How To Get Mold Out Of Colored Clothes

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It's not uncommon for fabric to start growing mold, especially if it has been stored in a damp place or was not allowed to dry fully before being put away. You can visually recognize mold as the discolored, splotchy patches that appear on fabric. If you'd like to remove this mold from your clothing, you'll need to wash or scrub the moldy item with a cleansing agent, like a commercial stain remover, bleach, borax, or baking soda, among others.

1
Scrub off the mold using a toothbrush. Take an old toothbrush and use the bristles to thoroughly scrub at the mold on your item of clothing. Remove as much of the mold buildup as you can this way.^[1] Discard the toothbrush immediately after scrubbing the fabric.
- Work in a well-ventilated area, or even outdoors. Mold spores can travel through the air in your house and could settle onto other clothing, or worse, in your lungs.
2
Apply a stain remover to the mold. Once you've scrubbed off as much of the mold as possible, liberally apply a stain remover to the moldy portion of the clothing.^[2] Stain removers need time to soak into the fabric, so wait at least 30 minutes before washing the garment.
- Commercial stain removers are readily available. Check the cleaning products aisle at your local grocery store or any supermarket.
3
Wash the item by itself with hot water. Run your washing machine on a "large" or "extra-large" load size, and set the water temperature to "hot." Do not add any other items of clothing to the washing machine, as you'll risk transferring mold spores to currently non-moldy clothes.^[3]
- If your washing machine estimates what load size is necessary based on the amount of fabric in the machine, throw in a few old rags or towels for weight.
4
Add vinegar to the laundry. Once the laundry machine has filled with water, you can add vinegar to ensure that the mold is removed. Pour in ¾ cup (177 mL) of white vinegar to your load of laundry.^[4]
- Vinegar will also remove any unpleasant mildew smell that the moldy clothes have accumulated.
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Susan Stocker runs and owns Susan's Green Cleaning, the #1 Green Cleaning Company in Seattle. She is well known in the region for outstanding customer service protocols — winning the 2017 Better Business Torch Award for Ethics & Integrity —and her energetic support of green cleaning practices.

Susan Stocker
Green Cleaning Expert

Our Expert Agrees: Washing your clothes in hot water and vinegar will kill about 80% of mold spores, and it will also help with the unpleasant moldy smell. Pour the vinegar directly into the wash, and don't use any detergent. Fill the machine with hot water, then pause the cycle and let the clothes soak for about an hour. Finish the cycle, then wash the clothes again with regular detergent and non-chlorine bleach.
5
Air-dry the clothing. You won't be able to tell if the mold has been completely removed from the clothing until after it's dried and the fabric has returned to its natural color. Let the fabric air dry on a flat surface or over a drying rack or drying line. ^[5]
- If it's a nice day, you could also dry the item of clothing outdoors, in full sunlight. The sun's added heat will help kill off and remove whatever mold remains on your clothing.
- Avoid using the dryer. Wait until the item is air-dried to check for any mold, discoloration, and odd smells. Putting any fabric with mold issues into the dryer risks contaminating the dryer with mold spores.^[6]

1
Run your laundry machine on "hot." Whenever dealing with mold on clothing—or any other type of fabric—always launder on hot. Hot water is effective at both killing and removing mold, whereas warm or cold water will be ineffective.^[7]
- Only use bleach on white clothing, since it will fade or remove the color from dyed fabrics. If the moldy item of clothing is colored, you'll need to try a different method.
2

Add laundry detergent. Once your laundry machine has mostly filled with hot water, add laundry detergent as you typically would.^[8]
3
Add bleach to the laundry. Once the detergent has started to foam, pour 1 cup (237 mL) of bleach into the water.^[9] If your laundry machine has a receptacle specifically labeled "bleach," pour the bleach in that opening.
- Manufacturer's recommendations can vary concerning how much bleach to add to a load of laundry. If your bleach recommends using more or less than 1 cup, follow the instructions given on the packaging.
4
Run the laundry load as usual. Once you've added detergent and bleach, let the machine finish filling with water, and add your moldy clothing. Once the load has finished, the mold should be removed from the clothing.^[10]
- If the mold has not been removed after laundering, do not dry the clothing. Drying will not remove the mold.

1

Start a load of laundry on "hot." Hot water will be most effective at removing the mold stains from your clothing. Add your typical detergent and the moldy clothing to the laundry load.^[11] Do not wash other, non-moldy clothes at the same time.
2

Dissolve 1/2 cup of borax in hot water. In your kitchen, fill a large pot or mixing bowl with very hot water. Pour in ½ cup (118 mL) of borax. Use a spoon or other utensil to stir the borax until it's completely dissolved into the hot water.^[12]
3

Add the solution to the load of laundry. Once the borax has completely dissolved in the bowl of hot water, slowly pour the borax and water solution into the washing machine.^[13]
4
Let the laundry machine run as usual. The final rinse cycle should remove all of the cleansing substance that you added to remove the mold stain.^[14]
- Let the clothes air dry after they've been laundered.

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What if I'm not in an area where I can air dry? Can I put it in the dryer?

Avoid putting any item that had mold on it in the dryer. If the mold is not completely removed, there is a high risk of contaminating the dryer with mold spores.

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When working with bleach (or any other caustic stain removers), take care not to get any in your eyes or on your skin.
If you're unable to remove the mold from your clothing, you can take the item to be dry cleaned. Dry cleaning will effectively kill and remove all of the mold.^[15]

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To get mold out of clothing, start by scrubbing the mold off with a toothbrush. Next, apply a stain remover to the mold, allow it to soak in for at least 30 minutes, and then wash the fabric by itself in hot water. Once the washer has filled with water, you can add vinegar to remove any mildew smells. When the wash is done, let the fabric air dry, ideally in sunlight to kill off any remaining mold. If the garment is white, you can also wash it on a hot setting with laundry detergent and bleach. To learn how to get mold out of clothing with Borax, keep reading!

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