I live on a farm, which is on well water for washing. I find my clothes are not soft and are not comfortable to wear. Also I have an odd orange stain on my clothes. Is there anyone in Ontario, that is on a farm and experiencing this? Do you have a solution? Detergent or soaps that are better? Any help, would be appreciated.
By Sheila from Ontario, Canada
You must have a lot of iron in your water. How about using Iron Out? This is only for whites though.
We have well water. We do run a water softener. I wash everything in cold water to reduce the stain on the clothes. I never buy expensive clothes, because they never last or look new for long. At least we save on the water bill, right?
You definitely have a lot of iron in your water! If you use a cup of distilled vinegar in the final rinse cycle it will break down the iron (and other minerals at that) and soften your clothes too.
My parents were on well water with the same problem. My mom found not using liquid bleach kept the whites whiter and there is a person in the Ottawa area that sells attachments to reduce iron in the water. Not sure of his name maybe google it. Also washing in cold water helps as it does not set stains.
When employed at a laundromat one customer would come every few weeks to undo what her well water had done to her clothes. She'd dump in Liquid Plummer which got rid of the orange color.
We have well water, with a higher than usual iron content. We have no water softener. My clothes are always soft and normal, but about once every 3 months, I run my whites with Iron-Out, be so careful if you do, as the fumes are toxic. Maybe you are using too much detergent, and do you use a dryer sheet, or a wadded up piece of tin foil in the dryer? Try a smaller load. Try a cup of white vinegar instead of fabric softener-I actually never ever use liquid fabric softener.
That said, a strange thing happened this summer, Jim needed a bucket of soapy water and bleach to scrub a sidewalk-and I poured in some tide, and a cup of cheap bleach, not Clorox--which promptly turned orange in the bucket! So maybe you are getting a chemical reaction-experiment a bit. Maybe it's your laundry products, and not your nice, healthy well water. Good luck!
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I have well water and I cannot keep my bright colored clothes bright and my whites white. I started to take them to my parents because they have city water, but it would be much easier if I could do it at home. Any ideas or some tricks to help me keep the brights bright and the whites white?
By Stacy
I would start with having your water tested. Your local county extension office could tell you who would test it. It must contain a mineral that is in a higher concentration than normal, such as iron or sulfur. Once you find what that is, then you would have a better idea of what you may need to add to your wash to counter act that.
THere is a remedy to well water. I had the same problem. With my regular washing detergent I add "Oxiclean".
We have bad well water, and have yellow gray, white clothes. I use hot water with bleach. They still look bad. What can I use to get them white again?
By shirley
Shirley,
I too have well water and the main problems with mine are iron and sulfur. I use a product called "Iron Out" and I get it from Wal-mart. It is found in the plumbing/paint area. I quit using bleach on my "whites" 20+ yrs ago when we moved here due to the well water! I only use cold water and my nursing uniforms are still bright and white using the Iron Out and my homemade laundry detergent.
I lived in town when my oldest daughter was a baby, and couldn't use bleach in the laundry because the water would turn brown. The first time I did the laundry and used bleach on white clothes, my husband's underwear, daughter's diapers, etc. came out a rusty-pink color.
I used a product called "Miracle White" after that. The whites that had changed color gradually got quite a bit better, and I used that instead of bleach for whites as long as I lived in that town. I don't know if a person can still purchase the Miracle White or not.
I also have iron and sulphur in my well water. We have a filter on our well at the tank that filters out the sulphur odor, and improves the iron content, but I still get orange stain on my clothes and on my dishes. I use "Iron Out" for both, from time to time. In between times, I use the new Chorine Free Bleach that is on the market now for my laundry. It is actually peroxide, and it doesn't really make your clothes white again, once they are discolored from the iron, but it helps with socks and underwear if you start using it when they are still new and nice and white. I use about a cupful in a large load. I also use "Iron Out" to clean the tank and toilet bowl.
Harlean from Arkansas
I have well water and have a one month old baby. Can I wash her clothes in the water?
I hesitate to offer any guidance on this about what to use because everyone's well water is different in its chemicals and make up. Also I hesitate because baby's have ultra sensitive skin and I would hate to suggest something hat would give her a rash.
My two suggestions for you are to:
1. Talk to your baby's doctor and ask what they recommend for water in your area. There are a whole variety of things that can be used, but you need something specific to your water make up and something that will be safe for your baby's skin.
2. If you are in the US, there are home extension offices and they can give you suggestions specific to your town also. I would take their suggestions back to your doctor if your doctor can't give you anything first off.
Here is a locator if you in the US:
pickyourown.org/
Other countries may have agriculture schools that offer the same (free) service.
You may need to try several things because baby's skin is so delicate that you will want to be sure she is not allergic to anything you use.
Prayers for easy solutions!
Safe for washing your baby's clothes?
More important - is your well water safe to use in any capacity?
I believe the first question would have to be - is your well water safe to drink?
Are you living in a new to you place or have you lived in this residence for some time but now you are concerned because you have a new baby?
Reason for the questions is because many people just assume well water is safe to drink and although many years ago this was true that is not how it is in this present age.
Of course, many wells will have a 'sulfur' smell that can be very offensive (but is not harmful) and also many wells will have iron deposits that will settle on your clothes and leave nasty looking difficult to remove stains.
The next question would be: do you own your home or are you renting?
This will be very important as it will determine who would be responsible for any costs should your well be contaminated.
You should check with your local Health Department (Google with your zip code) about the general condition of well water in your area and where can you get it tested.
Here is a link to use - click on your state to find the information you need.
www.epa.gov/
There are no government regulations when it comes to private wells so the safety of that water is up to each individual.
It is very important that someone checks your water as it could be contaminated and your family may be having health problems due to a variety of different contaminants - but it may also be safe.
You can discuss this with your neighbors but even if they have safe water it does not mean your water is safe.
there are too many factors to list that could cause a problem but here are a few:
Location: this is crucial to the safety of your water and you may not know what has been near this well - animals/pets are a factor here.
Age: old wells may have pipes that have corroded and not up to present day code.
Depth: shallow wells are much more likely to be contaminated and you may not have the necessary documentation to know the depth of this well. EPA recommends at least an 80 foot well and older wells were rarely more than 30-40 feet.
Here is a link that explains a lot about well water and what is necessary to make sure it is safe for you and your family. If your water is safe to drink then it is safe for washing your baby's clothes. You only have to decide what type/brand of 'baby' soap/cleaner to use.
theberkey.com/
If your well water proves to be contaminated the cost to make it safe would be your responsibility or, your landlord's if you are renting. Most states require landlords to provide safe drinking water so check this out also.
I have well water and for some reason when I wash my clothes I am getting large reddish brown blotches on my clothing! I can't figure out why.
Our iron is fine and we have no hard water so what could cause this? See picture attached.
You say "Our iron is fine and we have no hard water" so how was that determined? Did you have your water tested?
You may have to buy a water softener but if you do, be sure it will take care of this problem as many types do not.
How do I stop my black cotton clothes from turning brown when I wash them? This is happening because I have well water.
By kasey
I installed a whole house filter for my well water, also don't forget to Drain & flush your Hot water tank as needed since your on well water without a filter system.
This is a page about keeping well water from staining clothing. Well water can contain a variety of minerals that can leave stains on your laundry.
ThriftyFun is one of the longest running frugal living communities on the Internet. These are archives of older discussions.
I have well water and every time I wash clothes, especially towels, they smell musty after a couple of days. What can I do?
Does anybody have any great tips for washing clothes with well water that has iron?
