I’m having the same problem and can not figure out why. Nothing has been left in the washer and I’ve run a cleaning cycle. It happens randomly and I’ve already ruined several items. Any new insights??

Is it possible there is rust in your water, or perhaps a part in the machine is rusty?

Good question. i don’t see any rust in the washing drum. Do you know how to check for rust in the water? Our house is only 4 years old so the pipes should be good. And the spots are a bunch of pink dots - looks like measles on clothes

Try soaking a piece of fabric in water in the sink and see if you get spots. If not that would limit it to something in the washer, or perhaps the detergent/softener.

i just recently bought a dress that i’ve never worn or washed and now there are these HUGE bright pink stains on them! i cant figure out what it is :(

I am having the same problem s many if you with my clothes randomly turning pink in my top loading washing machine. I have checked everything and can’t find anything wrong with the washing machine and some kids come out fine and then one will come out pink again. I have no idea what could be happening but it started happening in the last month and has happened 6 times so far. Super frustrating!!!

They are likely sweat stains. I have seen these many times on shirt collars or on darker colored bedsheets where your head would lay. On pink shirts, they come out as neon orange.

This exact thing keeps happening to me! It seems completely random! And all of my favorite clothes keep getting ruined.

This is an ongoing problem at our home. We have resorted to buying dark colored clothing because I’m so sick of trashing ruined items. It’s not sweat, it’s not a leather tab on jeans. It happens when I do a load of all whites! I’ve contacted whirlpool & best buy & they don’t know. There’s not a single pink marker in my home or lipstick, etc. it’s so aggravating. Here’s one example of many. The entire load of whites needed thrown out.

!

Mystery Solved!!! As I stated above. The pink stains I experienced were from using BIZ color safe bleach in conjunction with a faux leather brand label on husbands jeans. Washing these jeans with that label caused the staining around the jean patch and bleed to other clothing. No problem since then. Always have to be cautious with a detergent that says it removes blood or protein. Not compatible with all materials especially hand dyed fabrics cottons (for quilting) Hope this helps

Yep I got a second hand washing machine from a charity shop of all places (which makes me even angrier at the previous owner) that has caused more damage in cost from damaged clothing than what I paid for it. The cause was recognisable instantly as bleach. I followed the old dad's advice to do small washes but high level water several times, and then use a load of old towels. Well, it's not stopping. I can wash small items like underwear in high level water and get away with it, but nothing else. So need to buy a new washing machine as I have a young one especially just started at school and just mucky issues. I went past the 30 days due to illness and there's not really a chance of getting my money back, even though technically it is a fault.

BUT on googling I came across a good site to fix varying levels of damage, I'm trying to find it again but when I do I'll post.

Ohhhh we cannot afford a washing machine. But as for fixing various things gone wrong.... I don't have the time to try yet, but don't have the money to let those clothes go to waste. And I hate pink anyway!! Here's the link if it lets me put it up:

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/sep/08/how-to-mend-bleached-clothes

Good luck, K.

I'm having this issue but it's on t-shirts and leggings. Mostly my daughters clothes. At first it was on everything we washed and found it to be liquid fabric softener. But we stopped using liquid and now use sheets. But even now her brand new t-shirts are coming out with pink on them. They are light blue sshirts,enoneof her whites have this pink on it.

Please figure this one out...out of 2 different loads of color clothing with multiple gray t-shirts, only one shirt came out with several spots of bright pink all over it. Absolutely nothing else was touched. In second load it was one bright pink spot on my husband's golf shirt (different fabric),right on the white lettering. Again, nothing else was touched. Both of these loads went through the dryer before being caught. What could be causing that?

Oh, and only Tide detergent and vinegar was used. Dryer sheet in the dryer.

I'm have this same issue!! I feel like it's some kind of mold. I wash everyone's clothes together but it only happens to my husband's clothes. I think it might have something to do with his sweat.

These bright pink stains on white clothing, has been the bane of my life and trying to figure out what could be doing it. I googled all the ingredients and found quite of few of them are fragrance oils and also that Hydroxyisohexyl 3-cyclohexene carboxaldehyde has now been banned due to high allergic reactions. They have until 2021 to faze it out completely from products ie. cosmetics, perfumes, soaps, etc etc. But i also noticed on the capsule this red triangle and now wondering if this red dye on the capsule is the cause of the dreaded bright pink stains? Since most of the liquid is an oil and on washing temps of 40c and higher, i'm thinking this could be the cause???

We are having the same problem here. I use Tide pods... does anyone else? Maybe the link is the pods.

I am having the same issue with a top load Admiral washing machine. I use liguid Meyers brand with an Ecos OXO BRITE booster. My stains are a peach color, just stained a brand new comforter. What brand of washing machine do you all have?

I am having this same mysterious pink stain issue and it’s ruined several things now! I have a whirlpool washer and use Dreft baby laundry detergent as well as Seventh Generation laundry detergent and Ive gotten pink stains with both. It’s weird it seems to just attack one piece of clothing. Although this last time it got on two pieces but they were the same exact print, one was just a shirt for my baby and the other were his matching pants. It wasn’t a cheap outfit either. 😭

We have had problems with pink mold off and on for years. We replaced our water tank, thinking it was rust, and that helped for awhile. My husband's shower turned pink, and he was able to clean it off with cleaning clay. Now my synthetics are getting pink (not orange) stains, mostly where I sweat. I ran the washing machine with lots of chlorine a couple of times and will wash clothes in a few days. If you Google "pink mold," you will find lots of results but few remedies. I have a top loading washer and use Beekman 1 802 soap in it.

My marks are only on my side of the bed linens. I tried 6 different detergents, no bleach/ bleach and realized it is happening to only the linens that I sleep on. I sweat a bit when I sleep and it is my sweat mixing with something in our white linens.

I don't wear makeup 99% of the time and knew it wasn't makeup. Likewise, I don't have pink writing utensils and knew it wasn't that. These don't come from the washer/ dryer in my case and only appear if I sleep on them.

I mentioned it to my doctor who tested me for infection. And sure enough, I do have one. I'm currently on my 3rd round of antibiotics as I keep testing positive.

I wash all my linens every single day (so annoying) and have possibly one of the cleanest homes I've seen. (No pets, no kids and my husband is a cleaning fanatic).

Same issues but only on my bath towels. I have no idea what it can be but read on another post that acne face washes/topical meds that contain benzoyl peroxide may be the cause as well as toothpaste 🤷🏼‍♀️

I have been having problems with this also, as prior comment shows. Google pink mold and you will learn many things. Looks like the main culprit may be the bacteria biofilm serratia marcescens, but it could be other culprits. DH's fiberglass shower turned pink as have many of my clothes. You will read that both chlorine and vinegar help. I leave my washing machine lid open when I am not using it, and my first load each week is dh's whites and I run bleach with it. This has helped, but I have not been able to get out the old stains.

I don’t think it’s detergent or fabric softeners. My daughter has a newborn and we wash his clothes (all brand new) in Dreft clear baby detergent with no dryer sheets, no fabric softener and brand new gray clothes have pink spots or bleachy looking spots.

I know this is going to sound strange, but my partner and I have been doing some tests and discovered that items moist with salt and proteins will stain pink if not dried out properly (even before washing). Salt from sweaty shirts (or even the sea and high sodium hot springs where we live) mixing with sexual emissions (which are high in proteins and other minerals) were the only ways we could replicate the stains time and time again.

So, to the guys out there, don't use your sweaty shirts to wipe up, or at least make sure everything dries out after (or wash immediately).

Sodium-protein compounds are actually used to make various dyes, such as eosin.

I think you're on to something. My sleep shirt only turned pink around my neck, shoulders, and upper arms. However, my husband's fiberglass shower turned pink everywhere. He was able to remove it with copious scrubbing. He now dries the shower after every use to prevent it from coming back.

My daughter has had this happen twice to some very expensive clothing. She washed one load in a regular (not He) washer at our home and a load at her home (different town) in the same type of washer. Her pink stains are more like small dots from a marker ( that size ). We use Tide pods and vinegar, no softener. I tried using oxyclean gel stain remover...no relief. I then soaked everything in borax and arm and hammer washing soda mixed...for 90 minute. Still no relief. These aren’t from a pen, no red or leather tags, not sweat stains, not protein they are random and not on all of the clothes in the load. I am disappointed and discouraged.

I have a pair of Navy Capris tag says 97% cotton,3% spandex come out of the dryer with various
lighter color marks of unknown source. Don't know if dryer caused this or washer. Small load No other items had anything. Grey towels, some dark T shirts, other denim capris. And same items washed 1 week ago with no issues. Disgusting as we really are limited on clothing stores now to replace them.

I wish that I had an answer to this problem. It appears that this issue with the pink dye stains on clothing happens no matter what detergent or washer you have. I recently bought a matching Maytag top load washer and dryer for about $3000, upgrading from our old set which was from 1990 I swear lol. We use Liquid tide & Walmart brand scent boosters that are yellow color & it ONLY stains my 9 month olds clothes. I see where a lot of people said something in your sweat can cause it to react but my daughter doesn’t sweat? My husband sweats all day long working in a hot factory and no stains! It is this strange floureacent pink color. We own no markers or crayons (yet lol), and no gum wrappers or socks can be lodged in there bc we have only had the washer for a month. I will say I did notice the pink stain on the clothes that had sat in the dryer for a couple days. When I pulled them out they did not feel wet, but they felt strange. Not sure what the issue is, cannot seem to find a fix online. No one has any idea, I’m just tired of spending money on clothes for

them to get ruined.

I came on this thread tonight as was hoping for a solution as to why all the cushions I washed today turned pink in various places.

Usually my washing turns out perfectly and thankfully all the settee covers I washed first thing were fine, however I have been washing one or two cream coloured linen type material

cushions (leftover curtain material) and they are all spoiled. I’m going to have to find some fabric to cover them all.

I’ve never come across this problem before so will keep reading to see if we can get a definitive answer. So annoying.

I‘ve checked the machine thoroughly, under the rubber rim and haven’t got any red socks or new red clothes so it’s an absolute mystery.

I have had some success getting the pink out of my synthetic sheets and towels by including chlorine bleach when I wash them.

I found this thread while searching for a version of this problem. My clothes and towels aren't coming out bright pink--more like a dull peach color. I use Arm & Hammer Free and Clear detergent and that's it, no fabric softener or dryer sheets. First this happened to my brand new 100% cotton towels, and it's been happening randomly to other clothes since (though never to my whites, which get washed together in a separate load).

I thought maybe it was the 40 year old washer/dryer in my house, but we just got a brand new washer/dryer set and it's happening with that, too. This is a rental, and I've lived in lots of rentals with lots of different types of washer/dryers, and this has never happened before, which makes me wonder if it's the water. It happens so randomly, though. If it were the water, I would think it would happen with every garment in every load. Our sinks, toilet, and tub do not have any sort of stain in them. I don't even own any red or pink colored clothes, and it's definitely not a leather/faux leather tag, as I hand wash my denim in the sink.

It seems like my natural fiber garments are being targeted. I just pulled a linen shirt out of the wash that now has the peach stain. My synthetic clothes never seem to get the stains. And regarding the sweat theories: I definitely sweat, but the stains never happen in the arm pit/neck area, it's so random. This linen shirt has a stain toward the bottom hem.

This really makes me feel like I'm losing my mind. I've been doing laundry for decades, and never had this happen before. I almost wonder if there's some residual bleach that's hiding somewhere that's doing this?

Similar but different question and occurance! I've been noticing random neon pink stains on all sorts of things for years and am mostly wondering what kind of chemical reaction is causing them, now only Because one of these stains has shown up on a brand new pair of white PU boots. I wore them out to a club last week, so the potential for a drink spilling on them is high and it was also raining that day. Prior to this I've had this type of stain show up on a white pair of jeans shorts after washing and the tile in my old bathroom which was a fake tile look made out of sheet vinyl. Years of trying and nothing ever took the stain out of the floor. I'm assuming something reacted with the PU and vinyl each time to create that color but I can't figure out what

these pink stains are caused by a chemical reaction between your detergent and sweat or costmetics on the clothing.

if you put them in the sun it should get rid of the pink stain.

i run a laundry and encounter this issue always.

Wow! I thought the pink spots on our white towels and washcloths were just happening to us. It's not on any other while clothes. Sometimes, it looks like our towels had been dyed because it covers so much of these items. However, it only happens in my sons shower and only on his towels and washcloths. If the washcloth and towel are washed immediately or the next day -- no pink stains. If I wait 2 days you see a lot of pink on these items --wait 3 days, you can forget it because the items are covered in pink. I use bleach on them and the pink will come off. However, with the washcloths I noticed that it will leave brown stains and I have to throw them away! Its so frustrating!!

I think these stains has nothing to do with the detergent at all. However, bleach gets rid of it all. I have used the same detergent for many many years with fabric softener and the pink stains started in May of this year. Perhaps someone will find out the reason behind all of the "pink" in our clothes.

I had the same issues years ago and still do occasionally. My doctor figured it out for me. It was a bacteria in my sweat that was leaving marks on my white linens (all cotton sheets, all cotton pillowcases & all cotton duvet & blanket). Bleach would take the pink stains out. He put me on an anti bacterial medication and it helped. I still sweat occasionally and the marks are lessened by are there. My pink marks were more like a highlighter pink and were in large patches under neck area.

My husband and I are in Hawaii...we each have the same white washcloth and everytime he uses his a bright pink splotch appears. It doesn't really come out I. The wash, although I haven't tried bleaching them yet. I can only conclude it's a combination of bacteria on his skin combined with humidity? This has never happened back home.

My husband and I are in Hawaii...we each have the same white washcloth and everytime he uses his a bright pink splotch appears. It doesn't really come out I. The wash, although I haven't tried bleaching them yet. I can only conclude it's a combination of bacteria on his skin combined with humidity? This has never happened back home.

Guess what! I tried soaking in bleach - no luck. I then threw the pillow case into our saltwater pool and within seconds the stains magically disappeared!!!

Tonight I opened my dryer to find every cotton item in my lights load covered with highlighter pink marks… I read these posts, googled homemade oxiclean recipes (I’m way out in rural Montana & had none) & did the following: in stainless kitchen sink (clean) add hot water, 1/2 cup Borax, 12 oz hydrogen peroxide (cheap 99 cent Walgreens is what I had), then put the clothes in. Soaked then until wet, added a cup of baking soda & voila!!!! All the hot pink fluorescent color is gone, but look how the water turned before & after (my shadow is over first photo). Threw in the washer & double rinsed— perfect, even though they dried first.

I appreciated everyone’s chemical reaction insights! My daughter started using a “sleep” lavender, chamomile, oat lotion AND spray this week; this load had all her nighties!

Fascinating thread. I hope someone can explain what is going on

I have found that sunblock mixed with bleach causes the pink staining. Use rubbing alcohal to take it out.

I don't use sunblock, or benzoyl peroxide. I don't sweat at all. Not much sex these days (I'm 70).

No colored items in laundry. No dye on washing pods. No nuthin! And the pink spots keep coming. We DO have the pink mold bacteria, and it does show up in sinks from time to time.

This could be the problem, as only damp things (towels) seem to develop the bright pink spots.

See if your items spend any time in a damp hamper ...or hang damp on a towel rack. Then look for a beige pink color in your grout or around your sink drain. (You won't see it if your fixtures are beige or brown, only on white surfaces.) Is this the problem? I don't know, but we just moved to a new house in a new town, and this pink-beige mold appears every couple of weeks in the sinks, before I clean. So if it's in the sink, it's in the air --- just looking for damp cloth to grow on. Then I think the chemicals in the detergents might actually ACTIVATE that neon color, turning reddish beige into neon pink. That's my theory. But who TF knows????? I do plan to try Sara's forumula and will let you know. That pink water tells us that something is def activating something, Where are the scientists when we need them?? Curing diseases or inventing nuclear fusion? Come on people, American laundry needs you!!

This has been hacking me off so I started looking online. That hacked me off even more because I keep seeing advice about rusty water or washing with coloreds. I even took apart my washing machine several months ago and, as expected, there was nothing hidden. The stains do not at all have the appearance of the ferric ion to be expected in rusty water but that got me thinking (always dangerous). The pink is both distinct and consistent and vaguely familiar. I accidentally got a chemistry degree over 40 years ago and have never worked in the field but the pink seem like that of the permanganate ion (MnO4). I started trying to locate a source of either manganese or the permangante ion based on my laundry habits. All of my whites go into separate laundry basket that contain nothing but white undershirts and briefs. It is only the shirts that show the pink stains. As I get ready for work, I go through the same ritual of washing my face, shaving, rinsing my dentures and then wiping down the sink with the "old" white t-shirt before throwing it into the white hamper. I checked the ingredients of my denture cleaner and it contains permanganate. I would not be surprised if my denture cream contains some manganese as well. I went to Walmart and bought some pink hand towels to wipe down the sink (which will go into the colored hamper). I will advise as to the results after the next load of whites. I am fairly new to dentures so this has never affected me before the last year. Many cleaners would contain the MnO4 ion so younger people might run into the problem as well.

The same exact thing has been happening to my white clothes for almost a year now and i have not found out what it is, i do not notice on anything other than my white clothing. Sometimes it appears after they have been washed, dried and folded and placed in a drawer or suitcae. Almost looks like pink highlighter. Nothing has worked so far in removing the stains. So bewildered! If you have figured it out or if anyone has any insight, i would love to hear it.

Scrub it with tooth paste I know this sounds strange but I had this happen to all of my husbands brand new dress shirts for work and a couple hoodies
Couldn’t figure out why, it was a mix load of kids clothes my clothes and his, only his got damaged still can’t figure out why, after multiple washes with multiple products I grabbed the toothpaste for what reason idk but I scrubbed vigorously with a tooth brush and a scour pad and they started coming cleaning, whites I will do a 24 hr bleach but things I can’t thsi seemed to help
Goodluck

https://www.mattoslactation.com/blog/2019/11/24/5-mysterious-cases-of-neon-pink-breast-milk-serratia-marcescens?format=amp

It's a bacteria that can colonize people and tiles/ bathrooms

https://www.harperwater.com/think-pink-serratia-marcescens-strikes-again/