How to Bleach Cotton

Co-authored by Robert Shapiro

Last Updated: March 10, 2022 References

Bleach is a common household laundry product that can remove stains and make your cotton colors brighter. But it can also can also damage your clothes if you’re not careful. Always follow simple safety guidelines for working with bleach. Then soak your cotton items in a bleach solution or just add bleach to your washing machine.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Using Bleach Safely

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Wear protective gear when handling bleach. Put on rubber gloves and safety goggles if you’re concerned about splashes. Wear old clothes you wouldn’t mind getting bleach on. A white t-shirt is a good choice since a bleach stain is unlikely to show up. Or you can cover your clothes with a plastic apron.^{[1]
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Ventilate your workspace. Open any doors or windows to create good airflow while you’re working. If your eyes are watering, you’re using too much bleach. Step away to get some fresh air and then dilute the bleach with more water.^{[2]
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Dilute bleach with water whenever you use it. Bleach is very concentrated and can damage the material you’re using it on, so always dilute it with water before applying it to any fabric. . ^{[3]
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Use about ¼ cup (60 mL) of bleach for every gallon (3.8 L) of water when making a bleach solution
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Keep bleach and ammonia separate. These two chemicals create toxic fumes when mixed together. Do not combine them, and thoroughly wash any container that held one before filling it with the other.^{[4]
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- The same applies to vinegar and rubbing alcohol, both of which should never be mixed with bleach.
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Check the tags of any item you intend to bleach. If it says “no bleach,” do not attempt to bleach it; the garment could be ruined. If it says, “only non-chlorine bleach when needed,” this implies that non-chlorine bleach is safe occasionally, but continuous use could damage it.^{[5]
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- If there are no words on the tag, look for a triangle shape with an open center. This is the symbol for an item that can be bleached.^{[6]
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- Also look for the fabric composition of the item. If it’s cotton mixed with spandex, wool, or silk, avoid bleaching it since these materials can be ruined by bleach.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Soaking in a Bleach Solution

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Fill a bucket with cold water. Pour in enough water that the item can move freely in the solution. Be sure to either measure the water as you’re adding it or use a bucket with measurements up the side so that you know how much bleach to add.
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Pour in the bleach. Use ¼ cup (60 mL) of bleach for every gallon (3.8 L) of water. Stir with an old spoon you can dedicate just to laundry purposes. There are a variety of bleaching agents, such as sodium bisulfite and titanium dioxide.^{[7]
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Expert Source

Robert Shapiro
Laundry Specialist
Expert Interview. 24 August 2021.} Use chlorine bleach if the item is white and non-chlorine bleach (sometimes called oxygen bleach) if the item has color.^{[8]
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- You can also use regular chlorine bleach on a colored garment if you’re trying to lighten the color of the entire item.
- You should be very careful while using Clorox. Even if it splashes on a garment by mistake, it will pull out the color of that garment automatically.^{[9]
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  Expert Source
  
  Robert Shapiro
  Laundry Specialist
  Expert Interview. 24 August 2021.}
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Soak the cotton item in the bleach solution. If you’re just pre-soaking the material to remove stains before washing, only leave it in the solution for about 5 minutes. You can add a few minutes to that time if you’re working with really tough stains.^{[10]
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- If you’re attempting to lighten the color of the fabric, leave it in chlorine bleach for up to 10 minutes.
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Rinse the item with cool water. While wearing gloves to protect your skin, rinse the item under the faucet until you’ve removed as much bleach as possible. Keep the faucet running as you slowly pour out the bleach solution so that it can be diluted even more as you dispose of it.^{[11]
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Neutralize it with hydrogen peroxide. Unless you’re going to throw the item into a washing machine immediately, you’ll need to stop the bleaching action from continuing. Create a solution that’s equal parts water and hydrogen peroxide in a different bucket or in a stoppered sink. Let the item soak for about five minutes before rinsing again.^{[12]
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Wash normally. Launder the item however you would normally, but if you’ve chosen to skip the neutralizing step, do not toss this item into the wash with dark colors. You will likely get bleach onto something else that you didn’t mean to. Wash it separately or with whites.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Using Bleach in the Washing Machine

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Set your washer to the highest heat possible. Hot water makes bleach more effective, though it can also cause chlorine bleach to release more chlorine fumes. So only use hot water with bleach in the washing machine, where the fumes will be contained.^{[13]
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Add detergent and bleach if your machine has a bleach dispenser. If your washer has a special bleach dispenser, you can put everything in at once. Pour detergent into the drum or its own dispenser, place laundry in the drum, and pour bleach into its dispenser. Follow the instructions on your machine regarding amounts, but typically you can use ½ cup (120 mL) of bleach for a full-sized load. Turn on the washer and let it run normally.^{[14]
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Add water first if your machine doesn’t have a bleach dispenser. Add however much detergent you need for the size of the load you’re doing and turn on the water. Let the water agitate the detergent for 5 minutes.^{[15]
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Add bleach 5 minutes into the cycle. Follow the directions on your machine for how and when to add bleach. But if you’re unsure, it’s best to wait 5 minutes to add the bleach. Detergents have special enzymes that can be deactivated by bleach if the two liquids are mixed together. Waiting 5 minutes allows the enzymes to dissolve in the water first.^{[16]
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- Use about ½ cup (120 mL) of bleach for a full-sized load.
- If there are any items with color in this load, use only non-chlorine bleach.
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Add the clothing to the washer. Once the water has detergent and bleach fully mixed in, add the items you want to wash. Waiting to add them until now helps you dilute the bleach first so that none of your garments get heavy doses of bleach.^{[17]
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Allow the washer to run normally. When the cycle is done, your clothes should be clean and stain-free. You may need to repeat this process for items with really tough stains.
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Finished.

Community Q&A

Question

What is the ratio of bleach to water to change beige cotton to white?

Community Answer

It depends on how "bleached" you want it. 1/3 bleach to 2/3 water will do fine.
Question

I want to know how to make extra white from normal color (kora). What can I do?

Community Answer

Soak it in a bleach solution for 10 minutes at a time until you are satisfied with the color.
Question

I can buy bleach (NaOCl) in any supermkt, but where can I get the neutralizing chemicals e.g. Sodium Thiosulphate, Sodium bisulphite?

Community Answer

You can buy hydrogen peroxide at most pharmacies and some hardware stores. Also try ordering it online if you're having trouble finding it in stores.