Friday, February 3, 2012

Laundry Tips And Stain Remover Guide

Here is a host laundry tips and a laundry stain remover guide. My mom was the laundry queen. She could get anything out of clothes. She kept our clothes clean and pressed so nicely. She had no dryer and had to iron weekly. She even ironed my dad's old work shirts. Below you will find a laundry stain guide to get out any kind of stain.


I try to take care of our clothes in hopes they will last longer. I check for stains before they go in the washer.
Here are some tips on what I use to keep my kids and my lineman's clothes clean. Oh and me, a messy cook and gardener.
You can see in the basket above some of my arsenal. I always keep shout for common stains. Of course treat as soon as you can. I also keep a container of vinegar for the rinse cycle. It is a wonderful chemical free softener and deodorizer. 
I want to show you these pants of my hubby's. They went through the washer and dryer and while folding I noticed a ring of a grease stain on the back side. I had missed it going in. Something I use to get out old grease stains is De-Solv-It. It is an orange oil based laundry stain remover. You put a dab on and let it sit on the stains for 30 minutes. I then spray some Shout on it and scrub with an old tooth brush to make sure the De-Solv-It doesn't leave a ring. Even though this had gone through the washer and dryer already it removed all the grease stains.
I buy it at Target or Walmart. Lasts a long time. It has removed paint from Q's clothes too. Great stuff.
**Update on grease stain remover. I now make my own laundry grease stain remover for pennies. 
Check it out. You may already have the ingredients on hand.

I have been making my own laundry soap for years and you can find the recipe here. But I also will add about a half cup of Borax in the water these days. You see we have hard water and our water softener is not working. We will replace it but it is a few items down on the list of home repairs we are working on. So I was reading up and found it helps to soften water in your laundry. This keeps whites whiter and helps to just get clothes cleaner.
I also found this great stain guide online and it tells you how to get out all manner of laundry problems.

Hope these tips are helpful. Let me know if you know of any other great tips of getting stains out. I am always working on some sort of spot on clothing in this house.

25 comments:

  1. Elaine, I too swear by Borax! But I have not yet used De Solv it on clothing. I will try it! Thanks!

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  2. I too use the homemade laundry soap and have for years -- so frugal and better all around. My favorite stain fighter is a good old bar of Fels Naptha soap -- just wet and rub into stain and allow to sit before laundring. Works every time and the $1.00 bar lasts forever :)

    Blessings!
    Gail

    P.S. Vinegar is the BEST, isn't it?!

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  3. I must get some DeSolveIt! Thank you for the great stain fighter tips.

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  4. Sounds fabulous. I need to give it a try. Hugs, marty

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  5. Great tips Elaine! Very helpful to know about the de-greaser. I've never heard of it. Does it take paint out too?

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  6. Great tips. Thank you.
    I really like Borax. My only problem with it is getting too much in my front loader. We have hard water, too. (Remember the commercial for Calgon. Ancient Chinese secret.)
    For oil stains I use regular Dawn dish soap. I dab it on and leave it for awhile. Usually overnight. Then rinse and it is gone.
    My mom is very picky about her laundry. Just yesterday my sister and I did some housework for Mom while she is away. I did some laundry and forgot to take out her bra. Mom never would allow us to dry bras in the dryer. I told my sister what I did and we decided we best not tell her. She will be able to tell, I know. Anyway, my sister told me that to this day she still feels quilty if she dries her bras in the dryer! Mom is right, though. Bra will keep better if you air dry them.

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  7. this post is dear to my heart, my mum was the same and I too love to keep things organized in thelaundry room, I hate admit this but I love doing the laundry and i love to iron, I even iron my tea towels, stains are something enjoy as a challenge!
    I have missed so many of your posts, everytime i go to your blog my computer just keeps running an dit says the script wont stop running, I have no idea why so I found you on facebook, I have no problem when I go through facebook, isn't that strange, I'm catching up with the posts I missed, have a super day,

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  8. I don't love doing laundry but I do like ironing. Nothing beats lavender linen water in the iron and crisp bedsheets. ~ Maureen

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  9. I swear by ERA! It has taken out every stain I have had to deal with. I can never remember when the rinse cycle starts so I don't/haven't used vinegar in our laundry. But have extremely hard water....wish I could remember! I have a lint container on my dryer as well. And as at least one of your readers said, I always hang my bra's. I am trying to get my girls, who do their own laundry, to do that as well but they haven't listened yet! Great tips!

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  10. Elaine, could you email me privately? It keeps kicking me out of your contact box. I have a question with regards to the storing of the soap. Annette T
    annettetracy@roadrunner.com

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  11. I have no dryer and iron a lot but I consider it exercise. I use OxiClean and Borax to whiten my whites and vintage linens. I am a huge fan of OxiClean. I love to care for clothes properly and am seriously in awe of my three dollar estate sale find Rowenta iron. You are so smart to care for your families clothes as you do. I must check out your homemade soap.

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  12. My life saver has been using peroxide for getting out blood, new or old. It has saved many of items of clothes for me. Great tips. Hugs

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  13. I've been making our laundry soap for a few years now and it is so much better and more cost effective. If I haven't found ivory soap on sale for pennies, I'll grate up a bar of my homemade bar soap....nice for the extra scent too

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  14. I SO have to do this. We do a ton of laundry. My only concern is that I always use liquid detergent. Does the dry stuff dissolve good?

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  15. I have been making the homemade laundry soap too and really love it. There seems to be a lot of controversy about how safe it is for septic tanks though. The box of Arm & Hammer says it is safe for the tanks, the borax says the same. I have checked the websites for the products and nothing negative is listed for tanks either, but yet there are those who insist it clogs the septic system (Google Homemade Laundry Soap and septic tanks). I know the dishwasher handbook recommends the use of vinegar occasionally for ridding the inside of mineral build-ups and to restore the shine, but also says not to use it very often because it eats away at metal. Now I wonder about what happens with vinegar repeatedly used in rinse cycles for clothes??? Would love to hear your comments on this Elaine.
    Susanne :)

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  16. My youngest daughter has also been started being more frugal and more 'green' with her cleaning and laundry products. She did alot of research and had a blog for a while about going green in that area. She convinced alot of us to convert as well. :)
    Oh, I keep a bottle of watered down dishwashing detergent in my laundry room for grease stains. If it can get it off of your dishes, why not your clothing?? (I learned this tip from somewhere..it's not my own).

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  17. I don't have a septic tank so I have no idea about those but as for the vinegar I had not heard anything about the vinegar and the metal. I don't use it every time as I forget or what have you but have not noticed any erosion in the washer.

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  18. Great tips. I am going to try the vinegar for sure. Who knew? love your advise.

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  19. Thanks so much for the tips. I have bookmarked that page, because I am such a stain magnet :)

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  20. Good tips! And now that I've seen your laundry room photo, I'm prompted to clean mine!!

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  21. Elaine,

    Thank you for your visit and for becoming a follower. I really appreciate it and will return the favor.

    I have actually been planning to make my own laundry detergent, and will try your recipe.

    Hope your weekend is wonderful!
    Kathy

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  22. I always use vinegar in the rinse cycle. I put it in an old Downy ball.
    "Goop" is also great for removing stains. I have had success with it removing all kinds of stains, including black grease. You can find it at Wal-Mart, grocery stores, and probably automotive stores, since it is used to remove grease etc. from hands.
    nancyr

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  23. Wow thanks! I am married to a lineman and we have hard water too, so I know you can relate to the laundry situation in my house. Plus, I just learned my daughter has an allergy to either our detergent or fabric softener, so I am going to try your tips and see if it helps. Have you tried oxy-clean products? I use the laundry spray for stains and it is great. Another Mrs. Lineman I know swears by the oxy-clean powder you add to the wash. Thanks for the tips and happy washing!

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  24. I've never known what to do about those stubborn grease stains...definitely going to look for that product. Thanks for the tips!

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  25. Running very behind on Weekend Whatever 8 but these are some good tips. My husband used to do laundry most of the time because he's so particular about the way he wants things done but now that I'm home it's usually my chore. I try to zap possible stains right away with Shout but it doesn't always happen.

    Thanks & I'm following you on GFC & Linky Followers.

    Emily @ My Crazy Gluten Free Life
    http://glutenfreethisisme.blogspot.com

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