Spots in the wash
August 22, 2007 by Heather
Dear Home Ec 101:
Seems like all my colored T-shirts come out of the washer with a few faint stains on the fronts. It looks like I spilled a drop or two of water on me when I put them on. It’s on them all, no matter what load they went into or what they were washed with. Sometimes I can spray and wash the area and it comes out. They almost look like a grease spots. Could it be liquid fabric softener? Other ideas? I don’t want to continue to ruin shirts or look like I spilled water down my front when I leave the house.
Just call me,
Spotty in Sparta
Heather says:
You hit the nail on the head, missy. The problem IS your fabric softener. Liquid fabric softeners are notorious for leaving spots on clothing. If you have a top loading machine, you may be overloading it with clothing. The softener needs to room to be sloshed evenly over the clothing. If you are using a front loading machine significantly reduce the amount of fabric softener you are using. Over the next few loads, reduce the amount of softener you use, until the spots are gone and you still maintain the fabric feel you desire. Personally, I just add white vinegar to the rinse cycle, but I’m one of those sensitive weirdos who cannot tolerate perfumes.
Now let’s rid your shirts of existing spots. Rub the spots with dishwashing liquid, yes, good old Palmolive will be fine, and relaunder without detergent. It’s as easy as pie. Dryer sheets can also cause spotting, but they will be clear, much like a grease spot. Rub these with a wet bar of soap, such as Ivory and wash as usual.
Thank you!!!!! I have been troubled by this for a long time. I stopped using dryer sheets, just in case, and it seems to have helped, but I was never sure what caused the spots. It seemed to me the spots were more numerous on my husband’s mor expensive T shirts, so I sent one and wrote a letter to the manufacturer asking for answers. All I got was a new shirt. Thanks again
I don’t use softners or softner sheets and every piece of clothing we own is being ruined by these grease stains. I have no idea what it is but I can only assume its from dryer. And I know, with kids, stains are highly likely but even their brand spanking new clothes are coming out with these stains (as well as my clothes and the hubby’s) Any ideas? At this point, I’m ready to just buy a new dryer because by the time I pay for a service call, labor and parts, it costs the same (if not less to replace!!) Crazy!! Any ideas??
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I have had this same problem for months and have learned, through some research, that many spot removers (ie: Spray and Wash) leave these stains. It says on the product not to use it on khaki colored clothing. I have ruined more paints than I know what to do with.
I have an idea! I have an idea!!! Another great fabric softener to use is good old-fashioned ammonia! Probably don’t want to use it if you just washed with bleach, unless you rinse out all the bleach first then use the ammonia in a 2nd rinse cycle. I forgot where I read about doing this, but if you add about 1/2 - 1 cup ammonia (I haven’t actually done this in a while, so I don’t remember how much I used) to your rinse water, YES, your laundry room & house will stink like crazy, and so will the clothes, BUT, after the clothes go through the dryer, the smell is completely gone! Your clothes will be brighter, softer, and have a very fresh scent. No ammonia scent at all! The best reason for using ammonia in your rinse water is to break down the mineral build up from hard water. Do this when your whites get dingy & funky. I used to think bleach was the best thing to use for dingy whites, but not true if the dinginess is caused by mineral buildup from the water. Works great! Smells great!
Hello. I’m desperate for an answer to this. Two of my brand new colored T-shirts now have spots. We don’t use liquid fabric softener or dryer sheets. We use Arm & Hammer liquid detergent which we add to the water before putting the clothes in. It does look like wet spots on my clothes. It only seems to happen to cotton knits, like T-shirts, and only shows up on bright or dark colors, like fuchia or navy blue. Help!