I have had to wash my clothes at a friends house as my washer is packed away for our big move coming up.
My problem is that all my whites and light colored clothes are being stained a light brown/dirty color that I can't get out.
I use homemade laundry detergent (that NEVER gave me a problem at my home) and a rinse with white vinegar. I do NOT dry my dirty looking clothes in the dryer as I don't want the stain to set.
I do not use bleach and they do have well water. I have tried washing in both cold and warm water. Neither one makes it worse and neither one takes the icky brown color away.
I inspected the washer and found like a line of greenish scum at the top of their washer that I can scrape off with my fingernail, which I have never seen before and never had at my house.
Any tips on why all my socks and light colored clothes (including precious light colored baby blankets which are now brown!!!) are turning a nasty color?
I don't overload the washer, but I'm pretty sure they do....
Help please! Thanks in advance for any tips!!!
Mothers are those wonderful people who can get up in the morning before the smell of coffee. ~Author Unknown
I'm guessing they have a lot of iron in their well water and that they don't have a softener. We have to have a softener or our laundry would look the same. Our water is super orange without it. As far as the green scum goes, it's probably fabric softener caked up on the washer. I don't use fabric softener because I think it's gross. My mom always used it and her washer would smell like a mixture of fabric softener and "funk" until I discovered that the fabric softener buildup inside the machine was actually starting to mold and rot in there. It was so gross. Like I said, I don't like the stuff. I use vinegar in my wash for a softener. Maybe you could find another friend's washer to borrow that doesn't have well water?
Farmgirl Sister #1110 Siobhan - AKA Liza-Jane (my farmgirl name), wife to my best friend, Trent, and mommy to Camden (11/28/05), Bennett (7/11/07), Truman (7/28/09) and baby Graeme (11/29/12)
Sometimes the water company or the store have a product thats called iron out and it does work. We had something similar here when we first moved in and tried using the cystrin water and the lines were full of rust. It took it all out I was absolutely amazed.It comes in a can or bottle and just follow the instructions.
Linda
Raspberry Run Farm Nubian Dairy Goats
gramadinah
True Blue Farmgirl
3557 Posts
Diana
Orofino
ID
USA
3557 Posts
Posted - Mar 03 2013 : 1:21:42 PM
Washing soda will help with the water. Their machine is fixing to die I got a scum when the pump was going out the water was not getting pumped out and then the scum. And dirty clothes.
Diana
Farmgirl Sister #273
Cleaning Up: Light colored clothes being stained brown in wash?
Light colored clothes being stained brown in wash?
Posted - Jan 31 2013 : 07:50:25 AM
