Laundry Myths

Can a thing be both clean and stained?
Absolutely!
Stained is just another word for dyed.
Depending on how set the stain is, it might come out with proper treatment or it might be permanent.

I think that something, even poop-stained underwear, can be considered "clean" and still be stained. I get what you're saying though.

But if you've bleached it and killed any germs...does it matter if it's stained? If your little snowflake is just going to stain them again, does it make fiscal sense to throw them away?

Yes, undies cxan be stained but still clean, just like any other item of clothing.

Sure a thing can be clean and stained. As others have mentioned, stained is not the same as dirty, it is more like dyed.

Poop stains get washed. If they are still stained when they are run through the washing machine, then they are clean, but stained (no pun intended). AND, I don't wear my pants so low my underwear can be seen by the public. (Although I did jump in a lake and lost my pants so my underwear could be seen, but that was an accident.) My family never had enough money to throw away and then replace clean clothes if they were worn where stains didn't matter. (like working in the garden, working on the cars or lawn mower or making/building/painting back yard projects.

I am practical and frugal. If I get a button missing, I grab a needle and thread and an old button and sew the button back on. If it is a dress shirt, the button and thread must match the other buttons and thread. If it is for working in the garden, if the button and thread match, great. If they don't . . . So what. If my plants are offended because the buttons on my gardening shirt don't match, then those plants are either weeds or destined for the table. ;~))

Good luck to you and yours.

Honestly I could only live with poop stains during the potty training stage. Other stains don't bother me so much, not as long as they're play clothes or stuff that just gets worn around the house.

i draw the line at poop stains.
other types of stains become barn and gardening clothes until they're too embarrassing even for that. then they're cleaning rags.
khairete
S.

I haven't read the post about poop stains yet. But just wanted to throw it out there that when I have a stain, I buy the product I believe it's called Carbona. They are little yellow bottles and they have all kinds available for grease, oil, wine, makeup, grass stains, etc. Sometimes I find these bizzare "grease/oil stains" on our laundry and I use the Carbona and it comes right out. Sometimes it will even work on the baked in stains. As for poop stains, I find them disgusting and would rather throw underwear out then put it in my washer.

Stained does not mean not clean. Stained means stained. Depending on the type, size, location etc. it may still be worn. If not, it may be a 'lounge or clean the house" clothing. Haven't read the other questions but "poop stains" would equal "do not wear again".

While my son was potty training I did NOT throw away stained underwear. It seemed silly and a waste, when I knew most would have some sort of stain. I certainly wasn't going to buy new underwear every week, while he was learning. If he had any stained underwear now that he's trained, I think I would just throw them out. It's just a pair here or there, so it's no big deal.

Wear it around the house, fine? Yes, things can be both clean and stained--- it's just a stain that is washed after removal has been tried.

Think about it- many women stain their underwear with menstrual blood, forget about it, and then throw it in the wash. It does come out stained,but cleaned. Poop stains? I'd toss'em personally.

Another laundry myth: guys will remember which shirts to take out and hang dry on the rack and which ones stay in the dryer. I was attacked by this myth this morning and plan on making a handy-dandy "idiot chart" complete with hand-drawn and painted illustrations.

Another shirt bites the dust. :( NOT my day.

Ah--to each his own, I guess.
I'm with Suz T. Not gonna keep ANYTHING that's poop stained! Lol

I have a really simple laundry formula: sort lights, darks, good clothes, work clothes & towels. All get warm/cold regular cycle with a Tide pod.
I hardly ever pretreat. (Maybe baseball pants.)
If something is dark, I throw a color catcher sheet in there.

If something is old, ripped or stained? Bye bye!

I think laundry is an amazing journey. I taught people with developmental disabilities how to do laundry for years. There are a thousand things one needs to know and do to have a great load of laundry come out pristine.

If you wash jeans with whites then the whites will eventually turn gray and dingy. They can't help it because jeans fade each time they're washed and that dye builds up in the clothes they are washed with.

I wash clothes like this.

Whites that can have bleach and that have shrunk as much as they'll ever shrink.

White, light gray, off white, yellow, tan, beige, tee shirts, underwear, undershirts, etc...warm or hot water. Laundry soap. Medium - maximum bleach. Don't want them to smell like bleach a week later. Dry on perma press if items area delicate in any way. My nice tops can be washed on warm and dried on perma press. But they cannot be washed in hot or dried on high.

Medium colors, perma press. Medium weight clothes, tops, bright colored tee shirts that can be washed in warm water, good laundry detergent, and some sort of additive such as Clorox 2 if the clothes are stained or excessively dirty. Dry on perma press or delicate. Tops with sequins, beads, painted pictures, etc...have to be dried in lower heat.

I wash all dark clothes together that are basically the same weight....slacks, men's shirts, tee shirts with no white fibers that can get on the other dark clothes, dark reds, dark browns, navy, etc....they rub against each other and their colors can bleed onto other items. If you wash them all together they get clean and can come out lint free. If these are heavy items I dry perma press if they're lighter weight.

Jeans/denim/work pants/overalls/heavy items that can handle high dryer heat.

Towels, if I have enough for 2 loads I wash 1 load of dark towels then a load of white/light towels.

Bedding is almost always on hot and dry on high.

I am lackadaisical too!.....
A stained garment is not necessarily dirty; but I have to confess that I do not like stained clothes, and I love them smelling nice!

lol. Only F. B. would think of this. Gotta love F. B.. I really think you should write a book. It would be on the best seller's list. Yes, I know you're serious. It's just that I never thought about it. I guess it's kind of like tea staining. I don't know if you're in my generation, but we used to tea stain lace and gloves to make them look antique like. I figure if tea stained gloves were considered clean, then I guess poop stained underwear is too after it's been washed. I never really had much problems with getting poop stain out, but urine stain...That stuff's forever. (Yes, I'm guilty of wearing urine stained undies....Can't stand wearing panty sheilds everyday....too hot.) My mother-in-law's Mrs. Perfect. She can get any stain out with a bar of soap, water, a cleaning brush, and muscle. Not me. I just don't have the patience. Anyhow here's what I make a grand attempt at doing:
1. Poop stains - I find those the easiest to get out as long as they are fresh. If it's just really light like one of those "wet farts," I just spray it with my bottle of shout. If it's bigger, I run it under cold water, then change to warm water and hand soap and scrub fabric against fabric. If it contains a turd, I thow it out when MIL isn't looking. (Never let your MIL live with you if you can avoid it.)
2. Urine stains - I gave up on praying. I scrub fabric against fabric with warm water and hand soap and hang it in the shower. On laundry day I take the sort of hand washed undies and spray them with Shout and throw them in the water. (Still kind of yellow, but not as bad.)
3. DH's dirty socks. - I really hate this job. I swear he takes his shoess off and runs through the garden in stocking feet! One day a did soak them in laundry detergent water first, but I always forget that step. I scrub them fabric to fabric in warm water and a good laundry detergent like Wisk, Purex, or Tide and toss them in the wash. I just can't stand the thought of all that dirt and grass in with the other clothes when the washer fills up. Sometimes I get lucky and there's no more stain. :) Really need a wash board for socks.
4. Wine, coffee, food stains - Got to get them right away. I run to the bathroom and soak my clothes with cold water and soap. Recently discovered "Tide to Go." Great product. It fits in my desk drawer and is ready when I or my co-workers need it. It's individual squares that you pinch and the stain remover comes out, so you can rub it right on the stain. I highly recommend it.