Introduction: Controlled Bleaching With Discharge Paste
This is more of an introduction to discharge paste than an instructable. Yes, the name is terrible and the stuff is white and gooey which makes it even more wrong. But its pretty damn cool, so you just accept it and move on towards greatness. Where bleach is incredibly thin and can destroy natural fibers if youre not careful, discharge paste is the opposite. Its gooey so it doesnt spill easily and can be used with silkscreens. Its also nice to natural fibers, which is good as well. It removes most fiber reactives, direct dyes and acid dyes and typically leaves a light golden color when its done. Everything you need to know about this is printed right on the label. To use it, you just apply it to a fabric, let it dry, and then iron it on the lowest steam setting for a few minutes to activate it. To make sure it works on a new fabric, test it by putting a small spot in a hidden area of the target material (assuming youre using a shirt) and see how well it works before spreading it everywhere. Available in the U.S. from Dharma Trading Co.http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/1574-AA.shtml
Mix cold water and cornstarch together in a medium sized saucepan. It’s important that the water is cold so that the cornstarch doesn’t cause any lumps in the gel. Over medium high heat, stir the mixture continuously until it is very thick and pasty. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
The best part is, making your own is super simple and only requires 3 ingredients. Seriously, this is as easy as its gets.
Below, you can see how I used it to take out a stubborn stain in my favorite white pants. Seriously, before this I had tried adding bleach to the wash cycle, but it still didn’t take the stain out. Whipped out this gel pen, and whalah! All things white again.
If you love this post, be sure to check out some of my other homemade laundry recipes below:
Let’s talk about bleach pens. Aren’t they one of the handiest home cleaning helpers? I mean, want your grout spick and span? Whip out the bleach pen. Spot clean a white area on a shirt? Bleach pen. Add some designs to your plain jane t-shirts? Hellooooo bleach pen. And what’s even better than a bleach pen? A homemade bleach pen. (And also, how many times can I say the word bleach pen in one paragraph?) Bam.
How-To Make Your Own Bleach Paste by Steve Parente
FAQ
How do they thicken bleach?
Can you mix degreaser and bleach?
How do I make my own Bleach paste?
Make your own inexpensive and effective bleach paste or gel easily, with water, cornstarch and bleach. Great for cleaning tiles, clothing or even drawing designs on dark colored fabrics. The mixture I’m using in the video is 3/4 cup water, 3 Tbsp cornstarch and 4 Tbsp bleach Y Show more
What can be used instead of white flour?
Instead of white flour, you can use whole wheat flour, add oats to the flour, or add seeds. You have to take into account that some recipes need white flour.
Can you mix bleach with other ingredients?
If you choose to clean with bleach, it’s important to understand what ingredients you can and cannot safely mix with it. Mixing bleach with the wrong ingredients can result in extremely dangerous toxic fumes putting you and your family’s health at great risk.
Can you mix bleach and baking soda?
Like bleach, baking soda is a salt-based product which makes mixing the two a safe practice. Combining the two enhances the cleaning efficacy of each ingredient, boosting the ability to remove tough stains and kill bacteria. This post gives you everything you need to know about mixing bleach and baking soda.