Adding one extra ingredient to washing machine removes yellow stains on sheets

woman holding duvets and pillows
-Credit: (Image: (Image: Getty))


A woman was left seeking advice on social media after her boyfriend's side of the white bedsheets remained stained yellow despite washing them.

Yellow stains on white bedsheets are typically caused by sweat, body oils, skin care products, saliva, improper washing, and fabric ageing. These substances can discolour sheets over time, making them challenging to clean.

However, a cleaning guru named Rebecca Pearl may have been doing it all wrong, according to one expert who took to social media to share her top tips. Ann Russell, known as @AnnRussell03 online, is famed for her household cleaning advice.

In a recent video that attracted more than 416,000 likes, the 'How to Clean Everything' author outlined how to remove yellow stains and suggested what might have gone amiss in the initial wash. She advised: "Let's hope you weren't using chlorine bleach. Because chlorine bleach won't do much for that. What you want is oxygen, bleach and lots of it."

READ MORE: The Chase's Darragh Ennis explains what really happens when contestants challenge answers

Russell recommended purchasing a tub of oxygen bleach, like Vanish or an economical alternative, along with a pretreatment spray or hydrogen peroxide in a spray bottle. "Now what you're going to do is you're going to get a big bucket or a big bowl, and you're going to put a whole mug full or half a mug full of the powder into it," she detailed.

"And you are going to top it up with the very hottest water you can get out of your tap. To be honest, I'd put a couple of kettles in on top so it's really hot. Then you're going to put both the sheet and the pillowcase in, give them a good stir around, pump up and down, put something on them so that they're kept underneath the water and bits aren't poking out, and leave them for a day overnight."

TikTok users were left amazed by the advice as they flocked to the comments to commend Ann for her guidance. One user exclaimed: "I LOVE that you know this stuff! I had no idea oxygen bleach was the thing to use. BRB gotta go wash a bunch of sheets."

Another remarked: "I SWEAR by drying in the sun. Peroxide and sun have saved my white Converse so many times," while another shared: "This is why I have black sheets."

Meanwhile, someone else penned: "I love Vanish products, they are more expensive but they have gotten every stain out."