Laundry pretreatment with peroxide bleaches containing chelators for iron, copper or manganese for reduced fabric damage

A process of pretreating soiled fabrics with a liquid composition comprising a peroxygen bleach, butyl hydroxy toluene a nonionic surfactant system, an anionic surfactant comprising an alkyl sulphate and/or an alkyl ethoxylated sulphate, and a compound chelating copper and/or iron and/or manganese, selected from the group consisting of ethylene diamine N,N'-disuccinic acid or alkali metal, or alkaline earth or ammonium or substituted ammonium salts thereof, diethylene triamine penta acetic acid, methyl glycine di-acetic acid, diethylene triamine penta methylene phosphonic acid, hydroxy-ethane diphosphonic acid, propylene diamine tetraacetic acid, 2-hydroxypyridine-N-oxide, ethylene dinitrilotertrakis (methylene phosphonic acid) N,N-oxide and mixtures thereof wherein said nionic surfactant system includes one or more nonionic surfatants selected from the group consisting of hydrophobic nonionic surfactants having an HLB up to 9 and having the formula:

• RO--(C.sub.2 H.sub.4 O).sub.n (C.sub.3 H.sub.6 O).sub.m H, wherein R is a C.sub.6 to C.sub.22 alkyl chain or a C.sub.6 to C.sub.28 alkyl benzene chain and mixtures thereof, and wherein n+m is from 0.5 to 5 and n is from 0 to 5 and m is from 0 to 5;
• said process comprising the steps of applying said composition in its neat form onto the fabric and allowing said composition to remain in contact with said fabric without leaving said composition to dry onto said fabric, before said fabric is washed.