Clorox Bleach alternative

[DebB]

I realize this is off topic - but have any of you found a bleach alternative that really works? Tried and true?

I've tried Mrs. Meyers oxygen bleach (http://www.mrsmeyers.com/ProductDetail.aspx?ProductId=58b332aa-77c5-41f4-b7bb-c21e7830d55e)stain remover / laundry booster( powdered) and Seventh Generation liquid chlorine-free bleach (http://www.seventhgeneration.com/Chlorine-Free-Bleach).

I wash our whites in hot water, I use Kirkland brand eco-friendly laundry detergent. I hang our clothes on the line to dry in the warm Washington desert sun.

Nothing that I have tried so far comes close to whitening our whites.

Have you had luck with a chlorine-free product? *Ü*

[Ilse W.]

I use a cup of baking soda along with soap nuts. I go for clean! White is sooo overrated :D.

[DebB]

Thanks EmmaT, I appreciate your post.

I not able to go into details, but I need something that whitens. I'm happy with the level of 'clean' that our clothes get with the products I use. But it's (non-chlorine)whitening that I'm hoping to find. *Ü*

[Ilse W.]

Well, the only other thing I can offer is the experience from home. I never knew about bleach until I came to the US. My father was a musician and had to wear a tux and white shirt and white vest, which had to be meticulously clean. My mother boiled them on top of the stove, which got them clean every time. I would say that investigating the "old fashioned" ways might get you some answers.

[iwuvmydoggy]

what about mixing baking soda and 3% hydrogen peroxide? it's non-toxic and people use it to whiten their teeth.. peroxide is a known whitener.. so i don't see why it wouldn't work on your clothes, too!

i also found this online:

Home-made Alternatives

Laundry Whitener

Add up to 1/2 cup of 20 MuleTeam Borax or Arm & Hammer Washing Soda to washer.
Use sodium hexametaphosphate, amount depends on water hardness


i use mule team borax & it cleans really well. :)

here's the source i got the laundry whitener from: http://www.lesstoxicguide.ca/index.asp?fetch=household

[Dimond]

Soaking clothes in lemon juice and water is suppose to whiten clothes. Lemons have a natural bleaching ingredient.

[RaeVynn]

Yeah, I would go with the hydrogen peroxide, too.

Ecover has a laundry additive that's basically hydrogen peroxide... I've been known to dump half a little box of baking soda and a third of a bottle of regular hydrogen peroxide in the washer to seriously whiten some linens. Run through two wash cycles (if you have a top-loader, leave the lid open. Go back and start it over when it stops. If not, just stay close and manually reset it when it's done with the wash cycle). Put some white vinegar in the rinse cycle.

[Bananna]

boiling them....how neat and clever if it works! ~and convenient :)