Watch Out for Dye Fading In Laundry

I was in a dry cleaning plant today that had just ran a load of laundry that had dye fading. Apparently a multi colored shirt, which you wouldn't expect to fade on itself, did. Not only did it fade on itself, but it also got wrapped up with the other shirts and the cleaner ended up with  about 20 shirts coming from the machine with varied degrees of dye transfering from the problem garment to the others. 

When damp garments come in contact with one another, either before or during processing, dye transfer from one garment to another can occur. This is a frustrating and potentially expensive problem. Experienced spotting professionals know that the only way to solve this problem is through the use of bleaching products and advanced techniques. 

Use a titanium stripper like Ready-Strip, which has been formulated to remove fugitive dye without harming fabrics. When used as directed, it can even remove fugitive dye from colored garments. Proper use of Ready-Strip will help avoid expensive claims due to dye transfer.

For Removing Fugitive Dye in the Laundry Wash Wheel

1. Make sure the chemical
addition port is clean and free
of any additive residues.
2. Rinse the load thoroughly
using water (room
temperature) and then drain
and extract.
3. Fill wheel to low level with
warm water at 120° F - 140° F
(50° C - 60° C) or to suit fabric
conditions.
4. After low level has been
reached and while the wash
wheel is turning, add 1-2 oz.
(30-60 ml.) of Ready-Strip for
every 1 gallon (3.8 ltr.) of
water.
5. Run the load until the
unwanted dye disappears, or if
there is no window to see
through, run 10 minutes, then
drain.
6. Rinse the load thoroughly with
cool water.
7. Remember, the hotter the water
temperature, the more
aggressive Ready-Strip
becomes. If necessary,
use higher temperatures
when removing unwanted
dye from white fabrics and
lower temperatures when
working with colored fabrics to
protect original base color(s).