Thrift store clothing and cleanliness
By Faye
@FayeHazel (40230)
United States
September 28, 2016 1:00pm CST
So here's some advice about buying clothing from a thrift store --
I was scared of buying used clothing for awhile because of the matter of germs. How can you know who owned it last and how sanitary they were? Washing with bleach as I found out is a great way to remove color and otherwise damage the items. However my mom reminded me of something a relative used to do - wash items in liquid Lysol. Yes there is such a thing. Most of us may know Lysol in it's more popular spray disinfectant form, but they do sell it in bigger containers as a liquid to be diluted. Tada! Just be sure that you don't put too much in the washing machine because it does have a strong scent.
Photo : Mine
13 people like this
15 responses
@JamesHxstatic (29410)
• Eugene, Oregon
29 Sep 16
My wife loves to shop at thrift stores, but always washes them with a good disinfectant.
2 people like this
@1creekgirl (44560)
• United States
28 Sep 16
Whenever I buy a piece of clothing from a thrift store, I wash it and dry it in a hot dryer before I wear it. I never buy bedding or anything that could have bed bugs. Uggh!!!
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
29 Sep 16
I agree, I have been tempted by the low prices at thrift stores on bedding but I just can't do it....
1 person likes this
@cintol (11261)
• United States
22 Jun 18
@FayeHazel I will have to give that a try, with my daughter here now she cooks a lot and my dishtowels are always stained with things she cooks with.
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
22 Jun 18
Ah no - doesn't seem to bubble too much - and - I have yet to find it discolor things. Though it does smell very strong - at least certain kinds of it
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
22 Jun 18
@cintol Ah, to be more fair - I haven't it found it to do much with stains -- but if one is worried about disinfecting or germs it's excellent. Something I have found to work well with stains (surprisingly) is to pre-treat the stain with dish soap. Trick I learned from my dad ,
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
29 Sep 16
You're probably right -- though I am a little extra paranoid about germs...
1 person likes this
@RubyHawk (99367)
• Atlanta, Georgia
29 Sep 16
@FayeHazel I like clean, but I don't worry too much about germs, we need to build up our immunity so every little thing doesn't lay us low..
@Hannihar (130150)
• Israel
12 Jun 18
@FayeHazel
Thank you for the tip. I used to work in a Thrift Shop and bought lots of clothing there and it has been fine through out the years.
1 person likes this
@Hannihar (130150)
• Israel
17 Jun 18
@FayeHazel
Yes, Faye, I loved it. I got a very night down coat because it came in on a day I worked. It was a shame ti had to close.
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
16 Jun 18
So welcome. To be honest I love thrifting. Good way to find unique clothing items for cheap prices.... working in a thrift - you must have gotten to see so many cool things as they came in :-)
1 person likes this
@divalounger (6182)
• United States
28 Sep 16
So good to know! It is a bit of a problem, so this is a solution I can live with
1 person likes this
@carebear29 (32002)
• Wausau, Wisconsin
29 Sep 16
I love thrift shopping. So much fun
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
29 Sep 16
It's good to know that there is some quality control measures in place
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381760)
• Rockingham, Australia
8 Feb 17
Everything in our Red Cross shop is either laundered or dry-cleaned before it goes on the shelves. I think the other op shops would be the same.
@teamfreak16 (43567)
• Denver, Colorado
28 Sep 16
I buy stuff at thrift stores. I would not have thought of that in a million years.
1 person likes this
@FayeHazel (40230)
• United States
29 Sep 16
It is a touch of brilliance... though finding the Lysol in it's liquid form is a little tricky
1 person likes this
@CaseyRoss9966 (4056)
• United States
28 Sep 16
I wash all of my clothes before I wear them. I don't care if they come from a thrift store or Walmart or even other store. Sometimes I will wear shirts, dressed, or pants/skirts/shorts without washing them if they come from like Walmart or JcPenny, etc. But I always was socks, bras, underwear, tank tops, and bikinis. You can just never be to careful.
1 person likes this
@dramagirl26 (3259)
• Ringgold, Virginia
29 Sep 16
I never knew you could wash clothes in Lysol.
1 person likes this
@scarlet_woman (23463)
• United States
4 Feb 17
my mom worked for salvation army-they wash everything that comes in(except some coats and shoes)..i rewash it anyways..i can't stand the smell of the soap they use..
