Make it so Number One

[dewdrop_me_a_line]

I thought I'd share some of my miracle cleaners and see if ya'll have uses for them that I haven't thought of. I love to tackle an uncleanable spot and have it disappear.

Here are my favorites:
Club soda
Baking soda
White Vinegar
Olive Oil
Tea Tree Oil
   oh yeah, and the all powerful
Lemon Dishwashing Liquid

Tell me about your favorite ways to use the above or maybe you have different 'miracle' cleaners!

dew

[foutchie]

I use white vinegar in so many ways, everything that now comes up (from athletes foot to who knows what) my husband's first words are "vinegar, right?"  LOL

[valleythriftshopper]

My cleaning bag of tools for all my thrift & yard sale finds include:

Magic Eraser Sponge (Mr Clean or Generic variety) a miraculous invention.  Also great for cleaning stained counters, soap scum- no elbow grease needed.

Clorox Bleach Pen- for spots on linens, clothing.  Also I have applied to yellowed areas on old china- sometimes it works, sometimes no.

OxyClean or Generic variety- Great for yellowed linens

Formula 409, a good disinfectant, but I have it on hand for bakelite testing.  Put the 409 on a Q-tip then rub on the item.  If the tip of the Q-tip turns yellow, you've got bakelite.

Finally, I could not clean without swiffer floor pads & dusters.  Much quicker & more efficient that plain broom or dust cloth

[SecondhandSophisticate]

What really works for getting "ring around the collar" off? I got an incredible woven Calvin Klein man's shirt in a bag sale.  It washed up good, except for that dirty ring! (I wonder if the guy who wore it ever did the laundry?) I have gotten it lighter, somewhat, but I seriously wear this shirt and I want it CLEAN! Anybody have any suggestions?

[Jay2TheRescue]

What really works for getting "ring around the collar" off? I got an incredible woven Calvin Klein man's shirt in a bag sale.  It washed up good, except for that dirty ring! (I wonder if the guy who wore it ever did the laundry?) I have gotten it lighter, somewhat, but I seriously wear this shirt and I want it CLEAN! Anybody have any suggestions?

A lot of times that ring is caused by moisturizers.  Either directly, or from aftershave.  Try a strong laundry degreaser.  Citrus based ones work best for this.  In my store I just dryclean them to get rid of it, but sometimes I notice customers actually admit they ask for heavy starch so they can wear the shirt several times before cleaning it again.  In these cases you often cannot clean the ring. 

Also, beware of bleach.  Bleach is an extremely strong base.  It is a dangerous chemical to work with, so dangerous that I do not even use bleach in my drycleaning/laundry operation.  It can also damage the fabrics.  Bleach can damage the fibers and cause holes.  After repeated use of bleach chlorides will actually bind to the fibers and cause yellowing.  This type of yellowing cannot be removed, as the chlorides have actually become part of the fiber itself.  If the chlorides are removed at this point the fabric falls apart. 

Now for my super secret.  Hydrogen peroxide is great for relatively fresh blood and other protein stains.  The fresher the stain the easier it comes out with peroxide.

-Jay

[SecondhandSophisticate]

Got it, Jay! Thanks for your quick response. It was dark in the store, and I didn't see the ring, but shirt is so wonderful, I probably would have purchased it anyway. Merci!

[valleythriftshopper]

Also, beware of bleach.  Bleach is an extremely strong base.  It is a dangerous chemical to work with, so dangerous that I do not even use bleach in my drycleaning/laundry operation.  It can also damage the fabrics.  Bleach can damage the fibers and cause holes.  After repeated use of bleach chlorides will actually bind to the fibers and cause yellowing.  This type of yellowing cannot be removed, as the chlorides have actually become part of the fiber itself.  If the chlorides are removed at this point the fabric falls apart. 



-Jay

Clorox came out with a new bleach called "Ultimate care" which is a buffered bleach.  They claim it will not yellow whites.  It can also be used with some colors.  I have used it & like it, it also smells better than regular bleach.

[foutchie]

does blueing work well on whites?   always wondered if it helps keep white sheets looking bright.

[valleythriftshopper]

I looked at a package of blueing once because it was on sale at one of the local grocery stores.  I did not end up buying it because it seemed pretty similar to bleach, although I don't remember exactly what the label said.  I usually just use the clorox ultimate care on all my sheets & towels.  Bleach can break down fiber over time, especially with the towels & undies, but still they are usually good for a few years.  Sheets I have had no problem with breaking down from bleach. 

If your sheets are just yellowed from age/storage you could use the oxyclean (I buy the generic version at the dollar store).  Once I bought some vintage off-white curtains with embroidery at a second hand store.  They had no stains but were yellowed with age.  I put them in water with the oxygen cleaner & the water immediatley turned yellow-they looked great afterwards.

[Jay2TheRescue]

Also, beware of bleach.  Bleach is an extremely strong base.  It is a dangerous chemical to work with, so dangerous that I do not even use bleach in my drycleaning/laundry operation.  It can also damage the fabrics.  Bleach can damage the fibers and cause holes.  After repeated use of bleach chlorides will actually bind to the fibers and cause yellowing.  This type of yellowing cannot be removed, as the chlorides have actually become part of the fiber itself.  If the chlorides are removed at this point the fabric falls apart. 



-Jay

Clorox came out with a new bleach called "Ultimate care" which is a buffered bleach.  They claim it will not yellow whites.  It can also be used with some colors.  I have used it & like it, it also smells better than regular bleach.

I still would not trust a chlorine bleach.  I would only use oxygen bleaches.  They are much safer.

-Jay

[genuineimitation]

i'm with jay on the bleach idea - hydrogen peroxide is as far as i'll go.

my miracle cleaner lately has been citrasolve. got some tenacious candle wax out of cotton with it - great and biodegradeable. it's GOT to be good for the earth as well as my stuff.. plus i don't trust "modern" chemicals on vintage goods - never know what will disintegrate!

[Other People s Junk]

SeSo- I heard somewhere you can use shampoo to get the ring around the collar out... something about it attacks the oily residue just like it would when you wash your hair.  (I think you would just smear it on and then scrub it together.)  Jay's suggestions probably work better!   

OxyClean works wonders on smells... I had a thrifted pair of jeans that smelled strongly of incense... I washed them several times, nothing happened, but as a last resort used a bunch of OxyClean in the mix and they came out nice and incense-less!

[Thrift Shop Romantic]

How about rust spots on vintage linens? I have an old tatted doilie of my grandmothers which has some rust stains on it. Any ideas on what might work to get them out without wrecking the doilie?

[dewdrop_me_a_line]

How about lemon juice and sunshine? I have sunshine today but it sure is cooold!

[oceangurl]

Jay your right about the Hydrogen perioxide and blood removal! I have my own cleaning business, just me, self-employed , this has been my employment for 27 years now, I had a fisherman tell me a long time ago (I live in Florida) that when ever he got bloodstains (ie baiting fish) on his teeshirts he would treat them with Hydrogen perioxide, I have been using it ever since, you pour it on the stain and it actually "attatches" itself to the stain and starts to bubble it up. I tell everyone I know about it, I always buy 2 bottles, at 50cents each, their cheap enough. also a tip, white vinegar for tile, lemon oil for shower doors and tiles in shower, that is after you removed soap scum. Hope my experience helped somenone...