then rub them a little before you wash and wash with regular detergent.

Use the latter on the strong side, soaking the socks for 10 minutes in the soapy water while in the washer - turn off the washer to do this.

 

[carl789]

My sister used a product called Wink. It is in a powder form and is only for white clothes. She said it is used alone and not with any other detergent. Whitened even all the yellowed dishtowels. I'm not sure if it is available everywhere though. She purchased it at Meijers. If anyone tries it, let us know the results

 

[terryandrene]

Linder: Cange socks daily so you'll have enough to justify the wash. With Oxy-clean, you don't need bleach. Oxy-clean also comes in a pocket size spray bottle that miraculously makes coffee stains on my jeans disappear

 

[AnneM]

In the bleach aisle, there is a little blue bottle with a picture of al ittle old lady on it. Can't remember the name but it's somthing like Mrs. Smith's Bluing or somethinglike that. It is wonderful stuff. Can be used for whites that can not be bleached or even yellow stains in the arm pits of white shirts, socks, etc. you mix a capfull in like a empty pepsi bottle, you can carry it with you. It will be good for 2 wash cycles.

 

[barney]

What about the dessert problem? Socks are socks, we don't see them while we are wearing them anyway. I have a rule, no shoes in the sleeper for any reason. It really helps keep it and our socks cleaner. It's a man thing!

 

[cheri1122]

Sorry, Barney, but it's not "a man thing", cause I have the same rule. It's easy for me to keep, as I don't like wearing shoes, and only wear those I can kick off as soon as my butt hits the seat.
According to Jeff Campbell, a cleaning expert, keeping the dirt out of your living space goes a long way towards easier cleaning, which makes dirt deflectors at the entrance (good carpet pieces to wipe your shoes, brushes for the mud/snow) a very good idea. Never wearing shoes in the sleeper, is another big help.

 

[TeamCaffee]

We do not wear our shoes in the sleeper. Both of us drive without our shoes though and that is where the dirt comes in. We have also started washing Molly's feet everytime she gets into the truck.

 

[nobb4u]

I do not know if you know this but too much bleach can also discolor your whites. My mother told me this a long time ago. In addition, if you do not wash them separate of colored clothes you will never keep them white because the small amounts of dye continue to leech out of the fabric for the life of your clothes that is why your clothes color fades over the years.

 

[are12]

Fels Neptha - I thought the only use for that was for poison ivy :+

 

[ATeam]

We got rid of all whites (towels, sox, linnens, etc.) a few weeks after we got into trucking. Problem solved.

 

[greg334]

" Fels Neptha - I thought the only use for that was for poison ivy"

Actually I was told by some Mexican when I was in San Diego to use this to cut down on the itching I had due to the bed bugs I no longer have and it worked great. I discovered the great cleaning qualities is also has, like my white socks are all now white again and my grays are gray again. I used it for a lot of things since and stocked up in it - it is hard to find here.

But truthfully Phil's solution is the best I have heard yet.

 

[Jack_Berry]

linder,

i just read this to my wife. she said.....hydrogen peroxide. bleach will just destroy the fabric. we call her, the queen of bleach. don't ask it goes back to a time with young children.

hp is also good for your gums and whitening your teeth.



Jack Berry