When accidents happen, and stains are formed, whether on your clothes, sofas, or carpets, the hope of getting them out is generally lost. In fact, the moment a stain appears on a piece of clothing, the first thing that would come into most people’s minds is to discard them altogether. The second thing is to get rid of the stain, which is usually followed by the thought that they do not know how to do it.
The truth is, most people don’t know how to get wine stains out of clothes or remove blood stains without spreading them more or worse, damaging the fabric. With this, we can say that it is really important to do your research. Therefore, if you are willing to give some time and effort, there many ways that you can learn how to remove different types of stains from your clothes. So, whether you’ve spilled your chocolate drink on your favorite shirt, or got mud on your pants, here are the 10 common types of stains and how you can easily clean them out.
1. Fruit Juice
Spilling fruit juices on clothes is very common among kids. Fortunately, it’s very easy to remove fruit juice stains on clothing. You can simply use laundry detergent and a hot wash cycle. But before doing this, you need to rinse the affected area with cold water first to lighten the stain. However, avoid scrubbing as much as possible. After that, choose a laundry detergent that contains enzymes because this will help tackle different types of organic matter.
Use a pair of rubber gloves and spread the detergent over the stain and surrounding area using your fingers. After that, wait for about 20 minutes before tossing the clothing item in the washer and running a hot cycle. You need to be cautious and check whether the clothing item is safe to run through a hot water cycle. It’s because there are pieces of clothing that can be ruined by hot water.
2. The Ink from a Ballpoint Pen
We sometimes get a little careless, which ends up having a line of ink on our clothes. Large ink stains may need professional help, but smaller ink stains on clothes can be removed easily.
All you need to do is to get some paper towels and place them under the fabric. Make sure that they are enough to absorb a good amount of moisture. After that, pour some rubbing alcohol on the stain using a sponge. It’s better to use 70% isopropyl alcohol. Then, blot the area using a clean white cloth and see if the stain will be transferred. Keep in mind that ink from an old ballpoint is more difficult to remove, but you can keep on trying for a few minutes.
If that method does not work, then you can use hairspray as an alternative. After applying hairspray on the stain, dab at it with a crumpled ball of paper towels repeatedly. After that, rinse the area under cold running water, and machine wash it on a regular cycle.
3. Red Wine
Removing a red wine stain is like a science experiment. What you need to do is to stretch the fabric over the opening of a bowl, showing the stain. Secure it in place using a rubber band. After that, sprinkle some salt on top of the fabric, then pour hot water through it into the bowl and watch the stain disappear. After that, toss the piece of clothing in the washer as you normally would.
4. Blood
If you want to remove blood stains from your clothes, the experts that you can ask are ER nurses. According to their suggestions, the first thing you need to do is rinse the stained spot with cold water and blot it until you have gotten as much blood up as possible. After doing that, put a bit of hydrogen peroxide onto the stain and watch it rinse away like magic.
5. Ketchup
If you spilled some ketchup on your favorite shirt, don’t be upset as there’s an easy way to remove it. First, you need to flush the stained spot with water, beginning from the backside of the shirt. Then, pretreat the stain with liquid laundry detergent and let it sit for a few minutes. After that, rinse it well. If there’s still some stain left, repeat the step until you have removed as much of the ketchup stain as possible. Then, use a pre-wash stain remover and put it in the washer as you normally would.
6. Grease
If you stained your clothes with grease, no worries because the antidote for this is also in your kitchen. Any dish detergent that is petroleum-based, just like Dawn or Sunlight, is made to cut grease. These dish detergents that you use to clean your pots and pans have a similar effect on clothes. All you need to do is to saturate the grease stain with the soap and let it soak for a few minutes. After that, toss the clothing item in the washer.
7. Makeup
If your shirt or blouse has been stained with makeup products, such as concealer, eyeliner, blush, eyeshadow, or mascara, all you need to do is to use some prewash stain treatment and wash it as usual. However, if it’s a lipstick stain, you might want to try sponging the stained area with a dry-cleaning solvent after washing your shirt, and then wash it again.
8. Coffee
For fresh coffee stains, all you need to do is to run the stain under cold water from the back of the shirt. If that trick does not work, then try to rub some liquid detergent on it and let it sit for 3 to 5 minutes before washing.
When dealing with old coffee stains on clothes, you need to soak the garment in cold water after treating it with detergent. Then, rub the fabric every 5 minutes to help loosen up the stain. If there’s still a stain after 30 minutes, you can soak the garment in warm water for about 15 minutes and then rinse it thoroughly. You can also use a gel stain remover, which can get into the fibers of the fabric.
9. Mud
When dealing with mud stains, you need to resist the urge to work on the stain while the mud is still wet. Doing this will only make the mud smear around and make the stain bigger. Once the mud is dry, shake the dirt off or vacuum it up. After that, rub some liquid detergent on the stain and soak it for 15 minutes. Rub the stained part using your fingers every 5 minutes to loosen the dirt. If the stain is still visible after 15 minutes, use a stain stick, gel, or spray and leave it on for 5 minutes before washing with detergent as usual.
10. Paint
If your shirt is stained with paint, try to remove as much of the paint as possible using a paper towel. If you are dealing with dry paint, you can scrape it off using a spoon or a dull knife. If the paint is water-based, then all you need to do is rinse it in warm water until the color runs out, then wash it as usual. If the paint is oil-based, it is required that you treat the mark with turpentine first before rinsing and washing.
These are the 10 common types of stains and how you can easily clean them. The next time your clothes get stained, you no longer have to panic because you know that you can easily get rid of it.