Bleach Solutions

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First question: I have been browsing the internet for bleach solutions for cleaning purposes. I never know how much bleach to add to water for various jobs. In my 2 minute search, I found little of use. I figured that someone here would have some good standards for mixing the stuff according to task at hand.

The reason: HM#3 mixed up a batch of solution for the bathroom (he actually cleaned it, sort of). He asked if the solution should be 1 to 1. I told him no way, much less bleach and he went on to do his thing. I picked up the bleach bottle tonight to spray down the tub and the spray part and the bottle part separated with a snap, spilling a lot of the solution. It bleached the rug in the 2 minutes it took me to get enough water int he tub to soak it. Now my skin is raw.

Second question: does bleach-water cleaning solution have to be strong enough to bleach material in order to be effective?

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Effective at what? Killing germs? Cleaning?

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killing germs, I guess.

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I'd go 5 to 1.

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Bleach is too strong for most house cleaning jobs, even well diluted. You can find many good home cleaning solutions on the web, most use white vinegar. You can also get some perfectly good ready made stuff at health food stores and even regular supermarkets.

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wow...you're certainly braver than I.

bleach scares me to death. one drop on something and it gets all bleached out and ruined.

btw, if this helps...clorox came out with a new bleach that's supposed to be much gentler. You can actually (they say) pour it directly on the clothes in your wash while the tub is filling.

Well, I wasn't gonna go as far as pour anything like that on clothes, but I did use it, first letting the tub fill up pretty good with water before adding anything.

I used it on some clothes that I would have been afraid to put in bleach water, not just the fading, but it's so rough on fibers.

I will say it brightened them up really well, so I'd give the stuff 2 thumbs up.

Maybe you could use that for cleaning/mixing a solution? It's more expensive, but I thought it was worth it.

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From the Clorox Company website:

Quote:

Around the House

Disinfecting:
Use the following method to disinfect hard, non-porous surfaces at home:

Create bleach solution using ¾ cup Clorox® Regular-Bleach per gallon of water.
Wash, wipe or rinse items/area with water, then apply solution.
Let stand 5 minutes.
Rinse thoroughly and air dry.

Please note:
Do not use Clorox® Regular-Bleach full strength for cleaning surfaces.
Always dilute strictly in accordance with label directions.
Wear gloves when cleaning for prolonged periods.
Bleach solutions need to be made fresh daily. Once diluted, bleach breaks down quickly (mainly into salt and water).

Please note: Bleach solutions need to be made fresh daily. Once diluted, bleach breaks down quickly - mainly into salt and water. Many spray bottles contain metal parts in the trigger spray. Bleach will corrode these parts over time. Bleach is an irritant and using bleach in a spray bottle can be very irritating to some especially those individuals with chronic respiratory or heart conditions.

Appropriate Surfaces:
Kitchen: Refrigerators, work surfaces, garbage disposals, freezers, sinks, appliances, plastic laminate, stoves, stovetops, countertops, (ceramic) tile (floors or countertops), vinyl, linoleum, solid surface countertops, glass, garbage cans, trash cans, trash compactors, dish cloths, brushes, synthetic sponges, mops, latex enamel painted woodwork, walls, faucets.

For toilet bowls and bidets: Flush toilet/bidet. Pour 1 cup of Clorox® Regular-Bleach into bowl. Brush entire bowl including rim with a scrub brush or mop; let stand 10 minutes before flushing again.

Nursery: Toys, changing tables, painted cribs, high chairs, plastic mattress covers, bumpers, and diaper pails. For potty seats: Empty Seat. Fill with ¾ cup of Clorox® Regular-Bleach per gallon of water. Let stand 5 minutes. Rinse with clean water. Let dry.

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Tea tree oil is a good natural antibacterial. I have found cleaning products that contain it -- usually marketed as environmentally friendly.

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More info here:

http://www.clorox.com/pdf/laundry-tips.pdf

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I'm glad to see I am not the only one who hates the stuff. The reason I don't know how to mix it at age 38 is that I haven't used it much in my life. I have all sorts of cleaning agents from health food stores and good old comet for the toilet. I also buy big bottles of vinegar for kitchen cleaning. But, for some reason (dunno why really), I started using it for the outer toilet lately.

Now I know it isn't good for spray bottles and that it breaks down quickly...... thanks all! I guess I'll use up what I have bleaching the tile work in the shower and leave bleach more or less alone after that.

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Don't use bleach for the toilet, it will eat up the drains.
At least that's what I was told by a plumber.

Actually, I would not use bleach for anything, not even clothes.

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Well then....... that cuts it!

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There are two basic types of bleach. oxidising bleach and reducing bleach.
The way thay work is adding oxygen at the molecular level or removing oxygen at molecular level.
Sodium Ditionite and sodium hydrosulfite are examples of a reducing bleach.

Most houshold type bleaches are oxygenating bleaches.
Of the oxygenating types sodium hypochlorite is the most common.
Other types are hydrogen peroxide and sodium perborate. These two are less agressive on colors when washing and are probably the "new" bleach chai talked about.
Chlorine type bleaches are sold (here in Oz) at variouse concentrations. I seem to recall many houshold types were around 4% w/v which you should be able to read on the lable. Heat will make bleaches more agressive and active. Storing bleach in a dark or solid coloured container will prolong its life.

For domestic use 10 ml per litre of water (10:1) of 4% w/v would be ample for most general cleaning and disinfecting. USE GLOVES.
For other applications such as cleaning mould off walls use increasing concentrations until you get a result. Rinse well after goal is achieves
DO NOT MIX AMMONIA TYPE DISINFECTANTS AND CHLORINE TYPE BLEACHES A TOXIC GAS IS PRODUCED

Sometimes colours that have been bleached out by chlorine can be returned by using a reducing bleach. Lemon juice and strong sunlight will act as a reducing bleach but I can give no guarentee of success as there are many factors involved.

Have a look and see if this site is usefull

Your commecial laundry or drycleaning firm is the best place to advise.International fabricare institute This is a professional research and advice body which I have had professional contact with in the past for advice.

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Apparently I am too tired to understand what you just wrote, DadPad.

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good info dadpad.

btw - hydrogen peroxiode is the best for taking out blood stains.

I'll wet the cloth and pour some right on the blood...foams up because of the oxygen I suppose. Let it sit for "a while"

then, when you throw it in the wash, the bloods completely gone.

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We used to make up a 5% bleach solution to use on countertops, etc. in the lab. Clorox isn't pure bleach so to get to a 5% solution we cut Clorox 4:1 or four parts water to one part bleach. We put this in spray bottles and used it on everything. Let it sit for 5 mins before wiping if you're trying to sterilize a surface.

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Is anyone else concerned that Chai is an expert on removing blood stains? Even if her new avatar is not carrying a visible weapon?

I stopped using bleach. Very bad for the environment, and the bleach that goes down a drain, whether it's the toilet, sink or washing machine, goes directly to a water source. There's lots of good cleansers ~ baking soda, vinegar (together for fun!), orange extracts, lemon juice, borax, etc.

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I only use bleach for socks and then a cleaner designed to take mildew and mold out of the bathroom grout which has bleach in it. It is the only product that I've found that really cleans it out well.

Oh and we had a lovely mildew/mold problem in our toilets so I was forced to get the bleach drop ins to get rid of it since it was growing somewhere out of my sight between the tank and the bowl). I hated that because we have Zoe and she doesn't drink out the toilet normally but you never know.

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Chai Tea wrote:

good info dadpad.

btw - hydrogen peroxiode is the best for taking out blood stains.

I'll wet the cloth and pour some right on the blood...foams up because of the oxygen I suppose. Let it sit for "a while"

then, when you throw it in the wash, the bloods completely gone.

normal saline (salt water) works too. I just add a Tbs of salt to about 4 cups of warm (not hot) water and pour it on the stain, rub it in well (not too harshly or the cells will hemolyze) and throw it in with the rest of the wash.

When I was working in the blood bank I had a box of isoterge in our laundry room. It worked better than anything, but isn't available retail :wink:

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Blood stains can most easily be removed with room temp plain water. Soak for a couple of hours then wash in cold water. Any heat will "set" a blood stain.
After a couple of days? the stain will be "set" so I agree with chai, H202 (peroxide) is the way to go.
Soak first in cold water overnight, wash, treat stain with H202, wash again Any residual stain will have an iron content that looks like rust so treat with oxalyc acid or a propriery rust remover.

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