When you buy new white linens or clothes simple laundry practices will keep those items looking bright and white.

Separate

Separate your laundry before washing. Whites should always be washed separately from everything else. Dye from clothing bleeds during the laundry cycle and will transfer to other clothing, so anything white can be easily ruined if it is washed with colors.

Treat Stains

Treat stains before laundering any item. After clothes have gone through the washer and dryer it is much harder to remove a stain. You can purchase commercial stain removers, but Dawn dish soap also works well to treat a stain. Rinse the stain with water and then apply stain remover and let the item sit for 15 minutes before washing.

Avoid Large Loads

Don’t over fill the washing machine, when clothes are packed to tightly, they cannot circulate and move around during the wash cycle. Soap residue, dirt and grime will not get washed away completely leaving clothes dirty.

Use The Right Amount of Detergent

Use the recommended amount of laundry detergent. If you use too much detergent it does not get rinsed away properly, but not using enough will leave behind dirt and grime.

Temperature

Most of the time you want to wash whites in warm water and rinse with cold. Warm water removes body oils and dirt without shrinking the clothes.

Using Bleach

Read the labels on your clothes and linens, bleach is safe for some white items but not others. For items that cannot be washed with bleach use non-chlorine bleach.