Tag: Laundry

30 Things I Love: OxyClean

OxyClean

I know. Another post about a laundry product. However, this one is a new love.

When we purchased our first front load HE washing machine, we didn’t have a lot of issues with sour smelling clothes at first, but every once in awhile, it seemed like a load of towels would pick up an odor. As time went on, I learned that keeping the door open and using a washing machine cleaning tablet were the best ways to keep the musty smelling odors out of the machine. Getting the odors out of the towels that were left in the machine too long? That wasn’t as easy.

I started using Febreeze for Laundry when washing my towels and my tech shirts (the kind of shirts many wear while exercising, or working).  I also tried using vinegar in the rinse cycle, and using an extra rinse cycle to make sure all of the detergent was rinsed out. Alone, the products had mixed results. Bleaching was out, because Laura is sensitive to bleach, so I try not to use it on things she’ll use. Enter Pinterest.

I searched for ways to remove odors from HE washing machines, and came upon a few variations on a theme. Most used an oxygen bleach, and white vinegar. I had no idea what oxygen bleach was, and was pretty confused when I looked for it at the store, so I did a little Google search. Turns out that OxyClean is a form of oxygen bleach, so I bought a small bottle to see if it would work.

To remove the smell from towels and tech shirts, use the typical amount of detergent that you use (I use between 1 teaspoon and 1 tablespoon depending on load size), add the OxyClean into the prewash water or dispenser, add some vinegar into the fabric softener dispenser, and choose the hottest water the fabric can handle. Set the machine to auto soak or pre-treat, then use the normal setting you use for the clothes. As soon as the cycle is done, remove the clothes, and do a smell check before you dry them on the hottest setting for those clothes. Personally, I like to air dry my tech shirts, since I think it helps them to last longer. Make sure the clothes or towels are fully dry before you fold and put away.

I was pretty skeptical that this would work. I have tried it with and without the vinegar as well. Let me just say, I love how the OxyClean helps remove the odors from the towels and tech shirts. In fact, the last time I went shopping, I bought a bigger bottle. Next test? Pig odors!

What laundry tricks or tips do you love?

Day 1: Pizza

Day 2: Shoes

Day 3: Shout Stain Remover

Day 4: The Ability to Vote

Day 5: My Heritage

Day 6: NASCAR

Day 7: Black Velvet for Photography

Day 8: Strong Coffee and Strong Hairspray

Day 9: Peacefulness

Day 10: Winter’s First Snow

Day 11: Freedom

Day 12: Dairy

Day 13: Jonathan

Day 14: Coffee

Day 15: Seasons

Day 16: Scones

Day 17: #AgNerds

Day 18: Playing in the Dirt

Day 19: Friends

Day 20: My Church Choir Family

Day 21: OxyClean

Click here to go to Holly Spangler’s blog, and see the link for other 30 Day Challenge Bloggers

 

30 Things I Love: Shout Stain Remover

Shout Stain Remover

One of the things I learned quickly after becoming a farm wife, was how dirty the guys can get in a day. More than once I was told it would be just a quick stop to check something, only to have motor oil, hydraulic oil, diesel, or grease all over the good clothes. As a newlywed, I felt some pressure to figure out how to get those stains out, so Jonathan would have clean clothes for church and going to town. Coming to the farm from the city, I felt a little judged by other farm women on how clean our clothes were. My mother-in-law gave me a few tips, but I tried many products to see what ones could handle farm oils and grease.

To begin with, I created a few set-in stains, so I used WD-40 to reactivate the stain, then used Dawn dishsoap to get the WD-40 out. I don’t recommend doing this on the good clothes. It is more acceptable to be wearing Eau de WD in the barn than in the pew. I have since developed an allergy to Dawn, so I try to do a better job at pre-treating now.

Back in the day, we had stain sticks that looked a little like glue sticks. They worked ok on food stains, but never quite got all the farm stains out. I tried gels, pre-treating with laundry detergent, and using laundry boosters with varying degrees of success. I pretty much gave up on trying to get the farm stains out of farm shirts. The polyester/cotton blend t-shirts are grease stain magnets!

A few years ago I purchased an advanced formula of a stain remover, and thought it did a decent job, but it was time consuming. It required a 2 hour soak before laundering. I don’t know about you, but when I head in to do laundry, I don’t have the time or patience to wait 2 hours for a pre-treater to work. So, I kept looking for a good stain remover, and decided to try the Shout Advanced. In a nutshell, my search was over.

The Shout is made to take out grease stains, and has worked on some pretty nasty stuff. It occasionally takes two treat and wash cycles to get grease out, but I was impressed at how well it removed hydraulic oil. Now that we have a toddler foster son, I am appreciating how well it takes out food stains, too! I usually keep a spare can on hand in case there’s a hydraulic hose that breaks or comes loose and decides to cover us in oil, or with the toddler, it would be in case we eat spaghetti or lasagna. 🙂  The bonus is, the Shout works well with my HE washing machine.

Do you have any suggestions for farm laundry? Leave them in the comments!

*Just a little note: I am not sponsored by any of the products that I may write about, and I am not seeking compensation for any reviews or opinions. I am simply writing about those things I love and/or use regularly.

Day 1: Pizza

Day 2: Shoes

Day 3: Shout Stain Remover

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