How to bleach tulle at home

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

Airy curtains made of white transparent tulle have remained a classic in window decoration for many years. Regardless of the material of manufacture, window curtains lose their whiteness over time under the influence of sun, dust, rust and washing water salts. Buying new high-quality curtains is not cheap, as is washing them in dry cleaning conditions.

Do not be upset, there are many inexpensive home remedies that will help you cope with the task without spending too much money and time. Experienced housewives are happy to share the secrets of how to whiten tulle from dullness at home.

Chemical bleaches

The first word about whitening products, which can be purchased without problems in any department of household chemicals. This method can be used no more than once and it is not desirable. The fact is that such preparations destroy the delicate structure of tulle, especially from natural fibers, and soon lead to severe yellowing, which is very difficult to remove.

Salt

Any detergent or liquid detergent is diluted in warm water, and three to five tablespoons of ordinary kitchen salt are added to the solution. The tulle is soaked for at least 3 hours, ideally overnight. If you wish, you can still wash the curtain in the car as usual, or rinse it right after soaking. You can also add salt to the rinse water to set the result.

The only drawback of this method is the long soaking time.

Blue

The already washed tulle is blue with such images. The procedure can be carried out both manually and in an automatic machine.

When rinsing by hand after washing, the curtain is dipped into the prepared blue solution. Proportion: half a teaspoon of the product in a bucket of water. The second rinse is without bluing. The curtain is immediately shaken and hung.

When washing in a machine, a small amount of blue is added to the conditioner compartment.

Disadvantage of the method - Blue particles that are not thoroughly mixed can form streaks or stains. For this reason, manual rinsing is more reliable.

Zelenka

To prepare a solution, 5-10 drops of brilliant green are defended in a glass of water, then carefully filtered through cheesecloth and mixed with 10 liters of warm water. Pure tulle is soaked in the prepared liquid for 5 minutes, constantly turning the fabric over.

Minus: an improperly prepared solution with sediment can spoil the fabric with green spots.

Peroxide and ammonia

This method works very well, but only for tulle made from natural fabrics. The proportions of the bleaching mixture: 1 tablespoon of ammonia, 2-3 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide in a bucket of hot (50-60o) water. A clean curtain is soaked in a basin for 30 minutes, after which it is thoroughly rinsed and wrung out easily.

Starch

Starching not only makes delicate curtains whiter, but also adds shine and lasting shape to them.

For starch, paste is brewed like jelly, at the rate of 1 tablespoon of starch for each liter of water.

It is necessary to ensure that there are no lumps in the resulting solution. After washing, the tulle is soaked in starch water for 5-6 hours, dried without spinning.

Potassium permanganate and laundry soap

Combined, these products provide unexpectedly brilliant and long-lasting results. Tulle curtains are washed in a soapy solution with the addition of potassium permanganate, after holding for half an hour.

For the solution, rub the soap on a grater and pour boiling water over it. Stir a few crystals of manganese in a separate bowl and add to the soap in such an amount that the water turns slightly pink.

Flaw: for some reason potassium permanganate disappeared from pharmacies.

Lemon acid

A sachet of citric acid is added to the rinse to prevent washing relatively new curtains. Can be used in a washing machine. Attention! The citric acid in the washing machine washes away all deposits of rust and mineral deposits, so it is better to clean the machine before washing the tulle.

Aspirin

For bleaching, it is enough to dissolve 4 tablets of ordinary aspirin in 5 liters of warm water. Let the curtains soak for at least 3 hours and wash as usual.

Attention! Effervescent aspirin is not suitable for this purpose, it contains additives that only add yellowness.

Boiling

This is the grandmother's method, in which the fabrics were bleached by boiling them in a bowl with soap or powder for at least an hour. When boiling manually, such a "brew" must be constantly monitored.

Modern technology comes to the rescue in this case too: in automatic washing machines there is a function of washing at high temperatures - this is the very same digestion.

Disadvantage of the method - undesirable for nylon curtains.

Strong grayness on the curtains

It is possible to whiten tulle, which has turned gray from time to time, in several stages: boiling with the addition of citric acid, soaking and washing with hydrogen peroxide and ammonia, soaking in salt, starching and turning blue.