I have a pair of pair of blue cotton pajamas marred by a grease spot on the chest. I’ve tried myriad “household hints” to try to budge it: rubbing it with Dawn, putting various degreasers and cleansers on it prior to washing, but nothing seems to budge it.
I’m a bit in awe of this stain. One would think that, if nothing else, erosion would have worn it away considering how many times I’ve treated and washed these things.
At this point, I’m ready to try some aggressive methods for eradication. Ideas?
Put an paper tissue on it and iron it, so the grease melts and is absorbed by the paper? That has been known to help with fat-stains.
Embroider it or sew a piece of funny patchwork over it?
Oddly, some popular oily-stain cures involve rubbing on another oily thing, such as peanut butter or motor oil. If you have reached the point of “If this doesn’t work, I’m throwing it away,” you might try one of those.
Going through the dryer tends to set any and all sorts of stains.
Aside from that, grease is a problem because it’s often a multiple stain - the oily/greasy stuff itself, plus there’s usually a fair bit of carbon in the stuff.
I just had a look at Tide’s “Stain Detective” and their first recommendation is call in the professionals and take it to a dry cleaner. When a laundry detergent maker says you’re better off not using their stuff, you know that’s a tough stain!
You can also try putting your jammies “face down” on a pile of white paper towels and pour a grease remover such as “Carbona Stain Devil 5” on the spot. Change the paper towels frequently so the grease isn’t re-absorbed by the fabric. Let the garment air-dry, then have another round of pre-treat with liquid detergent and wash. (This info came from www.tide.com)
I’ve had a lot of luck with that funky hand degreaser that you find in the auto supply section (I say funky because of that special smell it has). I can’t remember what it’s called (my google-fu is weak today), but my dad always had a tub of it in the garage.
I had a shirt with grease splatter stains on the front that I ignored for several months and several washings/dryings. I used the degreaser like I would any other spot treatment, let it sit for a couple hours and washed the shirt again. You can’t even tell that the shirt was stained anymore.