Welp, as promised earlier, I have the results of my first oil stain remover test! Because I had all the supplies, I chose to test the wikihow oil remover instructions first.
Step 1. Spill oil on shirt. Check.
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2. The instructions said to use a paper towel to blot out remaining oil, but my shirt was already dry...there was no oil to blot. So I proceeded on to the step where I cover the stain in baking soda and let it sit for 60 minutes. The baking soda is supposed to soak up the oil. They say to repeat this step until the baking soda no longer turns brown. As the oil was already dry, this only took one application for me.
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3. Scrape off all remaining baking soda with a credit card. You can barely see the stain spot at this point, so I was hopeful.
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4. Apply dish washing detergent as a pre treatment, and scrub into the fabric with an old toothbrush until it foams. I couldn't ever get it to foam...but I sure scrubbed the soap into the fabric!
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5. Wash with 1-2 other non-delicate items with normal detergent, on the hottest water settings, and add 1/2 to 1 cup of vinegar. I added about 3/4 of a cup.
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6. Dry as normal is the last step, so into the dryer it went.
Did it work?
Did it?
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Hooray! Hooray! Hooray!
On one hand I'm a tiny bit sad it didn't turn into a Pinstrosity (I kind of figured it would as the oil was already dry and these instructions seemed to be for fresh oil spillage), but only because I now don't have a Pinstrosity to show you. But, you now have a oil removal method that you can try at home with ingredients you most likely have on hand! Cool! I hope it works for you as well as it worked for me.
Way too many steps (and you'll ruin the fabric of your shirt scrubbing it with a toothbrush). A better never fail oil stain remover: rub regular (blue) Dawn dishwashing liquid onto the stain, let sit for 5-10 minutes, launder as usual.
ReplyDeleteVery neat...I'll have to try this on some of my clothes! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteA tip from my Mum, pour drops of eucalyptus oil onto an oil stain, leave for 5 minutes, then handwash in warm water and you're done! No scrubbing! Seems counter-productive to put oil on oil but my flatmate and I tried this after everything else failed and got rid of stains that were weeks old! Best solution I've had yet :)
ReplyDeleteI am gobsmacked that the first method tried actually worked, but yay!
ReplyDeleteI'm impressed that it came out- YAY! I would possibly consider scrubbing the fabric from the inside just so that it didn't wear the fabric from the right side. I've had great success with using liquid dish detergent to remove oil stains- but it is always great to have another option that works available! One word of caution, though- I'd recommend air drying the fabric to make sure that the stain is out before setting the stain in with the heat from the dryer.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Sara and Sherron. You really only need concentrated dish soap. I learned that from the master chemist at work when I spilled an entire vial of silicone oil on my shirt. You just need to lightly scrub the soap in so it comes in contact with all of the oil and let it sit for awhile. Rinse if you have tons of soap on the stain, otherwise just throw in the laundry on warmest setting the fabric can handle. Easy Peasy.
ReplyDeletePerfect timing - I have a really small oil stain on one of my tops - right about nipple height, so looks like I've leaked!
ReplyDeleteI also use dish soap for getting food and grease stains out of clothes. I wouldn't scrub with a brush, it looks like it would damage the fabric. In my country, when we get an oil stain sitting at a table, we quickly sprinkle salt over it and wash it later. I suppose it acts just like the baking soda, but salt is right there on the table. Anyway, glad you managed to get the stain off!
ReplyDeleteMum always used Pinesol.
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