To prepare Javelle water: Mix ½ pound washing soda in 1 quart of cold water. Add ¼ pound of bleaching powder (commonly called chloride of lime). Strain this liquid through a piece of muslin and store in a bottle with a tight cork or stopper ready for use.
To remove a stain with Javelle water, stretch the stained part of the cloth over a bowl filled with cold water and drop the Javelle water on the stain with a medicine dropper. (If the stain is large, dip the entire garment in the Javelle water). Never let the Javelle water remain on the stain for more than 1 minute; it rots even linen and cotton materials if allowed to remain on them longer. Rinse quickly by dipping in the water.
Next apply a few drops of a solution made up of ½ teaspoon of sodium thiosulfate and 1 to 2 teaspoons of vinegar in 1 pint of water. This stops the action of the chlorine remaining in the cloth after the treatment with Javelle water. Then rinse the cloth well in clean water. You may use vinegar alone or oxalic acid solution (1 teaspoon oxalic acid to 1 pint water) instead of the thiosulfate solution, but they are not so satisfactory. To remove the stain completely you may have to repeat the Javelle water-thiosulfate treatment several times.
Sodium perborate is one of the safest bleaches for all types of materials. The treatment must be rapid and the sodium perborate well rinsed from the material, however, or it will take out the color. It will not remove some ink stains, iron rust, dyes and running color, or metal stains.
For small, fresh stains, sponge with a liquid made up of 4 tablespoons sodium perborate to 1 pint lukewarm water. Or stretch the stained cloth over a bowl of hot water, dampen the stain with water, and dust the powdered sodium perborate on it. Let stand a minute or two; then sponge or rinse well with water.
For a large stain, soak the entire garment for a half hour or longer in sodium perborate and soapsuds (4 tablespoons perborate to a pint of soapy water). To remove grass, beverage, mud, scorch, and some perfume stains, mix 1 level teaspoon sodium perborate with 1 pint hydrogen peroxide. But use this mixture immediately, as it soon loses its strength. Rinse in water.
Sodium perborate is particularly good to use on white woolens; it leaves them soft and fluffy.
Hydrogen peroxide, obtained at drug stores, is a good bleach for light scorch stains. The action of hydrogen peroxide is quicker if a few drops of ammonia water are added just before use. Or you can add 1 level teaspoon of either borax or sodium perborate to 1 pint of peroxide. Apply it to the stain with a medicine dropper, a glass rod, or sponge the stain with it. Follow by careful sponging or rinsing with water.
Oxalic acid is poisonous and should be handled carefully. Label it “Poison” and keep it out of the reach of children. Prepare a solution as follows: Dissolve about 3 tablespoons of the crystals of the acid in a pint of lukewarm water. Put in a bottle, stopper tightly, and use as needed. Stretch the stained cloth over a bowl of clean water and apply the oxalic acid to the stain with a medicine dropper or glass rod. Allow it to remain for a few minutes; then rinse quickly by dipping in the water. Apply a weak solution of ammonia water, borax, or sodium perborate to neutralize the action of the acid and rinse again. Never use oxalic acid on weighted silk.
Hydrosulfites are very useful to remove dye stains, iron rust, ink, mildew, grass, and fruit stains. Sodium hydrosulfite, the one most often used, may be bought at drug stores under many trade names as a dye or color remover for preparing cloth for redyeing. It should be stored in a tightly closed can so it will not become damp. To use, dissolve 2 teaspoons of the sodium hydrosulfite in 1 pint of warm water and either sponge or dip the stained article in it. Or sponge the stain with water first, sprinkle the powder on the stain, and work it in well with the fingers. Rinse quickly. If used on colored material, hydrosulfites are apt to remove the color; so apply the treatment quickly and rinse well in water afterwards. Do not use on weighted silks.