Not All Bleach Is Created Equally
If you were asked to think about bleach, what first comes to mind? Is it the caustic odor, stained splashes on clothing, or a dangerous product that’s great at cleaning and disinfecting? All these things are true, but what if we challenged you to think about bleach in a different way?
Imagine a powder bleach that’s unscented and safe for your clothing, and your skin, it’s even safe for babies and pets. We’re talking about oxygen bleach, not chlorine bleach and it’s going to change the way you clean your clothes.
What Is Oxygen Bleach?
Oxygenated bleach can kill bacteria and brighten and whiten clothes just like chlorine bleach but without the toxic drawbacks of traditional bleach. No more worries about burning your skin, ruining your clothing, or damaging surfaces. It also doesn’t have that chemical smell of liquid bleach.
Oxygen bleach is a natural, plant derivative product called sodium percarbonate. It’s made from sodium carbonate which is sometimes called soda ash, and good old hydrogen peroxide. Once this product is exposed to water it releases oxygen which lifts out stains and dirt, resulting in a more effective and safer bleach.
How to Use Oxygen Bleach & Stain Remover
Now comes the important stuff – how to use Oxygen Bleach. Oxygen Bleach can be used for a variety of things such as whitening clothes, deodorizing smells or pet bedding, disinfecting items, and even removing tough stains from carpets or upholstery. This product needs to be mixed with water to be effective, luckily you have plenty of water in your washing machine when you’re doing laundry, even with high-efficiency (HE) machines. Follow these steps to see the excellent results you can have with oxygen bleach.
- Check care labels. The most important step is to check the washing instructions on your garments, to make sure you won’t ruin your clothes. By the way, we don’t recommend this product (or any bleach for that matter) for use on silk or wool. Read more on our guide to Laundry Symbols
- Add one tbsp. Put one tablespoon of AspenClean Oxygen Bleach powder directly into the washing machine before adding your clothing.
- Use more? If you have exceptionally soiled clothing, two tablespoons of powder will be more effective.
- Use warm or hot. Warm or hot water works better to activate the powder and get it to start releasing oxygen.
- You can also try using laundry detergent that contains oxygen bleach like AspenClean laundry pods. If you wonder which detergent works better laundry pods vs liquid detergent, our articles can help
For stains, the process is a little different. The following technique works well for spot cleaning and stubborn stains.
- Mix ½ tbsp. Pour about 16 ounces of warm water into a container and mix in a half tablespoon of AspenClean Oxygen Bleach. Stir or mix the solution. Here’s something to note, the solution (the mixture of water and oxygen bleach) keeps making oxygen so you don’t want to put it in an airtight container because it could explode if too much air builds up in the container.
- Apply to stain. Apply the solution directly to the stain.
- Give the stain remover about five minutes to do its job and lift that stain.
- Now it’s time to wash your clothing as usual.
Why Oxygen Bleach Is Better Then Chlorine Bleach!
There are several reasons to select oxygen bleach over the traditional chlorine variety, just one of the following reasons is good enough to prompt a change and when you put them together, you can see why we stand behind this product.
- Safer for your health. Chlorine bleach comes with some dangers, such as its ability to burn your skin. When it’s mixed with some other cleaning products, like ammonia, it can cause severe health risks. Even just inhaling chlorine gas can cause respiratory problems. You still want to be careful with oxygen bleach, but that serious level of concern and danger isn’t present.
- Safer for the environment. When oxygen bleach breaks down it decomposes into oxygen, water, and natural soda ash. That makes it biodegradable and septic safe. It contains no phosphorous or nitrogen.
- Doesn’t ruin clothing. Using chlorine bleach on clothing was typically a way to refresh whites. With oxygen bleach, you can add it to your white and your colored laundry with equal confidence. It should be noted that not all dyes are stable, no matter what product you use so a test patch is recommended.
- Mixes with other cleaning products. Mixing oxygenated bleach with other cleaning products is safe and effective. There’s not the issue of a toxic cloud like there is with ammonia and bleach.
Safety Tips When Using Oxygen Bleach
There are a few safety tips to remember when using oxygen bleach.
- Avoid fine fabrics. Just like traditional bleach, there are some fine fabrics that should never be bleached or washed such as silk or wool.
- Dry storage. This is a key tip - because when oxygen bleach powder meets water it activates.
- Dry your hands. It’s a good idea to only use oxygen bleach when your hands are totally dry.
- Close the container. It’s best to securely close the container of oxygen bleach when not in use.
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Store away from kids and animals. As with all cleaning products, keep this in a secure place where kids and animals can’t disturb it.
Why We Love It
We are quite fond of our oxygen bleach for many reasons. We are a family-owned company, that was founded in 2004 to find safe and effective alternatives to chemical-based cleaning products. We’re all about creating eco-friendly products that are 100% safe for your family and pets because we use them too. Oxygen bleach fits right into that model, and we’ve gone even further to give it an EWG Verified rating to ensure it’s a product you can trust.
Our bleach is made with 100% natural, plant-derived ingredients and is safe for your skin and the environment too! Sounds pretty fantastic, right? It is also made without plastics, fragrances, phosphates, chlorine, and dyes. This is exactly what we wanted to create, a safe and effective alternative to bleach, and we think you’ll love it as much as we do.
Still, deciding whether Oxygen Bleach is for you? Check out our reviews to see what other parents think.
