WHITE LINEN.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 77, 31 March 1928, Page 4 (Supplement)

WHITE LINEN.

HINTS FROM BELFAST. Over-drastic treatment in the endeavour to remove stains is one of the potent causes of damage to linen. The laundress must be chary of the use of chemieals in this connection. The following rules are the result of much investigation by the Linen Trade Research Association of Belfast.

Whenever possible do not allow a stain to dry in. The stain will be much more easily removed if the article is immediately soaked in water. An attempt should be made at the earliest possible moment to remove it by rubbing with hot water and soap. Even if a slight stain remains, this will in most cases disappear when the material is subsequently given a normal wash, and the use of strong chemicals will be unnecessary.

Iron rust stains may usually be removed by treatment for about fifteen minutes with a solution of oxalic acid

(loz to 1 pint), at a temperature just above blood heat. The material must be thoroughly well rinsed after the application.

Tea or fruit stains and the like should bo soaked in rold water and then treated with nearly boiling water before being washed with soap and soda. If this is not effective, the follow ing procedure should be adopted;— Dissolve some fresh bleaching powder in cold water in a wooden or earthenware vessel, using a heaped tea spoonful to the gallon. Make sure that all lumps of the powder are thoroughly broken up. The material may remain "in this solution two or three hours if necessary, being turned over from time to time! The material should be completely immersed in the solution.

For the local treatment of very resistant stains a stronger solution may be used (two or three teaspoonfuls to the gallon), but this should be allowed to act only for a few minutes.

The bleaching powder should in all cases be used cold. It should be employed only as a last resort, after everv effort has been made to remove the stains by rubbing with hot water and soap. Most stains will disappear in two or three washings, particularly- if the linen is dried in the sun.

It is important to remove iron rust stains before the bleaching solution i« ", d ;. a " d * 13 essential that the linen should l.e thoroughly rinsed after the bleaching treatment in order to remove l lime from the material as far as possible I