How to Remove Mildew from Fabric

You can remove mildew from fabric by using common household ingredients such as liquid detergent and salt. Mildew is a mold-like fungus that grows on anything damp and moist. Its appearance is black in color and may look like stain on a fabric. The growth of mildew may deem to be a health hazard. It is when clothing materials are not fully dried that mildew may just grow on them. When this happens, find the right chemical solution that works on mildew removal to save your fabric from being thrown away. Below are the materials that you need along with the instructions on how to remove mildew from fabric.

Step 1-Soaking Fabric in a Solution and Washing

Combine to form a fabric solution one cup of buttermilk to a gallon of cold water. The fabric contaminated with mildew should be soaked in this solution overnight. After a day, transfer the fabric from the solution container where it was soaked overnight to the washing machine. Use cold water and liquid detergent to the washing machine and have the machine work to have the mildew removed.

Step 2-Removing Spots formed on Fabrics from Washing

When a laundry contaminated with mildew is not immediately washed and dried, you will see that there will be stain spots on your fabric. To take out these spots, mix ¼ cup of salt to ¼ cup of lemon juice. The mixture should then be mixed to a pint of warm water. A certain detergent paste will be formed and this should be applied to the fabric. Lightly rub the paste-like detergent mixture into the spot formed on the fabric. Let this stay on the fabric for about 30  minutes. After this step, load the laundry back into your washing machine and washusing regular detergent.

Step 3-Making Home-made Mildew Solution

Another way to take out stains from clothing materials is through another solution of ½ cup of rubbing alcohol and one tablespoon of liquid detergent mixed in three cups of water. This solution should be mixed well in a spray bottle. The mixture just made may be used as a pre-wash spray for fabrics as well to take out mildew formed on shower curtains.

Step 4-Washing White-Colored Materials

For fabric materials that are white in color, it is necessary to use bleach. Mix a solution comprising of 1 ½ cups of bleach and two gallons of water. The white fabric materials must be soaked in this solution for some 10 minutes. Use cold water for the rinsing then place the materials into the washing machine with cold water and regular laundry detergent to finish the washing.

They key to removing mildew from fabric is to wash and dry the fabric as soon as you detected the mildew problem. When mildew is left too long on your fabric it could be very hard to remove.