Whites Laundry and Well Water

Hi C.,

I had water problems and I contacted Sterling Mountain Water Systems at ###-###-####. They offer a free analaysis and then let you know what solutions are available. I love my water now! Good luck to you.

-B.

Hi C.,

What your describing is "hard water". You can improve it by adding a water softening system to your water supply. These can be quite expensive, so it depends on your economic status. Beyond that, chlorine bleach can actually make the problem worse because it interacts with the iron in the water and leaves permanent discoloration. Blood also is high in iron, so even people with soft water will find that they can get permanent stains on panties if they was them in bleach after their period.

Currently, I pretreat all organic (blood, food, grass, etc.) stains with Shout spray laundry pretreater then wash in cold water. I used to use Tide laundry detergent, but find I get equally good results with Arm and Hammer and it's much less expensive. I haven't notice any difference if the detergent has non chlorine bleach added, so I don't bother. It's cheaper without it.

Check heavily stained items after the wash if they are not clean, don't dry them. Drying will only set the stain. For stubborn stains or whites that have become "dingy", I get good results with oxyclean. I add a little hot water in the wash and dissolve a scoop of oxyclean I add more warm water (enough to really soak the clothes) then I add the stained items and agitate long enough to really saturate them. I then let them sit up to 24 hours and wash as usual.

You could also periodically add a scoop of oxyclean to you white loads to keep them bright. Just be sure to dissolve in warm to hot water first. Oxyclean does not work well in cold water.

Another laundry hint: Do you have darks with little dark spots that make them look dirty? A little dish soap applied to the spot and then washed as usual will remove those dark spots.

J. L.

You probably have iron and maganese (sp?) in your ground water, which causes discoloration in laundry, toilet tanks and bowls, showers, etc. Clorine bleach actually makes this worse because it reacts with the iron and turns black. A water test (contact your plumber) would be able to tell you what minerals are in your water).

We had a whole-house water filtration and softening system installed many years ago ad it has made a huge difference. The filtration system removes particles and contaminants; the softener uses salt to neutralize the mineral content (hard water often leaves residue and makes soap not sud). Frankly the only way we cured the situation was with installing the softener system, which can cost upwards of a thousand dollars and needs to be maintained by adding salt every few months.

Also check your washing machine. My old model had a small filter (like the one on the end of a faucet) to catch debris. When it got clogged, I noticed decreased water flow and spotting.

We just moved and our neighbor warned us that we would have the same problem. I haven't noticed it yet, but she said they've been using Culligan ( a water company) for years to treat the water. It is some kind of metal issue. I guess you could start there...
E. K.

Hi C.,
I recently have made some changes re: laundry that have become very beneficial to our family...Maybe I can help you because it helped us....If you would like, please contact me: Email ____@____.com ...Glad to try and help.

M.

Calgon seems to work well

Hi C.,
Almost 30 years ago we had to have a well drilled. There was iron in the water. We installed a water softner,which used salt (you buy at kmart, walmart, home depot etc.)The softner did the trick. I would also follow / try some of the many other suggestions first. Our water was tested, and based on the test results a specific water softner was recommnended. For us it seemed expensive ($1000) (30 years ago). When we moved 20 years later the softner was still working, and one of the best investments we had made.

I would try the softners or different detergent. I use all natural products that seem to work.

M.

Working at home and loving it!

Use caution with iron out we followed the instructions on vacation for colored clothes & it bleached them. The iron in NC was so bad it stained our dark laundry. Just wanted to warn you. I use it as a toilet cleaner though works great on the ring.

I have no idea if this will work at all - but have you ever tried the Shout Color Catcher sheets that you put in the washing machine? They are amazing - they trap all the loose colors from colored clothing. I haven't separated my darks from my lights in years. I just throw everything together. I do use more sheets than they recommend - I never go with just one sheet. But I have never had a problem. Perhaps these sheets would also catch the stains from minerals in the water.
I do know you should be careful about whole house softening systems and filtration systems if you are on a septic system. In my sister's neighborhood, all her neighbors who got those systems killed their septics in 10 years and had to get new ones - expensive at $20K - $25K for a new septic!
She never got a softening system, had the same builder and septic as all her neighbors, and her systems is still going fine 16 years later.
Good luck.

We live in Groton and have very hard water. You might need a whole-house filter to get out some sediments from your well before the water reaches the pipes and your faucets and machines. However, if it is dissolved contaminant (we have something that makes the toilet bowl have an orange tinted rim in about 3 days) then you may need something like Oxiclean added to your wash. An I have found that bleach does not always mean whiter: I have added bleach to water while the white clothes were already in the bucket and the water goes through an orange/rust color before the bleach totally clears it, but during that time the color already deposits onto the clothes and is hard to remove. I now add bleach to water and stir for a while and THEN add the clothes. Not sure how that would work in a washer so I use Oxiclean or Clorox2. You can get your water tested by a plumber to determine what you have exactly - stuff that is bad for cleaning is not necessarily bad for your body (calcium, iron, etc.). Good luck with the laundry - as if it wasn't enough of a chore without this hassle!

My uses some stuff called iron out in her laundry when she does her whites bc she has the same problem w/ her well water.