How to remove grease stains from clothes: 8 working methods

09/13/201602/11/2017 Maria Ivanova 3 comments

The process of cooking usually does not go unnoticed for the housewife. There are greasy marks on the apron, on clothes and even on the tablecloth. Getting rid of them on your own, without having certain knowledge, is not very easy. What can we say about children who often get dirty while eating? There’s definitely no point in getting upset ahead of time.

You don’t have to spend money on dry cleaning or expensive stain removers; there are other methods that help remove the most difficult stains. How to remove a grease stain?

Don't panic ahead of time. Many people think that traces of grease are the end, it is impossible to wash them off, the thing needs to be thrown away, but everything is different. In fact, such stains will be much easier to remove than, for example, stains from coffee, berries and wine.

It is recommended to deal with such contaminated areas at the very beginning, without waiting until they become old.

1 Popular ways to deal with greasy stains on clothes
2 How to remove fresh grease stains?
3 Dealing with old greasy stains

Things to consider

All the methods described help deal with greasy stains. But if you are still afraid to take risks, it is better to just take the item to the dry cleaner.
Fresh stains are easier to get rid of than old ones. So don't delay it.
Do not machine wash an item with a greasy stain without first treating it. Otherwise, it will be much more difficult to remove the contamination.
Any home remedy must first be tested on an inconspicuous area of clothing. This will ensure that the color of the fabric is not affected.
If the chosen product does not cope with the contamination, try another one, lightly rinsing off the previous one with water.
Rub the product into a rough cloth with any brush or the back of a dishwashing sponge. It is better to rub a delicate item with your hands or clean the stain with the fabric itself, as when washing.

How to remove fresh grease stains

The fresher the greasy stain, the easier it is to remove it from clothing. There is a high probability that it will be removed by one of the remedies suggested below. All of them are safe for the structure of the fibers of the material and will not spoil the color of the item, therefore they can be used both for cotton fabrics and for synthetic or delicate ones: silk, wool, velvet, chiffon.

Fat neutralizers

It is most effective to immediately treat the surface of the fabric with a substance that dissolves molecules of animal or vegetable fat immediately after the oil gets on the surface. You can use any of the means available in every home:

dishwashing liquid;
shampoo for oily hair;
foam or shaving gel;
toothpaste

Proceed as follows:

apply a sufficient amount of product to the stain so that it completely covers the stain (before applying foam or paste, you can first moisten the cloth with warm water);
wait 5 minutes;
rub the stained area with a toothbrush or napkin (sponge, cotton pad);
wait another 10-15 minutes;
Rub the cloth well again in the area of contamination.

After these steps, you need to thoroughly rinse the item or wash it with washing powder.

Fat absorbents

If there is no possibility of instant washing or laundering of clothes, you can use an equally effective way to remove fresh greasy stains - apply one of the powdered products:

potato starch;
talc;
dentifrice;
baby powder;
mustard powder;
grated chalk;
salt;
soda

Powders have fat-absorbing properties, so when applied to fabric they quickly absorb it. You just need to pour a small amount of any powder onto the stain, press it into the fabric with a spoon, and after 20-30 minutes shake it off with the absorbed fat. After treatment, the item can be washed or the area wiped with ethyl alcohol or any alcohol-containing liquid - eau de toilette or vodka.

If you preheat starch, salt or any other powder to 50-600C in a frying pan (or in the oven or microwave), then the time it acts on a greasy stain can be reduced to 5-10 minutes without loss of effectiveness.

The advantage of adsorbents is the ability to remove fresh stains from items that require dry cleaning only. After treatment with powder, alcohol should be used to completely remove any greasy residue.

Laundry soap

Laundry soap (brown color 72%) copes well with many types of dirt. It also removes greasy stains perfectly. You should moisten the stained area with warm water and soap it generously with soap. If a large area of the product is dirty, you can soak it for 2-3 hours in a basin with ½ a piece of soap grated. During this time, you need to periodically rub the fabric with your hands or a brush.

Ammonia

An ammonia solution (dilute ammonia in a 1:1 ratio with water) removes greasy stains quite well. The item should either be soaked in this solution for 1-2 hours, or ammonia should be applied to the contaminated area for the same time and rubbed with a brush.

Micellar water

The micelles in the product for removing makeup and impurities from the face perfectly attract fat molecules and dissolve it without leaving a trace. To be more effective, you can scrub the stained area with a brush. Micellar water can also remove residual fat after treatment with adsorbent powders.

Tracing paper (parchment paper) and iron

You can avoid using any detergents and cleaning products at all and iron the dirt through blotting or parchment paper or tracing paper (you can use paper towels or, at worst, toilet paper).

Mode of application:

turn on the iron at the highest possible temperature for this type of fabric;
put paper folded in several layers on both sides of the fabric;
iron with a hot iron on the front and back of the fabric until the fat is completely absorbed into the paper.

This method is also good for fabrics that can only be dry cleaned.

A large amount of vegetable oil spilled on clothes can be quickly removed using bread crumbs. The fresher the baked goods, the higher their absorbent properties. The crumb should be carefully applied to the stain, and finally press down firmly on a clean piece for 5-10 minutes to remove any remaining fat. Next, the soiled item can be wiped with alcohol and washed in the usual way.

Emergency measures

You can significantly simplify the further washing of a T-shirt by pre-treating newly appeared stains.

Do not hesitate - until the fat is properly absorbed into the fabric and does not dry there, spray it with an absorbent agent:

salt;
baking soda;
mustard powder;
starch;
baby powder;
chalk powder;
talc.

Dry small crystals of the above substances immediately trap excess moisture. The sooner the stain is treated, the less grease will be absorbed. Before further cleaning, remove the powder with a soft, clean brush or cloth.

You can save suede boots or a skirt in the same way.

Bachelor manners

If you are a hungry man and in a hurry dropped a cheburek on your best shirt, don’t say “fuck”, but just read these recipes. They are taken from the forums of men who have not yet acquired a housewife or do not live near their mother.

Method No. 1

Very popular with men who save clothes with their own hands.

You will need shaving foam. No foam?! Take shaving gel.
Rub the product into the stain and leave for 10-15 minutes. Rub this area with your hands. If the spot seems too big and scary to you, repeat a couple more times. The main thing is not to rub the hole.
Throw your clothes into the washing machine. Pour in the powder and start the wash. You can add any other things to the shirt. In short, continue washing as usual.
A curtain.

...and also our dear men remove rust from bolts with Coca

Method No. 2

Here's another way that men praise vying with each other. They say that this method even removes machine oil that gets on once white clothes.

Basic rules for breeding and preparation of material

Stains can be removed using modern means or traditional methods. There are a number of rules, following which you can easily remove any greasy mark on clothes:

Cotton knitwear

To ensure that after removing the oily stain there are no traces left on the material, it is necessary to place several layers of thin material under the fabric (it is better if it is cotton knitwear).
If the fabric is thick and the dirt has penetrated deeply into the structure of the material, you should use a medium-hard brush, well soaked in a solvent, instead of cotton fabric.

Extreme and unusual methods for fat loss

Suitable for fabrics that are not afraid of ammonia or boiling. These are, as a rule, clothes made from natural fabrics. For example, jeans. Before you start, test the paint’s resistance to bleach and read the tag: will the item withstand high temperatures? Choose what you can use to conveniently remove greasy stains from clothes:

ammonia 10% + turpentine . Let me remind you that ammonia (aka ammonia) often bleaches fabrics. Below I will tell you how to do the test correctly. If the test was successful, wet the stain with a mixture (1:1) of both substances. Leave for 30-40 minutes. Then thoroughly wash the affected “skin” with good powder;
table salt (or starch). Here's how to remove a grease stain from jeans using this simple remedy. Pour 150 g of the substance into a liter of boiled water. Stir and place the contaminated clothes in it. Hold until the water becomes warm, then scrub the stain with a brush or your hands;
Polish for hair . Spray it on the dirt. Try not to get into neighboring areas. When the varnish saturates the fabric, cover the area with a napkin and press lightly. After 15-20 minutes, wash this area with soap. Then wash the entire item;
aspirin . Crush acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin) tablet. Dilute with warm water to a paste consistency. Rub into the stain. Leave for 30-40 minutes, covering with plastic to prevent it from drying out. The acid contained in the pill bleaches the fabric. But this medicine is especially effective against blood stains.
magnesia + medical ether . Mix 100 grams of each product. Wet the stain generously. Leave until the smell of ether wears off. Do the laundry.

Advice from Chistyuli. Here's how to wash off milk and mayonnaise. Grease that gets on clothes while eating can be easily removed by a borax solution. This miracle is sold in pharmacies. Mix a tablespoon of the product in a liter of warm water. Soak the thing. Let it sour a little and wash it.

Methods for removing stains on colored T-shirts

Removing grease from colored and dark T-shirts is complicated by the need to preserve the color without leaving discolored marks on the fabric. To do this, use special cleaning products.

Starch gruel

A starch solution is prepared using warm water. The final consistency should be paste-like so that the product can be conveniently applied to the T-shirt. In this form, you can leave it overnight, and in the morning, wash off the remaining starch and wash it off.

Dentifrice

Tooth powder can be used both on fresh, not yet healing stains, and on old, dried ones.

If the stain is fresh, simply sprinkle it generously with tooth powder, which should be immediately rubbed into the grease. It reacts with excess moisture to form active foam.

Once the stain has dried, moisten the oily soil with warm water and then apply tooth powder.

Bread crumb

If the stain is old but doesn't look bad, try soaking it in breadcrumbs. The fat is treated with hot water so that it dissolves a little. You need to put a crumb of fresh bread on top, which will immediately start to absorb dirt.

Tip: You will have to use several slices of bread before the dirt is completely gone.

Some tips

Before washing, carefully inspect your clothing for stains. This way you can find fresh contaminants that have not had time to be absorbed and dry. Thus, you do not have to use special tools.
Use a brush to clean. By removing the dried dirt, you will see how much the fibers have absorbed the grease.
Choose your product carefully. It must treat the material with care. Check first how the composition works. Apply it on an inconspicuous part of the item. So, for example, when using a product suitable for a cotton product on a woolen item, its fibers may be damaged. Which will significantly spoil the appearance of the product.
Use methods of increasing effectiveness. Use less aggressive methods first, and if they don't work, move on to more effective methods.
When using a brush, you need to move from the edges to the center. With these movements you will prevent the appearance of streaks, and the oily area will not spread any more.

After using any method, be sure to wash or rinse the item to get rid of odors and product residues.

Industrial household chemicals

Manufacturers of household chemicals have developed many different universal stain removers that are designed to remove a wide range of stains. You can choose the right product for white and colored items, for natural or synthetic fabrics.

If oil gets on your clothes, immediately moisten the stained area with any of the popular stain removers:

Vanish Oxi Action;
Antipyatin;
Amway;
Ecover Ecological Stain Remover;
ACE Oxi Magic.

But most of them only remove fresh grease stains well, and cannot cope with old ones. To solve this problem, you need to use stain removers specially designed for removing greasy stains or products based on bile soap:

Dr.Beckmann Expert fats and sauces – perfectly removes stains based on vegetable and animal fat;
Lion Top for removing stains from collars and cuffs;
Frau Schmidt “Double action formula”;
Dr.Frash for removing stubborn stains of various origins;
stain removal gel based on Dr. Beckmann gall soap;
Heitmann Liquid bile soap.

These stain removers remove the most stubborn stains from white and colored items very delicately, without causing harm to the product. Unfortunately, products are rarely sold in household chemicals departments in supermarkets, but they are easy to purchase by placing an order in an online store.

Specifics of contamination removal

Simply washing cannot remove oil stains from clothes. This is due to the fact that fat is not a water-soluble substance, which prevents it from being washed and rinsed with water.

When dealing with stains, it is also necessary to take into account what kind of oil is applied to the stain:

The easiest way to remove traces is from vegetable oil (sunflower, flaxseed, olive, etc.). To remove them, it is necessary to create an alkaline environment, which promotes saponification.
Animal oil (butter) also reacts to an alkaline environment and can be eliminated in such an environment.
Machine oil is a refined petroleum product. These stains, especially old ones, are removed with solvents - special means, as well as turpentine, gasoline, ether, etc.

Even with prompt use of sorbents, a trace of oil will still remain on the fabric, which will require further processing.

Removing old grease stains from T-shirts

To effectively wash old grease from T-shirts, you should use stronger detergents.

Alcohol and vinegar

First of all, you need to use ammonia, ethyl alcohol and table vinegar.

These products are available and can be found literally at your fingertips. Due to their solvent properties, these liquids can leave old oil stains on light and dark T-shirts.

Alcohol and vinegar can be conveniently applied to the stain using a cotton pad or piece of clean cotton wool, wiping from the edge to the center. Gradually, the fat dissolves and turns into cotton wool, which is regularly replaced with new, soaked liquid. In this way, you can almost completely remove dirt from T-shirts of different colors.

Acetone and solvents

Paint solvents such as white spirit, 646, etc., as well as acetone, are aggressive chemical solvents that can dissolve greasy stains of any age on any fabric, as well as construction paint and foam. Handle them with care as there is a risk of damaging the color and material of the knitwear.

Tip: Test the liquid first on an inconspicuous area of the T-shirt. If the fabric turns white or loses its shape after contact with solvents, rinse the area quickly and thoroughly under running water and avoid further use of solvents.

Turpentine and gasoline

Purified turpentine and gasoline can completely replace solvents, as they have similar properties.

You can use them according to the instructions above.

The downside for some people may be the unpleasant lingering odor that remains after using turpentine and gasoline. To get rid of it, wash the T-shirt with a fragrant detergent.

Comprehensive measures

It can be difficult to remove old stains the first time. In advanced cases, when deciding how to remove grease, it is better to resort to a complex of products and stain removers:

First apply baking soda slurry, Fairy or toothpaste to the damaged area.
Then treat the traces with alcohol-containing products in combination with vinegar or glycerin.
Soak in soapy water.
Wash in hot water (select the maximum washing temperature based on the type of fabric) with the addition of store-bought stain remover.

To remove stains, use a soft clothing brush or an old toothbrush.

So…

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How else can you remove a stain: universal store-bought stain removers

Any hardware store now sells a lot of products that are guaranteed to get rid of contaminants of a wide variety of nature. They are easy to use - you just need to follow the included instructions exactly.

Antipyatin soap is a very effective option. This product will cost (for a bar weighing 90 g) only 45-50 rubles. The problem is that it doesn't do a very good job of removing stubborn oil marks.

Use soap this way:

moisten the stained area of clothing;
rub with Antipyatin;
leave for 2 or 3 hours;
when the time is up, rinse;
Wash by hand or in a machine.

Vanish Gold Oxy Action is considered a very reliable product. The manufacturer directly recommends it to anyone who needs to get rid of greasy stains on clothes. For a kilogram jar you will have to pay a little less than 500 rubles.

To remove oil traces from an item, you need to pour 60 ml of gel into 4 liters of water (not warmer than 40 °C). The clothes are soaked in the resulting solution. If we are talking about colored fabrics, then an hour is enough, but when you have to clean white ones, wait 6 times longer.

Then wash your clothes in the machine, adding another 60 ml of Vanish directly into the drum. The described preparation is not suitable for natural silk, leather and wool products, but is suitable, for example, for denim items.

Quite a budget product - soap with a stain remover effect from the Frau Schmidt brand. It can get rid of the stains in question from any dense and knitted, cotton, and synthetic fabrics. It costs only 100 rubles.

How to use soap:

moisten the greasy blot with water;
rub it with a bar from the edges to the middle;
wait a quarter of an hour;
put it in the machine for rinsing.

The mentioned stain remover can also be used on colored clothes. Before use, we recommend that you test it on an inconspicuous fragment of the affected item of clothing.

“SA8 Prewash Spray” (SA8 Prewash Spray) from Amway is quite expensive. For a bottle with a volume of less than 300 ml you need to pay 700 rubles. However, it is economical and easy to use.

It is enough to spray the liquid onto the problem area from a distance of at least 15 cm. Then leave the product for about 10 minutes, and then immediately begin washing.

The manufacturer emphasizes that the effect will be higher the less time passes from the moment the contamination is applied to the start of its removal.

Ecover stain remover is a completely environmentally friendly product and will cost relatively little - 300 rubles. You just need to moisten the stained area of clothing with the product.

It is also recommended to rub the problem area with a brush built into the bottle cap. Next, the item is washed by machine or hand. The manufacturer does not recommend using Ecover on silk, wool and other delicate materials.

When choosing a suitable product, you need to pay attention to the recommendations and restrictions - all this is described in the instructions printed on the packaging.

Important: even substances positioned as safe can cause allergies in people prone to such reactions. Therefore, be sure to wear gloves when working with them.