When preparing to clean your flood-soiled clothing, start with safety. Wear waterproof gloves when handling flood-contaminated materials. By following these suggestions, you'll be able to minimize damage to your clothes.

• Line dry all articles before treating. After drying, brush off loose dirt or debris.



• Garments made of wool, silk and all articles with a "Dry Clean Only" label will need to be cleaned by a professional.



• Clean the washable textile items as soon as possible to minimize staining.



• Rinse several times in cool water to remove as much mud as possible. Do not immerse flood-soiled garments in hot water. If the floodwaters carried red or yellow clay, hot water could set stains.



• Work a heavy duty liquid detergent or a heavy paste of powdered detergent into the garments. Let them sit 15 to 30 minutes. Then rinse and machine wash, using warm water and detergent.



• Disinfect the garments. Often floodwater becomes contaminated with sewage wastes. Bacteria from floodwaters can remain alive on fabrics for a long time. If it's safe for the fabrics, treat with liquid chlorine bleach. It's the best and least expensive treatment. Dilute bleach in one quart of water before adding to the wash cycle. Five minutes after the wash cycle begins, add one cup of bleach for top-loading and 1/2 cup for front-loading washers. For other fabrics, use a disinfectant, such as a pine-oil product or Lysol. Follow the instructions on the product label.



• Some clothing may have developed mildew stains from prolonged dampness. If stains remain after washing with detergent and water, apply lemon juice and salt or a bleach solution. Spot test colored garments before treating them.

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