After much research. I came to the conclusion that using a combination of two natural brightening agents: hydrogen peroxide and lemon essential oil. Will help to whiten whites and even brighten colours, and it’s an extremely affordable solution too.
Now here are the ingredients you’ll be needing to make this natural bleach.
Ingredients:
2-4 Tbsp hydrogen peroxide
1 drop lemon essential oil (optional)
Method.
Add hydrogen peroxide and lemon essential oil directly to your washing machine’s bleach dispenser.
Just in case your washing machine does not have a bleach dispenser, stir the hydrogen peroxide and lemon oil into 3 cups of water and pour it into the washbasin while the machine is filling or before loading your clothes in.
Let me quickly tell you something important about this bleach dispenser.
Older top-loading washers may not get flushed out as effectively as they do in newer HE washers. If you have an older top-loader, you’ll either want to flush the dispenser manually with water after each use to prevent carryover into the next load or dilute it with water as described above and add it to the washbasin instead of the dispenser.)
Is This Bleach Alternative Safe For Colors?
In short, yes. You can use this bleach alternative to whiten whites or brighten coloured clothing. However, I don’t suggest pouring undiluted hydrogen peroxide directly onto coloured clothes, which could result in permanently bleached spots.
Instead, dilute the hydrogen peroxide (and lemon oil, if using) in 3 cups of water as described above and add that to the washbasin. When used in loads of coloured clothes, this bleach alternative can help brighten colours and dissolve residues or body oil that may be clinging stubbornly to the fabric.
Bleach alternative – Putting My Bleach Alternative To The Test
We needed a test subject for these photos, and my daughter-in-law Kaitlyn kindly offered to try out our bleach alternative on a bathroom towel of hers. She was eager to see if it could remove the stubborn makeup stains out of the towel, and as you can see, the transformation was pretty miraculous!
Overall, I’m very satisfied with how effective this “bleach alternative” is. If you are on a septic system or just want to avoid using chlorine bleach in your laundry, give this a try! I think you’ll be happy with the results.
The power of good old-fashioned sunshine! The ultraviolet rays from the sun can help brighten and even disinfect fabrics, and all you have to do to harness that power is hang the items you want to brighten outside and let them dry in the sun.
