Why Wash Laundry with Vinegar? Remove the Musty Smell & Whiten Clothes Naturally!

Would you like to learn how to wash your laundry naturally with vinegar and what other benefits this home remedy offers? Here is some useful information about the natural product and tips on using it as a fabric softener and laundry detergent.

The kitchen isn’t the only area where home remedies serve different purposes. Did you know that you could wash laundry with vinegar? There are plenty of good reasons for doing this, as the product’s high acidity can help lighten stains and remove unpleasant odours. In addition, acetic acid can soften all fabrics, refresh their colours and help against a smelly washing machine. Find out more about the beneficial effects of vinegar below, so you can use it on your next load of laundry!

How to Wash Laundry with Vinegar As a Cheap Alternative to Detergents?

Commercially available products these days not only cost more money, but are also full of chemical ingredients that often smell too unnatural. Some of them can be unpleasant for the noses of sensitive people and can even lead to skin problems. Vinegar on the other hand is also great for washing children’s sleepwear, as it does not affect its flame retardants. But how can you use apple or distilled white wine vinegar as an alternative means of gentle household washing?

• You can add small amounts of the home remedy to your laundry to make your clothes whiter without using harsh bleaches.
• However, if you wash your laundry with vinegar, a red one can leave stains due to its tannins, which are natural plant dyes. Therefore, it is important to use clear remedies like apple cider vinegar and distilled white vinegar and dilute it with water. Do this before pouring the product directly onto your clothing.
• When using vinegar, you don’t have to worry about your laundry smelling like it. The vinegar smell will disappear during the rinse or wash cycle. You can also neutralize this with a few drops of essential oil of your choice.

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Here are some of the main benefits of this fascinating home remedy when you do the washing:

Remove Musty Smells from Clothes with Vinegar

Clothes that have been left in the closet or in plastic bags for a long time will almost certainly smell unpleasant. In such cases, washing powders or gels surprisingly do not always help. Therefore, instead, you can try adding half a cup of vinegar while washing. You can put the stuff directly into the dispenser compartment before you set your washing machine to the usual washing program. You don’t need to add anything else, and you will notice how fresh your clothes will smell after the washing. This trick will also get rid of mouldy smells on towels and bathrobes, although you should use warm water for dark fabrics.

Additionally, you can wash clothes that smell like sweat with vinegar to get rid of unpleasant sweat odours. Yellowed white underwear or socks, as well as yellow spots under the armpits, can also be cleaned with it. To do this, you can fill a spray bottle with undiluted apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar and spray the yellow spots with it. Then let the stuff sit for at least 10 minutes before throwing the item in the washing machine. If the fabric feels stiff before washing, you can use a soft brush or old toothbrush to scrub it. Deodorant stains from underarms on clothing can also be removed in the same manner.

Further Reasons for Washing Laundry with Vinegar

• More effective handwashing with prewash – If you need to handwash clothes with unpleasant odours, use vinegar to prewash. Soak the clothes in a container or sink filled with water and a cup of vinegar for several hours or overnight, then wash as usual.
• Reduce static electricity, lint and pet hair – You can add half a cup of vinegar to the wash load to counteract the effect of static electricity. The same amount of vinegar also helps get rid of stuck pet hair during the wash cycle. Acetic acid also prevents lint from sticking to clothing.
• Wash dark laundry with vinegar – Since white vinegar refreshes colours, it is also suitable for washing black or dark clothing. Its effect helps to prevent clothing from becoming dull and also removes soap residue or washing powder residue. All you need to do is add half a cup of it to the final rinse cycle.

Also read: 6 Surprising & Effective Household Hacks for Cleaning with Washing Powder!

• Get rid of hemlines on altered clothing – Use vinegar, even when you want to hide the traces of altered tailoring. These most often occur on seams or hems, but you can moisten a white cloth with vinegar and place it under the fabric on an ironing board. Press it firmly and use an ironing cloth when ironing if you also want to get rid of shiny spots.
• Use vinegar as a fabric softener – This home remedy can also be an environmentally friendly alternative to commercially available fabric softeners. It works naturally and can eliminate the scratchy feeling left after washing. Again, you can simply add half a cup of vinegar at the final rinse instead of a fabric softener.
• Wash and whiten white clothes with vinegar – If you want to have bright white clothes, vinegar will definitely help you achieve this. The trick is to heat water in a pot with a cup or half of vinegar and soak grubby clothes in it overnight.

When Shouldn’t You Wash Laundry with Vinegar?

• You can also use vinegar as a natural cleaning agent and odour neutralizer when caring for your washing machine. However, you should keep in mind that acetic acid could damage some rubber seals if used too frequently.
• Avoid using vinegar and chlorine bleach on your clothing at the same time, as this can produce toxic gases. You also shouldn’t combine the natural remedy with hydrogen peroxide for stain removal, as the two combine to form peracetic acid. This is an irritating and corrosive substance.
• When washing sportswear with vinegar, be careful not to do so too frequently. Otherwise, acetic acid can damage the elastic fibres of such clothing.
• Avoid applying undiluted vinegar directly to dark clothing to prevent fading of low-quality dyes. Instead, dilute it to half with water.

Hopefully, you have now been convinced to use the natural product as an additional and helpful alternative to commercially available fabric softeners and detergents. By considering the methods described above and the accompanying factors, you can reap the numerous benefits of distilled white vinegar when washing laundry. Not only can you save money, but you can also treat your clothes gently with vinegar!

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