I would be interested in reading any tips you might have for disinfecting laundry without using chlorine bleach. I recently heard that you can use a pine cleaner like Pine Sol. I haven't tried it yet (so can't vouch for it), and I'm not a fan of the strong fragrance, but I will give it a try. I'd love to check out some tips from other members. If you have a go-to method, please share.
If the clothing in question can handle hot, hot water, use the hottest setting on your washer and some extra soap. Hot water is very effective at killing germs and makes the soap work better so the germs will wash down the drain if any aren't dead. Drying the clothes in a hot dryer until completely dry also adds an additional heat based disinfectant to them. If the clothes can not tolerate high heat, soak them in oxyclean for an hour or more before washing. Oxyclean is a non-chlorine bleach that is also very, very effective at removing stains, so your clothes with come out very clean. One note on oxyclean, it tends to make red clothes bleed dye even if they have been washed many times. Do not put oxyclean in a wash load if there are any red items and other items that could be stained by the red dye.
Generally for disinfecting, the hotter the better in terms of water. You can use hydrogen peroxide to help pre-treat, and being that it's an antibacterial, antifungal and anti-mold product it will help somewhat with disinfecting. I understand bleach can be a bit harsh but it really is useful for disinfecting- you're not going to find a lot of 'natural' alternatives that truly measure up.
Bleach is definitely my first choice, but it will ruin some types of fabrics or destroy the colors. Does the peroxide cause bleach stains on the clothes when you use it, or do you dilute it? It doesn't necessarily have to be a natural product; I'm just looking for something that helps sanitize without bleaching out the color or making colors run.
I use the hottest water possible, although only boiling the water actually will get rid of the germs. I use bleach in all of my white clothes, basically because most of those are towels that get musty sometimes in the laundry basket. If I feel the need to actually disinfect dark clothes, I will pour a capful of Lysol cleaner in the washing machine. I have no clue if it kills the germs or if I'm just doing it for nothing. I would be curious to know if there has been any research on this topic. Thanks for posting! Danyel
I am also looking for the same thing. I have heard that bleaches with frequent use could be damageable to the clothes, later on because bleaches are quite strong. The problem is I don't know of which is as effective as a bleach to cleanse the clothes.
I had heard that pine cleaners would work, if they say "disinfecting" on the bottle. I am averse to the pine smell though. It's just too strong for me. So, I went and picked up a bottle of the lemon scented and it is much more pleasant. I'll try adding some to the wash.
This could also be helpful: Grapefruit Seed extract has many uses but one that isn't very widely known is that it can be used for disinfecting clothes. They use it in hospitals as a disinfectant and sanitizing agent so why should it not also be used at home?
