# How do I get bloodstains out of a white shirt? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 7, 2015, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181 "2015-01-07T02:10:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/1 "2015-01-07T02:10:23Z")
I scratched a pimple and gave three little blood spots on a white shirt. What’s the best way to get them out? ---
**Author:** ![Hector\_St\_Clare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5ac83/32.png) [@Hector\_St\_Clare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hector_St_Clare)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/2 "2015-01-07T02:47:58Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > I scratched a pimple and gave three little blood spots on a white shirt. > > What’s the best way to get them out? Whatever you do, don’t wash in hot water. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@The\_Joker\_and\_the\_Thief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Joker_and_the_Thief)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/3 "2015-01-07T02:49:01Z")
You can try bleach, but there’s a chance its non-recoverable. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/4 "2015-01-07T02:51:10Z")
Rinse it in cold water, and do it fast. With blood, the more time it has to set, the harder it is to get it out. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/5 "2015-01-07T02:51:20Z")
Hydrogen peroxide: > **[Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos](https://www.yahoo.com/)** > > Latest news coverage, email, free stock quotes, live scores and video are just the beginning. Discover more every day at Yahoo! ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/6 "2015-01-07T02:58:26Z")
Soak it in cold water, quickly. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/7 "2015-01-07T03:48:53Z")
Oxy works well on stains like that. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/8 "2015-01-07T03:54:57Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Hydrogen peroxide: > [https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090103161445AAAS83k](https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090103161445AAAS83k) Seconding that, I’ve had good luck with Hydrogen Peroxide as well. Put some on, let it fizz and soak for a few minutes, rinse it (with cold water) and do it a few more times. Once it’s as gone as it’s going to get, toss it in the wash, hope for the best and see if you can find the spot after it’s done being washed/dried. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/9 "2015-01-07T03:55:41Z")
keep it in cold water until gone. ---
**Author:** ![LouLou7](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a87d85/32.png) [@LouLou7](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouLou7)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/10 "2015-01-07T03:56:43Z")
Spit on the spots. Something chemical in your saliva will dissolve your own blood stains. Won’t work with anyone elses saliva, just yours. Wierd, but it works. ---
**Author:** ![am77494](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d2c977/32.png) [@am77494](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/am77494)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/11 "2015-01-07T04:35:34Z")
The spots from blood are mostly due to iron in our blood. You need to reduce the iron from +3 state to +2 state to remove the stain. Any of these things will work : Barkeepers friend, CLR - or plain oxalic acid. Only use a little bit.(like half a teaspoon most) ---
**Author:** ![TSBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@TSBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TSBG)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/12 "2015-01-07T05:25:44Z")
Hydrogen peroxide is great and fairly kind to clothing. I’ve also had really good results on bloodstains and wine stains with a product made by Shout–a kind of gel that you use to pre-treat before washing. I believe it has some enzymatic cleaners in it, don’t have the bottle in front of me. Hope it’s okay to mention that brand name. Note that a little mechanical action will help, meaning light scrubbing, perhaps of the cloth against itself, or with a (not to be re-used) toothbrush. You will dislodge some particles of the clot and expose more of it to the action of the chemical you do use. ---
**Author:** ![Vaevictis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f04885/32.png) [@Vaevictis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vaevictis)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/13 "2015-01-07T05:50:30Z")
The best way to get a blood stain out is to use the meat tenderizer made from papaya enyzymes. Any basic meat tenderizer at the grocery store will consist of that. Sprinkle it on with some water, let it break down the blood, and it is easy to wash it out by hand. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/14 "2015-01-07T06:07:11Z")
Just dye the whole shirt red? ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/15 "2015-01-07T07:22:23Z")
I’m with **Cunctator** and **johnpost** : soak in cold water for 2-3 hours. Longer if the blood has dried and set for a long time. Keep soaking in cold water until you wash it, then wash in cold water. Do not wash in hot water because this may set the stain. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/16 "2015-01-07T14:52:31Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > I scratched a pimple and gave three little blood spots on a white shirt. > > What’s the best way to get them out? I’m sure there isn’t a woman alive who hasn’t had to get blood out of clothes. Best bet, in my experience, is to apply cold water poured from a height, directly to the stain and no other part of the garment, so that there’s a degree of mechanical flushing through the fabric (such as laying the item over a bowl in the kitchen sink and letting cold water from the faucet go through it at a high drip or thin stream.) If you simply the soak the whole garment, you may spread the blood around. Do not under any circumstances use hot water or the dryer if you’re not sure if the stain is gone. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/17 "2015-01-07T15:18:45Z")
When I read the thread title - I expected a “Need answer fast?” response:) ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/18 "2015-01-07T17:42:35Z")
I wouldn’t risk it, forensics can find out a whole bunch of things from a couple of spots. I usually burn the shirt after the event. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/19 "2015-01-07T19:12:39Z")
I’d rinse with cold water as best as I could, then hit it with a laundry pre-treater containing protease enzymes, like Zout. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181/20 "2015-01-07T21:51:39Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > When I read the thread title - I expected a “Need answer fast?” response:) I didn’t want to alert any cops who might be reading the SDMB. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-get-bloodstains-out-of-a-white-shirt/709181.md?page=2)