Washer

Laundry Issues White ResidueA white substance will sometimes be found on dark garments at the end of the laundry cycle. Although this is sometimes mistaken for lint, it is actually a type of residue. Although it appears to be lint, it generally adheres more tightly to fabrics than lint & is not easily brushed off. It may appear in blotches or streaks. Over time, residue can make clothes feel rough and colors appear dull.Residue can usually be removed by relaundering the fabric in the warmest water recommended for the fabric, using the correct amount of high quality detergent, & then drying in the dryer, if appropriate. Causes for the accumulation of residue are sometimes related to mechanical problems with a washer that result in poor drain or spin. If the house drain is restricted, the washer fails to drain or spin properly, or the machine does not get an adeq uate fill, these problems may result in the accumulation of residue in the clothes. Other problems, not related to mechanical breakdown of the washer, might include the use of low quality detergents. Maytag recommends the use of detergents containing both sodium carbonate & aluminosilicates. These ingredients facilitate cleaning & minimize the deposit of unwanted residues in the fabric. Packaged water conditioners such as Calgon or Spring Rain, used in conjunction with the detergent may also improve the effectiveness of the detergent. Water that is soft may require the use of less detergent to prevent buildup of unwanted residue in the fabric. It is also important to understand that garment care labels& garment manufacturers define cold as 80 to 85 degrees. That means just cooler than body temperature. Water that is cooler thanthis is usually unsuitable for laundry because detergents do not dissolve well & are not effective at these temperatures. Detergent that does not dissolve in the wash water may accumulate in the fabric of the laundry load instead. Care should be exercised to launder clothing at the warmest water temperature setting recommended for the fabric, to limit load size so that clothes may circulate freely in the wash tub, and to dilute fabric softeners according to the manufacturer ’s directions.J & B APPLIANCE SERVICES  Laundry Issues Bleach=0 A Bleach is a helpful tool in keeping washables whiter & brighter longer, but not all bleach is the same, & it is a strong chemical that needs to be used correctly.Here is some useful information in helping you choose the correct bleach product for your needs:The bleach of choice for whites & colorfast garments is liquid household bleach, identifiable by the words sodium hypochlorite on theingredient listing. This is chlorine bleach, which is the only bleach that disinfects. It is also the most effective bleach for stain removal& whitening.  Liquid household bleach comes in regular strength & concentrated forms. The concentrated version is labeled as Ultra,& has the same ingredients as the regular version; you just use less per load. Most white fabrics & some colored fabrics can safely be washed with liquid household bleach. Wool, silk, mohair, leather, spandex, & non-fast colors should not be laundered with bleach. If you are not certain about the colorfastness of a garment, test the fabric by: Applying one drop of a test bleach solution on a hidden part of the garment such as an inside seam, hemline or cuff. Be sure to test all colors and trim. To make a test bleach solution mix onetablespoon of regular strength household bleach or two teaspoons of Ultra liquid bleach with  cup of water. Wait one minute, then blot dry with a paper towel. No color change means the article can be safely bleached.For best laundry20results when using chlorine bleach:Sort laundry by color. Add detergent, then clothes, then water. Use the bleach dispenser, if your washing machine has one, to add  cup Ultra bleach or 1 cup regular strength bleach for a large laundry load. If the washing machine does not have a dispenser, dilute the bleach with o quart of water. Add the solution to the wash five minutes after the cycle has begun. Avoid pouring the mixture directly on the clothes. Non-chlorine or color-safe bleach is safe to use on washable, colored fabrics. It is available in granular & liquid forms & helps to remove stains & keep color bright. The active ingredient in the liquid form is usually hydrogen peroxide, & in the granular form it is usually sodium perborate. Color-safe bleaches also usually have brighteners & may have enzymes to help break up tough protein stains. Add non-chlorine bleach to the washer along with detergent, then load clothes and add water. Follow label directions regarding the use of bleach with any particular garment.    J & B APPLIANCE SERVICES  There are several different types of products available for treating stains. They work well and help to assure that stains are removed during the first washing. Remember, the longer a stain had been on a garment, untreated, & if the stain has been dryer dried, the more likely the garment will be permanently stained. Pretreat products come in several forms: enzyme presoaks, liquids, aerosols, sticks, &  gels.J & B APPLIANCE SERVICE Laundry Issues Pretreaments & Color Loss Pretreatment Facts. Pretreat products are quite effective for pretreating heavily soiled & stained garments. They work well & help to assure that stains are removed during the first washing. It is important to remember however, that the longer a stain has been on a garment untreated (especially if dryer dried), the more likely the garment will be permanently stained.Pretreat products come in several different forms:enzyme presoaks, liquids, aerosols, sticks and gels. Here are some facts: ENZYME PRESOAKS come in granular form and are intended to be used for soaking items prior to washing for removal of difficult stains and soils. They are especially effective in removing chocolate or protein stains such as baby formula, blood, dairy products & grass. Follow the label directions as to soaking time and temperature (usually about 30 minutes in warm or cool water). LIQUID & AEROSOL PRETREATERS work the best while they are still wet on the garment. Therefore, the garment should be washed within a few minutes after one of these types of pretreaters is applied. Additionally, leaving these products on a garment longer than is recommended may cause color loss or change. These products work well on oil based st ains such as cooking oils & cosmetics. If thestain still remains after the first try, apply a second treatment, rubbing directly into the stain & rewash. Remember, don’t dry a staineditem until you are sure you’ve removed as much of the stain as possible; heat from the dryer can set the stain permanently. STAIN STICKS work best dry and need some time to work. Many of these contain enzymes and work well on protein type stains suchas grass & baby formula. Apply directly onto a stain soon after the spill has occurred, then wash the garment in three or four days. STAIN GELS should be applied as soon as possible to help prevent the stain from setting & can be applied up to a week before washing the garment. However, do not apply a stain gel product on bright or fluorescent colors more than a few minutes before washing, as they are susceptible to colors loss if pretreated too soon. Furthermore, there are stain remover gels on the market that are for whites only. These products contain chlorine bleach. Contrary to the other types of stain gels, those containing chlorine bleachshould only be used with whites & should not be left on the garment for a long period of time. The garment should be washed immediately after this type of gel has been applied. Over time, soil can build up on some fabrics, especially polyesters. When a pretreat product is used, the pretreated area is actually super-cleaned & may resemble a bleached spot. This can usually be corrected by treating the entire garment with a pretreat or presoak & rewashing with extra detergent.Color LossOccasionally, an area of color loss or fading will occur on laundered items. Color change or loss can often be severe enough for the garment to be ruined. While extremely frustrating, this is not caused by any dysfunction of your washer. Below are some possible causes:Accidental contact with chlorine bleach is the most common cause. Since bleach is essentially colorless, it can be accidentally spilled orsplashed on laundry surfaces & not noticed until it accidentally comes into contact with an item. Improper use of chlorine bleach can also be a cause. First, determine if the items in the load can be safely bleached, then dilute 1 part bleach with at least 4 parts water& add it to the agitating load ( avoid pouring the solution directly onto fabrics). If the washer has a dispenser, the bleach does not need diluting, but should be added do the dispenser before the clothes are loaded into the washer. This prevents accidental spillage of full strength bleach on to the load.  Benzyl peroxide, which is found in many acne medication creams, causes an unusual pattern of color loss. This substance selectively removes only blue dyes. If blue fabric comes into contact with benzyl peroxide, there is removal of the blue color, resulting in a white spot on the garment If the affected item is green, t he result is a yellow spot when the blue is removed, since green is a combination of blue and yellow. If the item is tan ( which is a combination of red, blue and yellow) the affected area will turn orange, and so on. This color loss can happen with virtually any fabric that the medication comes into contact with. The user needs to be careful to avoid contact between any garment & this medication & to wash their hands after applying the medication. Many of the dyes on fabrics today are unstable. Labels that say “Wash before wear”, “color rubs off”, “Turn inside out to launder” & “Designed to bleed” are all warnings that the dye in the garment may not be stable. Simply wearing the garment can causecolor loss on thick seams, pockets, waistbands & creases when these dyes are used. Color loss from unstable dyes can also happenwhen the exposed to moisture (even perspiration), detergent, or even the mild abrasion that occurs with laundering. For example, failure to turn a garment inside out for laundering when the care label says to do so, can result in streaks of color loss. As always, following the care label directions provided by the manufacturer is very important, especially when dealing with unstable dyes.J & B Appliance Service Laundry HE (High Efficiency) Detergents New front loading washing machines generally recommend the use of HE (high efficiency) detergents. There are import ant reasons to follow these recommendations, both for optimum cleaning results & for the protection of the machine itself.  Since front loadingmachines do not have an agitator, the laundry is tumbled in a drum, similar to how clothes are tumbled in a dryer. The tumbling action lifts the clothes, then drops them back into a shallow pool of detergent & water, providing the mechanical action needed for cleaning. However, this motion continually traps air, creating a higher level of suds than would typically develop in a top loading machine. Suds can become so excessive that they overflow the washer or interfere with the operation of the machine. While reducing the amount of detergent used would generally help to minimize this problem, using less detergent than is needed for load size, water hardness, and soil content generally results in poor cleaning results. Some new machines, such as the Maytag Neptunehave features built in to the engineering design to deal with excess sudsing. If the washer detects an oversuds condition it adds a shower of water to knock down the suds, followed by a partial drain. While this is a partial answer to the sudsing problem, it is still best if suds never get to an excessive level. For this reason, low sudsing detergents for front load washers have been developed. Brand names of these products include Tide HE  and Wisk HE  (High Efficiency). These detergents contain suds suppressors which reduce or elimina te suds. The usage recommendations are based on average water conditions. As with any detergent, if the water supply is harder than average, more detergent will be required to provide optimum cleaning results. Similarly, if water is soft, either naturally or because a mechanical softener has been used, less detergent will be needed.J & B Appliance Service

A number of products are being marketed as replacements for laundry detergent. However, scientifically, if one evaluates the performance, you may as well use plain water. Marketed under labels such as the Euro-Wash Laundry Ball, the Laundry Super Globe,the Laundry Clean Ring, the Laundry Solution, & the Laundry CD, these products are usually sold through distributors, the internet,& specialty catalogues. They cost between $50.00 & $100.00. The manufacturers of these products make many claims that areattractive to the consumer. These claims include: they perform as well at cleaning as traditional detergents while being friendlier to the environment, they are guaranteed to perform for hundreds of wash loads, & are economical while extending the life of clothing. These capabilities are possible, according to the manufacturers, because advances in physics have made it possible to restructure & manipulate the properties of water molecules. One manufacturer claims that their product creates a magnetic field duri ng the wash cycle that activates the water, aligning the polar molecules & increasing the water ’s ability to penetrate deep into the fabric. The activation process reduces the water ’s surface tension & increases its free charge, allowing dirt to be lifted & removed from the clothing. Another manufacturer claims that the blue solution inside the product is structured water that emits a negative charge through the walls of the container into the laundry water. This causes the water molecule cluster to disassociate, allowing much smaller individual water molecules to penetrate into the innermost part of the fabric.If all of the sounds like a lot of scientific hocus pocus, that’s because it is. The problem is, the claims seem to be heavy on the hocus pocus & low on science. When respected scientists have been asked about this restructured water technology, the response is usually nonsense. In fact, if water molecules were truly restructured, the substance would no longer be water. The bottom line is this. The old adage is still true. Let the buyer beware. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. These productsaim to take advantage of people, using scientific sounding jargon to persuade them to buy products which cannot possibly do what they claim.

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