One of the most famous man-made synthetic fibers that are basically plastic derived from petroleum is polyester. It has covered almost the whole fashion industry because of its cheap and distinctive properties. The World’s most apparel industries use polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is the most common type of polyester.
It’s a breathable and durable fiber that costs less and lasts longer. You can’t deny that it’s not durable. Nowadays, 60% of garments are manufactured with it, your shirts, pants, dresses, everything is made of polyester. When it gets dirty, you might think that you can bleach polyester? Let’s give you a detailed answer to this question with all the other instructions.
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Can You Bleach Polyester?
Bleaching polyester is not a good idea at all because bleach can destroy the fibers, leading to discoloration and reducing quality. As you know, polyester is the most durable fabric that lasts longer, but at the same time, its fibers are much more delicate, due to which bleach can break quickly.
You can bleach polyester occasionally, not frequently. Today, in this article, we will share some ideas about bleaching polyester properly and other factors that you must know to avoid creating a mess.
Why Do We Use Bleach For Polyester?
Bleach is a chemical material used to make white clothes look brighter or transform colored clothes into white. The same here, bleach is used to remove dyes from polyester clothes and make them white or remove stubborn stains.
What Happens If Polyester is Bleached?
Bleach can make the polyester look white and dull, giving a vintage look, but if you use chlorine bleach, the result might differ. Sometimes polyester turns yellow with chlorine bleach. This happens because chemicals in bleach react with polyester and alter the color. On the other hand, sometimes fabric degrades and gets damaged with chemicals.
How To Bleach Polyester?
You have read the consequences of bleaching polyester; if you are still determined to bleach them and want to give them a vintage look, then let’s teach you how to bleach polyester.
Before doing this, it’s essential to know about different bleaches. Mainly, there are two bleaches for polyester having different chemical compositions and results. One is Chlorine Bleach which is used to fade the polyester color. The other one is Oxygen Bleach which is polyester friendly, that you can use without fear.
Let’s discuss how to use these bleaches.
1. Chlorine Bleach
Follow the below steps to use chlorine bleach.
Step 1: First, prepare a solution of bleach and water. Add ¼ cup of chlorine bleach into a gallon of water and mix it thoroughly.
Step 2: Take your cloth and soak it into the solution for the next 5 minutes. Take them out right after five minutes; otherwise, bleach will damage the fabric.
Step 3: If your clothes have minor stains that you can’t identify, use a bleach pen.
Step 4: After removing stains, now it’s time to wash the clothes. Washing polyester in the machine is still tricky and needs care, so first, read the instructions from the care label, then wash them.
2.Oxygen Bleach
Oxygen bleach is entirely a different kind of bleach that is fabric friendly. It will not turn your cloth yellow or damage the fiber. This bleach isn’t like chlorine bleach that will damage the fabric, you can use it without any fear. Follow the given below steps to bleach your polyester clothes with oxygen bleach.
Step 1: Oxygen bleach comes in powdered form, while chlorine bleach is liquid. So, in the first step, mix the required amount of powder as written on the box in one gallon of water. You can add more depending on the intensity of stains and mix it with water thoroughly.
Step 2: Now, soak your polyester clothes in the solution for the next hour. You can soak it overnight without worry because oxygen polyester won’t damage them.
Step 3: At last, take your clothes and wash them in the washing machine by following the instructions written on the care label. If the soaking clothes in bleach won’t remove stains, you can also add a cup of bleach to the washing machine.
How Long Does It Take To Turn The Polyester White With Bleach?
If you are using chlorine bleach, it will not take more than 5 minutes to whiten your clothes. Duration depends on bleach’s quantity in the solution. Adding three tablespoons of chlorine bleach to a gallon of water will not take more than 5 minutes. Just keep it in your mind that soaking polyester in bleach for a longer time might damage the fabric.
How to Remove Bleach Stains From Polyester?
If you spilled bleach over polyester mistakenly and it leaves a dark stain behind, then don’t worry; you can remove it. Bleach stains are permanent, but you can recover them by different means. Before we dig in more deeply, first follow the below steps.
- First, wash that affected part with cold water to remove extra bleach.
- Then mix baking soda and bleach to make a thick paste of them.
- Grab the paste, gently apply it over all the stains. After applying, wait for a while so it will dry on it.
- When the paste dries completely, rub it off with a toothbrush.
Now do these techniques after brushing off the whole stain.
Use Alcohol
- In this technique, apply some alcohol on cotton wool balls and apply on stains.
- Rub the alcohol wool ball on the stain gently.
- Keep rubbing it gradually; after some time, alcohol will loosen the dye on the cloth, which will spread around.
Dye Cloth
- If the stain is stubborn, buy a dye of the same color as your cloth.
- First, try to remove the color of the whole dress for better results, and the color will become the same over the entire dress, so there’s no sign of stain left.
- Then, re-dye it by following all the instructions written on dye packaging. Your stain won’t exist anymore.
FAQs
Q1:How to remove colors from polyester?
The best way to remove colors from polyester is by using sulfur-based color remover instead of bleach because bleach can damage the fibers permanently.
Q2:Can I bleach all kinds of polyesters?
You can’t bleach them because they will fade the color and damage the fabric. If you don’t have proper knowledge about bleaching polyester, don’t do this.
Q3:Does polyester’s color change to yellow with bleach?
Yes, bleaching polyester leads to yellowing clothes as it removes the dye causing the color to fade.
Q4:Is polyester bleach resistant?
No, polyester is not bleach resistant. All bleaches damage your clothes instead of oxygen bleach.
Q5:Can you bleach polyester blend?
Yes, you can bleach polyester blend. If you want to bleach polyester-cotton blend, add ¾ cup of bleach to the water.
Conclusion
When it comes to bleaching your favorite polyester shirt, use oxygen bleach over chlorine bleach if you don’t want to damage your cloth. Safety comes first in all cases, so choose the correct option.
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