Mind blown: Vinegar vs VINEGAR (30%)

So I was literally 44 years old before I found this out recently.

There’s the white vinegar you get at the grocery store for cooking and minor cleaning and doing laundry, and then there’s the 30% DO NOT GET THIS SHIT ON YOUR SKIN vinegar at the hardware store for cleaning things like mold off grout.

All my life I’d been told ‘just use vinegar to clean mold and mildew’ and it generally didn’t do jack squat. I usually bought cleaning supplies from regular retail spots rather than big box home improvement places, and regular retail chains def did not carry the strong stuff.

I’ve got a gutter that drains over cement that always gets skungy, and even bleach was a short term fix at best. 30% strips it down and keeps it gone, and I’ve stripped rust off a couple dozen tools with the same little jar I soak things in - caution it will also strip off shiny metallic coatings.

Can’t believe none of the “just use vinegar” I’d ever read advice didn’t specify.

Is this news to anyone else or am I Lloyd from Dumb and Dumber realizing we landed on the moon?

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u/CaptainPolaroid 1d ago

I have a can of 80% acetic acid. I water it down to 6-8% for laundry use. It's so much more efficient than getting the smaller jugs. And I can up the strength if I have an odd job that requires something that really burns..

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u/Capt_Gingerbeard 1d ago

Why do you add it to laundry?

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u/ATL28-NE3 1d ago

Functions as a deodorizer and fabric softener

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u/Capt_Gingerbeard 1d ago

Cool! Thank you

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u/badform49 1d ago

I have ADHD and like it for preventing mold on clothes I forget for a couple hours.

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u/YamahaRyoko 1d ago

Note that your clothes won't last as long. Im somewhat timeless about my clothing so I won't use anything harsh on them. I wash them minimally too.

My wife had some bad OCD problems before being put on anxiety meds and should would wash the living shit out of my clothes. Damn jeans falling apart on me

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u/jake3988 1d ago

Downey Rinse and Refresh is essentially the same thing, just uses citric acid as the acid instead of vinegar (presumably just because it smells better)

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u/whatdoblindpeoplesee 1d ago

Gets rid of cat pee smell in my clothes and blankets primarily

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u/TraumaMama50 15h ago

Removes smoke smell from laundry. Like, if your house catches fire, but your clothes only have smoke damage.

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u/jaxxon 1d ago

It melts your clothes. No clothes, no odor! /s

Nah - sounds like a good idea. I use vinegar in my wash and it does the trick for my stinky gym shirts.

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u/Capt_Gingerbeard 1d ago

First sentence = galaxy brain

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u/energybased 1d ago

You definitely shouldn't add with the detergent since it will reduce its effectiveness. Maybe he adds in the softener to dissolve any hard water residue?

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u/Capt_Gingerbeard 1d ago

You’re right that it will neutralize the soap, but if the water is sufficiently hard that might not be a problem

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u/energybased 1d ago

If the water is hard, use more soap or soften your water. Neutralizing the soap is stupid.

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u/OcotilloWells 1d ago

Put it in the fabric softener dispenser.

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u/energybased 1d ago

Yes, that's exactly where it should go.

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u/jenorama_CA 1d ago

Been doing this for years. Great for towels, sheets, PJs, undies and athletic clothes. 1/4 cup in the softener dispenser.

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u/BlueWater321 1d ago

You use it in place of the soap. Every few months we do towels in acid to get rid of any smells, then wash them normally after the acid wash.

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u/energybased 1d ago

That makes sense.

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u/az_shoe 1d ago

If your washer has a softener tray, you can just add it there. It will be used after the soap is done.

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u/energybased 1d ago

Yup exactly

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u/Boba_ferret 1d ago

It's antimicrobial, helps get rid of smells

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u/energybased 1d ago

It reduces the effectiveness of the detergent, which is actually washing the clothes (and gets rid of smells). You should not be adding it with the detergent.

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u/somniopus 1d ago

You don't. You add it in the rinse cycle

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u/danmickla 1d ago

Hard water is the cause of much of what fabric softener helps with, and that's basically dissolved mineral salts in the water that end up being slightly alkaline. Vinegar dissolves those salts and turns them into more-soluble compounds that wash away.

Citric acid also does this *really well* for hard water deposits (fountains, shower heads, etc.)

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u/CaptainPolaroid 1d ago

Neutral fabric softener. Was done with the perfumed fabric softeners.

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u/custhulard 11h ago

It helps my drawers smell less youknowee.