Among the most challenging things to men, laundry tops the list, mostly when it involves grease stains. If you are struggling to remove stains from your clothes, there is no need for panic. There are options you can go for, using general household products to solve the problem completely, and have your clothes looking as new as they should.
Try Using Liquid Detergents To Clean Grease Stains
While there are products specifically marketed as grease detergents for clothing, they might not be needed to remove a grease stain from your jeans or other articles of clothing. A perfect example that can be helpful in such a situation is the shampoo. As it is ideal for body oils, grease can never be any challenge. Liquid dish soap also is formulated to break up grease on dishes and it can work wonders on your clothes as well. Bar soap can also work well for the same reasons and is also easy to rub into the stain.
Make use of a toothbrush that is not in use to scrub off the blemishes. The option is more effective as compared to using bare hands. However, foot brushes, as well as scrub brushes, can serve the purpose. Any grease stain cannot survive the impact of excessive foam during laundry. Be consistent with the lather until the blemish dissolves completely. Like the shampoo, the regular bar soaps can combat grease, because of the unique agents within them.
A word of caution though. It is advisable to dilute any colored detergent to prevent worsening the situation rather than solving it. While most detergents are just fine, others can be harsh to delicate materials. Luckily though, with the possible except of designer fashion jeans, denim is a very rough and colorfast material so this should not be an issue when removing stains from your jeans.
For best results, ensure to rinse the affected area with enough water, and then if necessary, rinse with vinegar, which is a natural washing agent. However, its application can lower the effectiveness of washing detergents. It is a proven way of reducing the alkaline in soaps. That being the case, do not mix detergents with vinegar.
What To Avoid While Cleaning a Grease Stain
While the above techniques for getting rid of a grease stain aren't foolproof, a combination should work in most situations. One of the biggest things to watch out for is that if you wash your clothes before the stain is completely removed, make sure to check it before drying. Like with any stain removal situation, drying your jeans or other clothing might actually make the stain permanent.
Do Not Dry Grease Stained Clothing Before The Spot is Removed
Every laundry detergent comes with instructions that one should follow while washing. Prompt adherence to those steps yields impressive results. It is advisable to expose the clothing to air-dry as hot dryers might worsen the persistent stain.
Make Sure To Remove Any "Tar" Like Grease Before Washing
Many grease stains will be light and the treatments in this post will be sufficient. However, sometimes the stains are more robust and the grease could actually be more like a sticky tar. If this is the case then do not was your clothes before making sure this is completely removed. Instead, try some of the stain removal techniques here and then simply rinse it manually and try again. Don't simply treat it and toss it in the wash hoping you'll be ok since that tar could affect other clothes.
How To Wash Your Jeans After Removing the Stain
Use hot water to wash away the spot remover from one side. The garment needs to be in a basin or a tub, where you can pour the hot water. The process works best if you dispense the water from a high point to hit the spot hard. You must be extremely cautious in aiming the point, as you avoid any water splashing on you. Repeating the process helps eliminate the stain.
Other Techniques To Remove Grease Stains
While most grease stains should be able to be removed by simply treating with shampoo or liquid dish detergent, here are some other grease stain removal tips that I'm told work well.
White Vinegar:
White vinegar is perfect in removing stubborn stains that might prove difficult for laundry soaps. The process requires you to put the vinegar into the washer, along with your clothes. Besides eradicating the blemishes, white vinegar softens your clothes significantly. The fabric gets brighter, and the color comes out perfectly as well. Soaking stained clothes using vinegar mixed with pure water can be extremely helpful.
WD-40:
WD-40 is a powerful and versatile solvent. Most guys already know the wonders of WD-40 for loosening stubborn nuts and maybe even cleaning up metal tools. It can also work with grease stains on clothes too but be careful how you use it. While denim is probably not going to be an issue, I wouldn't use it on a tee-shirt without testing it on a small area first.
Coca-Cola:
The phosphoric acid in Coke can act to break up light grease stains like a champ. Simply pour some Coca-Cola on your jeans and let it sit for a while before throwing in the wash like normal.
Cornstarch:
Cornstarch can help remove a grease stain by literally pulling the grease particles off the fibers of the fabric and bonding with the corn starch instead. Simply sprinkle the corn starch on the stain, add some dish soap and rub the area with the stain. You can also do this with a dry cleaning solvent as well but most of us are more likely to have dish soap on hand. Let it sit for at least an hour before washing and the cornstarch plus dish soap will hopefully have broken up the stain and pulled it out of the fabric so you can wash it normally.
Mechanics' Soap
There are several different varieties of "Mechanics' Soap" and it is easy to find in your local auto parts store or even Target or Walmart. While intended for use on your hands to clean them of heavy grease stains, this can work well on your clothes too. The pumice-filled soap can be harsh but along with the grease-cutting solvent, it will help to break up and remove the stain so you can wash your clothes and get them free from the grease stain.
Lestoil by Clorox:
Lestoil by Clorox is a heavy-duty cleaner that is used for floors and surfaces and was introduced in 1933 as a dry cleaning fluid for laundry. You can still use it today to treat extremely difficult laundry stains.
Hair Spray:
I'm not sure how this one works but we're told it does. Simply apply hair spray liberally to your jeans and let it sit before placing in the wash.
Cheez Whiz:
No, I'm not kidding. Cheeze Whiz can actually help remove grease from your clothes. Simply put a dollop on top of the stain and let it soak in for 10 minutes and put it in the washer. There are enzymes in the Cheeze Whiz that can attack the stain and detroy it so you can get it clean with just a regular laundry cycle. However, you should be careful here to not put too much or that can cause a mess in the wash itself.
Getting A Grease Stain Out Of Your Jeans Isn't Always Easy
The process that one has to go through when cleaning a grease stain might be hectic and discouraging if you do not have the right procedure. However, applying the right formula makes it the friendliest task. Stains should never be a reason to make you shy away from currying out your laundry.
