This didn’t quite seem a factual question, so IMHO it is.
For the last, oh, two years, my shirts have been getting systematically ruined by discolored spots. They look like grease stains, just a darker color than the rest of the fabric. Thing is, I don’t know where they are coming from. I use an apron when cooking. I don’t eat particularly greasy foods. Sometimes I almost think my washer is causing the problem because I’ll put something in clean and take it out with a stain - is that possible? I switched from liquid detergent to laundry sheets - no difference.
Ideas? Tips for salvaging these clothes? It was tolerable when it was the occasional t-shirt, but my favorite sweatshirt just came out with one of these stains and I am NOT happy.
Well water will sometimes run into two issues that are safe for use but somewhat staining. High Iron content or High Manganese (not magnesium, that is very different). Both of these cause browning in toilets, dishwashers and lighter colored clothes from the washing machine. There are filters that help with both of these.
The high iron often applies to older towns or cities.
Iron is the easier one to deal with, manganese requires a larger filter system in my limited experience.
Basically step one might be water testing. Step 2 is look into filter options for your need.
There are products that should remove the stains if it is either iron or manganese. For dishwashers it was called Glisten, but I recall there being something for your washer also. It appears glisten makes a product for washers also.
I’m honestly not sure about the water source. I live in a manufactured home complex where I lease the property. I know we don’t have soft water because I get rust in my hair, turning it from dark blond to a reddish color. I will definitely seek out these products and see if it helps!
Have you asked if your neighbors are experiencing similar issues? If yes, then perhaps it is the water supply. I would want to know before subjecting my clothes and washing machine to additional chemicals.
I’d also try a spell of a high-rated detergent rather than laundry sheets. They are pretty soundly ranked last in effectiveness by Consumer Reports and other rating efforts. I’d also avoid dryer sheets or other additives and go with a top choice liquid detergent for a test run.
Your municipal water utility probably has information you can access. Try calling them about minerals in the water or ask a public librarian to help you research local water quality.
It’s frustrating, I agree. I live in a very hard water locale. No end of trouble.
We have well water. Rust and other things stain stuff all the the time. I recently got Persil detergent.
It’s expensive, it smells really loud. But it doesn’t leave soap residue so I’ve found it doesn’t itch me.
And it gets latent stains out for the most part. I was really impressed with it.
I wish they’d calm the smell down a bit, tho’.
I’m sure you have thought of this, but just to cover the bases, have you tried low scent, or just no, dryer stuff to make sure that isn’t the offender?
I make my own laundry soap - 20 Mule Team Borax, Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (which is not the same as baking soda) and a bar of Fels Naptha Soap, grated. 1/2 tablespoonful gets my clothes adequately clean, and doesn’t leave any smell or residue.
The mineral content in your water is probably a factor. Does it do this to other items besides shirts - towels, underwear, pants, etc.?
I will try it. I just got a bottle of Tide Heavy Duty something or other which was on a top 15 list. Persil was #2. Tide may kill me, but I’m willing to try. Worst case scenario I could wash out the stains and then rinse very well on rewash.
Rust stains will be brown. If your machine is old and rusty inside it’s probably time for a new machine. Trying to fix rust isn’t worth the effort (IMHO).
The machine could have an oil leak. How big are the stains?
Might be mold. Run the machine a few times with either vinegar or bleach (or both, but not at the same time) to clean it. Some molds can be stubborn and might require more than one cleaning cycle.
You might have a clogged filter or just a really dirty filter. Fortunately that’s an easy one to fix, though you might have to ask Mr. Google where the filter is located on your machine. On some machines they are behind a little door near the bottom of the machine and are easy to find. On other machines they like to hide them.
This is my thought as well. If it was the detergent or fabric softener I would think it would be an even-ish coating on everything, not random spots here or there. It could be the washer or dryer flinging some oil around.
I agree with the above and am likewise perplexed by the “spots” aspect. You might think that anything happening before or during the wash cycle would become diluted and the staining would be diffuse (like when you wash brand new blue jeans with your white blouses <grin>).
Even something oil/grease-based, I would think, would be broken down by agitation and laundry detergent and make a more generalized mess.
Which makes me wonder if something gets triggered after the wash, rinse, and drain cycles have finished – maybe something that IS causing oil/grease to enter the drum.
Nonetheless … I’d definitely look into your water supply, clean any filters, and I’d definitely use the separate cleaning procedures of bleach and then vinegar.
Because low-hanging fruit.
But my spidey sense tells me you may have a bigger (read: $) problem.
Is it JUST shirts? If no, and the spots show up on pants, towels, etc. then I would agree with the above comments. If it’s just shirts, maybe you haven’t been as careful with cooking and eating lately than you thought you were?
Playing on that, I would think – if that was the issue – the vast majority (all?) of the spots would be on the front of the shirt and maybe a bit more widely distributed on long-sleeves.
Depending – you know – on your exuberance in eating and cooking