A mum with 11 children has shared a simple hack to ensure white clothes are as white as possible.
We’re always looking for quick and easy laundry tips and hacks, and with children set to go back to school in the coming days, there will be a lot of white shirts needing a good clean before you know it.
Fear not, because as always, TikTok has come through with a savvy hack for us all to try, meaning both parents and child-free adults can make sure their white clothes stay white.
Joanne O’Rourke is a mum of 11 children - so she clearly knows a thing or two about doing the washing.
The mum has kindly revealed her ‘washing hack’ online, to help others who are sick and tired of the pesky stains on white clothes, particularly the ones on the white shirts worn by kids.
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Joanne used to put 32 shirts in a bucket to soak to keep them ‘bright and white’ but her friend came forward with a different method for keeping them clean.
After using the tips she got from her friend, Joanne said she instantly knew that it was a much better method.
In fact, she hailed it a ‘game-changer’ that is ‘less hassle’ and just ‘brilliant’.
That's music to our ears!
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The mum starts by putting all the white garments into the drum of her washing machine. Then you need to use washing pods and chuck them in with a ‘few scent boosters for good measure’.
She then adds Vanish Oxi Action into the washing machine dryer. This item can be picked up from your local supermarket. Joanne also adds fabric conditioner.
After turning the temperature up to 40 degrees, she then put the washing on for a 60-minute cycle.
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"What I do now, I leave that machine on, on a Saturday night, for the first 15 minutes so it gets really soapy and really foamy," Joanne said.
"And then what I do, I pause the machine, then I leave the machine on pause for the whole night so the whites then sit there, and they sit there in the Vanish and all the bits that I've put in there, so it's just like an overnight soaking, so when I get up on Sunday morning, I then press un-pause and the wash will continue.”
Joanne called it a ‘quick way to ensure the white clothes stay white while smelling amazing'.
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When asked about her electricity bill by someone in the comments, Joanne said this method does make it go up ‘but it works for me’.
She replied to another TikTok user confirming that soaking the garments in the machine rather than a bucket ensures ‘it’s all out the way’.
Lots of social media users jumped on board, with one replying: “I wish I knew this years ago when mine were in school!”
Another person gushed: “Oh amazing! I’ll defo try this! Thank you.”
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Someone else confessed: “I do this and I thought I was a weirdo which is why I didn’t share. Hated having to soak in a bucket to then transfer to the machine.”
Gregory Robinson