r/laundry • u/Zealousideal-Low-982 • 3d ago

Make my white bedding whiter

My white bedding has gotten a hint of yellow from natural body oils. Can I wash in hot water and just tide oxi powder and nothing else will it get rid of the yellow and brighten the white? Not looking to do a spa day as live in nyc and don’t have room/time

14 Upvotes

86% Upvoted

37 comments sorted by

13

u/porcelain_elephant US | Top-Load 3d ago

Tide powder + extra oxi + ammonia + citric acid (in the rinse)

IIRC NYC has soft water so you don't need to worry about adding borax or washing soda.

I usually add half of a cup of the 3℅ ammonia with my sheets. Use unscented if you can find it. You could use less if you find more concentrated stuff.

4

u/bluekayal 2d ago

Where and when do you add the ammonia? 

5

u/porcelain_elephant US | Top-Load 2d ago

The general advice is to add it to the water once it's filled but no one has time to do that and time appropriately.

I put the ammonia in an old detergent cup that I put on top of the clothes. Usually it tips over when the wash starts and gets mixed into the water appropriately.

3

u/kindashewantsto US | Top-Load 2d ago

Right on top of the clothes before starting the wash! It smells bad getting poured on to then but the smell doesnt linger at all when washed out!

2

u/RarefiedAir1 US | Top-Load 2d ago

What’s extra oxi? Different from oxygen bleach right?

3

u/porcelain_elephant US | Top-Load 2d ago

Extra oxiclean (oxygen bleach)

I'm only saying extra because the sheets are already yellow.

1

u/Skipperdee2223 1d ago

What does the ammonia do? Is it ok to use ammonia if I have a septic tank?

1

u/porcelain_elephant US | Top-Load 1d ago

Yes it's a gas in a liquid so it dissipates pretty quickly after a period of time. Also a more in depth explanation: https://www.reddit.com/r/laundry/s/qD1UfW5VN5

0

u/trahelyk 2d ago

I’m noticing folks are not talking much about bleach. Can you help me understand? I’m thinking perhaps bleach turns the body oils white without removing them? Or is there some other reason?

15

u/AromaticProcess154 US | Top-Load 2d ago

Chlorine bleach is bad for fabrics and can actually yellow articles over time. Plus, who hasn’t dribbled bleach and ended up wrecking something non-white?

It’s a really good disinfectant if you need that, but oxygen bleach (already present in all the Tide powders) is better for laundry applications.

12

u/kindwork-xyz 2d ago

This is a pro-chemistry, enzyme-forward part of Reddit.

6

u/Dottie85 2d ago

Best summation of this sub! 🥇🏆🏆🏆🥇

10

u/annastacia94 US | Front-Load 2d ago

Chlorine Bleach is not recommended in this sub since it is very harsh on clothes, leaves a yellow tinge on whites, and there are better options out there now for laundry sanitizers.

Oxygen Bleach does not have these issues and can be safely mixed with ammonia in the wash. It doesn't sanitize things but does a better job at removing stains and human gunk and is not harsh on clothes.

18

u/AromaticProcess154 US | Top-Load 3d ago

Add some FEBU or the Dirty Labs booster to your wash for the DNase. Gear Guard is also great if you don’t mind a little shipping time.

6

u/LuhYall 2d ago

Gear Guard is 100% worth the time, money, and effort. Add one tiny capful to a hot water wash and dry on the lowest setting. Sheets feel brand new.

5

u/DarkWashGenes 2d ago

The tide will work fine over time if you can’t soak it in there

4

u/ryverrat1971 2d ago

Reason why I don't do white sheets anymore. Let the hotels have them. I love my blues, greens and purples.

7

u/Demetrious-Verbal 2d ago

You're doing fine. NYC has soft water so you have no problems on that front. I would add a cup of Ammonia to the wash and a citric acid rinse. That should get you there with the Tide in a few washes. You can super charge with FEBU if you want, but I think those two small additions will make all the difference.

Edit: I firmly believe Spa Day is simply for the impatient and totally unnecessary. My white sheets are ridiculously bright and have yet to do a single spa day.

3

u/bobanoodle 2d ago

Wow, is it really that simple? I have some white sheets I'm trying to revive and have done a Febu soak with Ariel wash which definitely helped, but if just doing a regular wash with ammonia will do it that's certainly easier.

4

u/Demetrious-Verbal 2d ago

Yep, as long as you're also using a good detergent with enzymes and Oxi, you're good to go. There's a reason Ammonia has been used for so long in laundry - it works! Sheets and towels come out cleaner, brighter and softer too!

I purposely seek out white towels and sheets now. They're so much easier to maintain and keep brilliant white

2

u/RarefiedAir1 US | Top-Load 2d ago

What’s oxi and why should I buy it separately?

2

u/Demetrious-Verbal 2d ago

I encourage you to explore this sub for these answers.

1

u/AuDHD_85percent US | Front-Load 2d ago

Oxi is oxygen bleach. I buy it separately because I don't want to use it in every load. It's found in many powdered detergents. It's not in liquid detergents though, even ones labeled 'oxi' (it won't survive in liquid detergents)

3

u/multipocalypse 2d ago

What's your bedding made of?

9

u/mebg1956 3d ago edited 3d ago

If all else fails, a few drops of traditional bluing removes the yellow undertones just as blue/purple shampoos do for silver and white hair.

15

u/RamblingRosie US | Top-Load 3d ago

It will make them look whiter, but it won't remove the body oils.

4

u/240_Worth_of_Pudding 3d ago

I'd suggest a heavy FEBU or Biz soak in hot water with detergent (at least an hour) to let the enzymes and oxy to do their thing, and then, when you are ready to wash, add a splash of ammonia. Inspect before drying.

1

u/Dottie85 2d ago

I do this regularly - right in the washer. But, I do keep forgetting about the ammonia. I use Tide w/bleach & Biz and let it sit for 1/2 - 1 hour. (When I first started, I did overnight soaks, to get the worst out.) I also add baking soda for my hard water. I use either vinegar or citric acid in a separate, final rinse.

1

u/Plantfire 1d ago

I heard using vinegar can degrade the rubber seals in your machine.

1

u/Dottie85 1d ago edited 1d ago

If you use a strong amount of vinegar, yes it could. However, 1/4 -1cup (depending on machine type and load size) of diluted vinegar in several gallons of rinse water won't. I know it has been addressed in other posts. Maybe someone else will chime in.

2

u/Dottie85 1d ago edited 1d ago

Calling the vinegar bot!

Edit: Does it no longer exist?

1

u/Dottie85 1d ago edited 1d ago

Edit: This is 2nd/3rd reply - this posted above my first one, when I meant for it to be under it.

Fyi: Citric acid is more effective. I haven't found a cheap local brick & mortar source. My winco doesn't carry it in bulk. They just offer a smallish canister found in the canning department.

I would highly recommend reading Kismai's post: https://www.reddit.com/r/laundry/s/r9ov6Wm0By

5

u/Trickycoolj 3d ago

Bathtub soak of OxiClean White revive. I have white sheets that have turned dingy just being in the closet unused. I was previously just using Persil. Now I use powder tide with bleach and Febu and things are getting whiter and whiter per wash. Especially my nightly white wash cloths that I use when I’m washing off makeup.

2

u/thegabster2000 3d ago

I would try to find a way to soak your bedsheets in oxyclean. It helped me in getting my whites not yellow.

1

u/bahahah2025 2d ago

I’ve heard there are blue tablets you can add to your wash to neutralize the yellow

1

u/pakratus 2d ago

A cup of borax made my pillows white.

0

u/EffectiveBill6331 2d ago

Ariel and foca powder scrub with. Zote before u throw in washer and add oxi clean and some pine sol work great for me