Badlly Stained Socks?

Question

My husband works in a scrap yard and his socks have become badly stained and discolored. I would like to bring some life back and get them whiter if possible. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

As others have suggested a biological or oxygen cleaner works the best - however you have to be aware that you do not want to kill the enzymes in these powders (which are the active cleaners) with very hot water.

My suggestion is to keep a bucket of diluted oxygen cleaner either in the laundry sink or somewhere outside that is inconspicous and ask your husband to drop them in there when he takes them off. Change the water every three days or so and when you're ready to put them into the wash, wring them out and pop them into the machine on a warm cycle. Add some extra oxygen cleaner to your wash and they should come up very well.

Answer 2

I work in lawn care and most of my clothes get so dirty that somedays it literally turns the washer's water black within minutes (must be seen to be believed lol).

While using bleach would help some, I also found this considerably weakens the fabric and I end up replacing clothes a lot sooner.

Washing the entire load twice also seems to make little difference, other than my electric and water bill appear higher.

So...
To get things as clean as possible, I load it up soap and all and let the washer fill itself up with Warm water and let it start running for a few minutes with the lid OPEN to get all the soap going on and whatever, then stop it. The reason I leave the lid open is in case I forget what I'm doing, the open lid prevents it from going into spin, but I try to catch it within 3-4 minutes from starting, push or pull the button or what you do to stop it completely.
So, once it is stopped I close the lid and let it sit idle for like 30 minutes to an hour or so, then reset the cycle button to the very beginning and let'r rip. Should you forget that it's still sitting there, no big deal, just start the cycle when you remember.

The idea is to let the stuff soak through and through, and it helps.

Beyond that, sometimes clothes just get to that point, if they can still be worn but I can't stand it anymore, I wash and then donate the old to the Salvation Army and buy some new for myself.

Answer 3

What are the stains? You say he works in a scrap metal yard so the stains may be rust-related. If so, do not use chlorine bleach. CHLORINE BLEACH SETS RUST STAINS and you will never be rid of them. (This goes for bathtubs and sinks also.) Unfortunately, if you have washed and dried these stains, they are probably permanently set. On new socks try presoaking them in pure detergent before adding to the wash. I soak my husband's socks in the 1/2 cup detergent that I use for the full load, then toss them and the detergent in. That way I'm not wasting the soap.
My husband works in a machine shop and his white socks turn dark gray from the metal. The soaking method is best I've found, but his white socks aren't brand-new-white.
He now wears black and navy socks.
My life is much simpler!

Answer 4

Well remember the good old fashioned soap bar , well this will bring life back to your husbands socks, Soak in cold water and rub the soap in leave the soaks free from water leaving the soap to soak in and do it´s work, say 1 hr would be enough . Then rinse in cold water add some more soap and pop them into the washing machine on a normal wash . & if you are luck yo have sun hang them out as the Sun bleaches your clothes the natural way , also you get a better fresh smell into your clothes.Same work´s for those stained under arm´s, sure you will notice the difference it makes

Answer 5

fill your washer with hot water (the hottest setting for your washer) and put in a half cup of baking soda (you can get a big box in the laundry isle for under $2) and three heaping scoops of oxiclean or any oxygen cleaner. Soak overnight. Run the cycle as normal to rinse away oxiclean and baking soda. Start a new cycle and add detergent as usual, still using HOT water. Works for my husbands socks and he is a mechanic and works in mud/dirt when he is not working as a mechanic.

Answer 6

Put the socks in the sink and fill the sink with hot water. Add dishwasher detergent and let them soak overnight. Wash as usual.

Answer 7

Set them in the washer but don't start it. Put a couple of scoops of OxyClean in and then pour BOILING water over them. Let them sit overnight. Much better for the fabric than bleach and works better too.

Answer 8

Well what I would do is (if they are white) try this on one pair first. I would put one in the wash and SUPER BLEACH them. In other words, put the water on hot and put in a lot of bleach

Answer 9

I add Borax to the wash. You may want to add Borax and Bleach if they're really dark.

Answer 10

have him wear colored socks instead of white