Using Clorox 2® Stain Fighter & Color Booster in Japan

Advice from Dr. Laundry

I just bought some Clorox2® at Costco in Japan. As you probably know, our washers here are cold water and most Japanese don’t have dryers. I didn’t know you had a cold water formula. My kids’ school uniform has a white shirt that they are always getting mud on. The playground is, in fact, made of dirt. Should I soak in plain hot water first then pre-treat with Clorox2®? Should I just try and hunt down some regular Clorox®? If I wash and then there are still mud stains, is my approach different?

I’m curious as to how long you will be in Japan—what a great experience! I have never been to Japan, which makes it more difficult to dispense laundry advice, but I will do my best. I have some general suggestions that will hopefully help improve your results.

Cold water washing is always a challenge, but probably more common in Japan given the national interest in conserving energy. That said; pre-soaking with Clorox2® Stain Remover and Color Booster in hot water will be very helpful. You just need a plastic dishpan, and then you can proceed as follows with your child’s muddy white shirt:

Rinse garments in warm water to remove any loose soil.

Measure a scoop or capful and add it to 2 gallons of hot water—make sure the powder dissolves completely.

Fully submerge the shirt in the pre-soak solution for up to 8 hours or overnight.

Drain the pre-soak solution.

Apply Clorox2® (if it’s the liquid) directly to any remaining stain, and then wash in your clothes washer with detergent.

For improved cleaning of your colored items, proceed as above, but limit the Clorox2® presoak time to 30 minutes. Also, for your white items, I would definitely try to track down Clorox® Regular Bleach₂, or if you can’t find that, the local brand of sodium hypochlorite bleach. If language is an issue, you might want to try bringing a printout of the translation of what you want.

If your clothes washer has a dispenser for Clorox® Regular Bleach₂ then I would use it. You can also pre-soak white items with ¼ cup bleach diluted in 1 gallon of water for 5-10 minutes.

Readers – have you had trouble using Clorox2® while in Japan? Any suggestions?