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How to Remove Stains: Avert Summer Clothing Crises

The cold winter and rainy spring might have kept you cooped up inside, but summer is here and it’s finally time to get outdoors. But braving the hot sun, hitting the beach, and barbecuing for the Fourth all pose dilemmas for your clothing.  

Here are a few of the most common summer clothing crises and how they can be averted, ensuring that your outfits see another summer.

1. Sunscreen stains—Nothing’s more important than protecting your skin, so sunscreen stains are a necessary risk. But if you do end up slathering your shirt instead of your arms, first remove as much as you can, with quick swiping and dabbing, not pressing. Then, you can attend to the stain with pretreatment stain removers or white vinegar mixed with warm water. If the sunscreen isn’t gone after a wash, bleach should be used, though only briefly to avoid damaging the clothing.
2. Blood—Whether it’s from a skinned knee or a thorn-scratched arm, a little blood goes a long way toward ruining clothes. To rejuvenate the fabric, treat the stain with peroxide and wash with cold water.
3. Ketchup—Blood isn’t the only red substance endangering your family’s clothes in the summer, because at any good barbecue, with burgers and hot dogs (or their veggie equivalents), there’s no shortage of ketchup. For unruly condiments, scrape the excess stain off with a knife or similar flat-edge and run cold water through the back of the stain. Afterward, rub in detergent, use bleach if you desire, and wash. But remember the invisible stain—don’t dry the clothing until the stain is out.
4. Burn marks—Tending to a bonfire or celebrating the Fourth with sparklers can sometimes lead to burn marks on your clothing. To get rid of these blemishes, start with soft brushing using a dry sponge or brush, and then wash normally using detergent and color-safe bleach.
5. Sweat stains—Heat means sweat, and if your white undershirts are taking a beating, there’s a way to fight back. If the stains are in the underarm area, try an antiperspirant with as low an aluminum content as possible. Still a problem? Treat the trouble areas with either ammonia, diluted white vinegar, baking soda and water, or hydrogen peroxide. These substances will simultaneously absorb and destroy the oils, allowing a regular wash to finish the job.

For additional tips on types of stains that we might not have mentioned here, check out our previous coverage of how to remove particularly nasty stains like lipstick, or our special on common spring stains such as grass and pollen. In addition, be careful not to use the above techniques on sensitive fabrics such as silks and linens.

As always, we welcome your questions and personal remedies in the comments.

Also, remember: if the stain seems too difficult to deal with on your own, take the clothing to Crest Cleaners or your local neighborhood drycleaner to let the professionals have a go at it, just make sure you point the stain out when you drop off the garment (or have it picked up).

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