How to Use Vinegar in Laundry

After washing your clothes, you understandably expect them to be soft, clean and fresh smelling. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Laundry detergent and fabric softener may generally work well, but the unique properties of vinegar can have powerful benefits.

How can you use vinegar in laundry to enjoy softer, cleaner and better smelling clothes and linens?

What Kind of Vinegar Is Good for Laundry?

When washing your dirty clothes with vinegar, it’s important to use the right kind of vinegar. While there are several types of vinegar available at your local store, distilled white vinegar is the type that can elevate the cleanliness of your laundry.

Distilled white vinegar is recognized for eliminating odors and killing mildew and mold. It is also a natural fabric softener and can remove tough stains.

How Much Vinegar Do You Put in a Load of Laundry?

If your clothing is stained, you can pre-treat the stain with a mixture of vinegar and liquid laundry soap. Depending on how tough the stain is, the solution should remain on the clothing for anywhere from 30 minutes up to several hours.

Before adding white vinegar into the washing machine, read the manufacturer’s instructions.

Some manufacturers do not recommend adding vinegar to the washing machine. If it is safe to do so, you can add vinegar to either the detergent or fabric softener dispenser. Do not overfill the dispenser.

If you choose to add vinegar directly to your laundry, add a quarter cup to a half cup into the basin after it has filled with water.

Benefits of Using Vinegar in Laundry

Vinegar can be used before washing a load to treat stains. It is effective at eliminating wine, tea, deodorant and other types of stains.

Vinegar can also extract buildup to leave laundry softer. It can also kill mold and mildew, destroy stains and prevent colors from fading. While these benefits are powerful, vinegar should not be used regularly to clean your clothes.

How to Use Vinegar in Laundry

The right way to use vinegar in laundry depends on your goals. For example, if you want to prevent your clothes from fading or soften your laundry, pour a quarter cup of vinegar into the dispenser for the fabric softener. Add the detergent to the detergent dispenser as usual.

To tackle bad odors, white vinegar can be added to the washing machine in the middle of the cycle. Add the laundry detergent to the dispenser as usual, and start the washing machine. After the basin is filled with water, add a quarter to a half cup of white vinegar to the load.

If you need to treat stained clothes, make a 50-50 solution of liquid laundry detergent and white vinegar. Apply the solution directly to the stain. After 30 minutes to several hours, wash the clothing as usual.

If you want to whiten your clothes without using bleach, vinegar is effective. Soak the white clothes in a gallon of hot water and a cup of vinegar. After a few hours, wash the laundry as usual using your normal detergent.

Check out this simple vinegar hack to make your towels fluffy and free from odors and bacteria.

When Should You Not Use Vinegar in Laundry?

While vinegar has strong advantages to clean, soften and deodorize your clothes, there are instances when you shouldn’t use it.

For example, white vinegar should never be combined with bleach, baking soda or ammonia. In addition, vinegar can damage elastic.

What Is a Good Substitute for Vinegar in Laundry?

Baking soda is an effective alternative to vinegar. It can brighten colored clothes and whiten whites. In addition, it is effective at removing mold and unpleasant odors.

Vinegar and baking soda should not be used together to clean and deodorize clothes. Another alternative that eliminates odors and kills mold is oxygen bleach.

FAQs

Can I Use Vinegar and Laundry Detergent Together?

Vinegar and laundry detergent can be used together for cleaner, fresher-smelling and softer clothes. They can be added to the washing machine, or they can be used together to pretreat stained clothes before washing them.

Is White Vinegar Safe for All Laundry?

Vinegar is safe for many types of clothing and linens. However, it isn’t recommended for clothing that has elastic.

In addition, vinegar should be used as needed rather than with every load as it can be harsh on more delicate fabrics.

Will Using Vinegar in My Washing Machine Leave a Strong Smell on My Clothes?

While white vinegar has a strong smell that is unpleasant to many people, this smell won’t linger when you wash your clothes with it. Only a small amount of vinegar is added to the laundry. The washing machine’s rinse cycle will remove the vinegar from the clothes.

Are you struggling to find the time and motivation to stay on top of laundry, house cleaning and other tasks around the house? House cleaning & maid service from the Cleanzen team is the answer. Our professionals know how to tackle tough cleaning challenges, and we can give your home a deeper level of clean with every visit. Schedule your first cleaning service today.