When it comes to laundry, there are a few “unknowns” in my world, like…
- how to keep whites white
- how to rid men’s softball pants of reddish-brown dirt
- and the right way to use Bleach (It’s safe with some colors? What about whites that have colored collars & trim? Then again, sometimes bleach turns whites grey, right?)
Bleach and laundry issues continue to confuse me.
Well, this weekend, I finally found one great resource for Bleach:
Use it to remove the caked on mildew and grime that is growing on the back of a vinyl shower curtain liner!
I’ve heard that you should use vinegar to wash the shower curtain liner in your washing machine.
That has always worked so-so for me.
But this weekend, we were out of vinegar, so I used Bleach instead.
I was afraid of two things:
- That the bleach would hurt the vinyl, and maybe even eat a hole right through it; and
- That the bleach would stain the vinyl, leaving us with a white-spotty shower curtain liner (that was a deep lavender to start with).
Neither actually occurred, and I couldn’t be happier with the results!
This shower curtain liner looks like NEW.
And to think, prior to this washing, Jim actually wanted me to just toss it in the garbage…
FYI: I used about a 1/2 cup of bleach and enough liquid detergent for a full load of wash then ran it through the complete cycle in the washing machine.
I recently read that this works well too:
Put your shower curtain in the washing machine with detergent, a 1/2-cup of salt, and a fluffy towel. Supposedly, the salt clinks to the curtain and repels mold and mildew. The towel balances out the laundry load.
I like to help people find unique ways to do things that will save time & money — so I write about “outside the box” Household Tips and Life Hacks that most wouldn’t think of. I’m super-organized. And I LOVE to clean! I even enjoy doing laundry (but not ironing). I’m also a lifelong dog owner — so I often share my favorite tips for living with dogs inside your home (like smart home design choices and dog-friendly cleaning & decorating ideas). Career-wise, I’ve been sharing my best ideas with others by blogging full-time since 1998 (the same year that Google started… and before the days of Facebook and YouTube). Prior to that, I worked in Higher Ed over 10 years before switching gears to pursue activities that I’m truly passionate about instead. For example, I’ve worked at a vet, in a photo lab, and at a zoo — to name a few. I enjoy the outdoors via bicycle, motorcycle, Jeep, or RV. When I’m not cleaning, organizing, decorating, or fixing something… you’ll find me at the corner of Good News & Fun Times as publisher of The Fun Times Guide (32 fun & helpful websites). To date, I’ve personally written over 200 articles about cleaning, organization, DIY repairs, and household hacks on this site! A few have over 2M shares; many others have over 100K shares.
