a known bleeder
 

I have a red and white stripe fabric, cut into about 5 -6" squares, where the red is a known bleeder into the white if I get it wet. Washing until it "bleeds out" only makes the white pink. What should I do to save the remainder of the unwashed squares?

Soak them in Retayne with a color catcher in with them.

I would wash them repeatedly in Synthropol until the red stops bleeding. Synthrapol should stop the loose red particles from tinting the white pink.

I would toss them, not worth the time and trouble to me.

i agree with above........I rarely use red because of its bad record....

There are two types of bleeders: fabric that has been over-saturated with dye, and fabric in which the dye has not been set properly.

The former just means that the manufacturer did not rinse the fabric enough to get rid of all the excess dye. Fabric fibers can absorb only so much dye; the excess is supposed to be rinsed out. If this is the issue with your fabric, repeated washings with Synthrapol will get rid of the excess dye and keep the white fabric from getting tinted with the excess red dye. Synthrapol suspends loose dye particles in water so they don't have a chance to set into fabric. Even with the piece that already turned the white pink, you can throw it in with the other squares and Synthrapol should be able to gradually free the loose dye particles from the white. This is because the red dye particles are not permanently set into the white. Most dyes these days require specific chemicals to permanently set the dye and/or high temperatures (higher than are achieved in domestic washing machines and dryers). This is why the dye particles in the white fabric are most likely not there permanently and, even with regular washing, will eventually come out.

The second type of problem means that the fabric keeps bleeding no matter how many times you wash it. I toss this type of fabric because chances are the dye color will not only keep bleeding with every wash, it may "crock" onto other fabrics (such as your clothes). Crocking is dye transfer in the absence of water; just rubbing the fabric transfers loose dye particles.

It's true that Retayne will permanently set dye. However, it doesn't continue to work if the fabric is later washed in hot water. Since we often don't know how our quilts are going to be washed, I really don't want to use that kind of fabric in my quilts. It's okay to use it in a wall hanging that won't be washed, or that will only be washed in cold water. Also, Retayne is useful only if you don't mind the white becoming pink. Retayne will permanently set all of the red dye -- including any of the loose dye particles that have settled into the white. Aside from the fact that the "permanent" setting of dye with Retayne is a bit of an exaggeration (since it is not permanent in hot water), Retayne is really only useful if the fabric is substantially one color or if you don't mind some dye bleeding into the other colors in the fabric.

p.s. Dawn liquid detergent is supposed to work in a very similar manner to Synthrapol. I haven't tried this myself, but I know there are websites that explain how it works. If you are in a hurry, Dawn might be worth a try.

I read only the original Dawn, not the concentrated or other blends. Also Purex makes a No Sort laundry detergent. It has color catcher in the detergent. I use it to wash all my quilts.

I agree with this.

Of the reds I have - only three or four of them were bleeders.

I have had a least one of EVERY color bleed - including yellow.