Stain Removal - Vancouver, WA

Sunning work wonnders. I wish I would have known that three years ago when my daughter was born. Just put it out in the sun( It doesn't even have to be sunny) and eventually it will come out. I use it on my son's diapers.

L., my son is 4 mos old, and I use a cheap, homemade solution to get poop stains out, and it gets them out completely every time. In a spray bottle, mix 16 oz hydrogen peroxide, 2 tsp baking soda and 2 drops dishwashing liquid. I rinse any mess/solids off the fabric first, then I lay the soiled garment in the sink and spray the spot(s) thoroughly with the peroxide solution. I leave it in the sink and give it a spray whenever I pass by, until the stain is gone. Then I hang to dry and launder as usual. I've found this to work on all the stains I've tried.

Shout Triple Action spray gel. It's gotten out everything other than iron vitamins for the past two years! It's great stuff!!

Tuck a stain fighter spray or stick in your diaper bag and after you rinse the stain in cold water treat it with the stain fighter then throw in the wash when you get home. Good luck.

Baby poop stains come out best in the sun. Just hang your clothes out to dry. I was able to even get stains out of my cloth diapers that had already been in the dryer several times. Make sure the stain gets full sunlight (I occasionally will ay them in the sun rather than hanging to get good exposure).
Good luck!

Alright, this may sound strange given the various products out there for stain removal, but there will usually be instructions on the top of the inside of your washer machine lid. Those actually work, when I began to follow the instructions on mine I stopped having stains on my clothes, even so I use spray'n'wash to treat stains right when I get them or at least right when I get home. Oxyclean is a great additive to your wash but use the spray n wash directly on the stain and that should work.

--There are two great stain removers you didn't mention-- and a possible third . Chlorine Bleach ( clorox -- etc) have been around forever because they are incredibly effective. If you decide that a stain has moved in - and you are considering throwing an item out--- take a bit of bleach-- take a WET q-tip -- and dab the spot with the bleach -- you can certainly dilute the bleach with some water first. Then -- let the wet item sit somewhere SAFE ( don't put it on your pretty wood furniture - that bleach will leave a spot forever) --- for 20-30 minutes --- wash it or rinse it out under a faucet ( you don't want that bleach to sit on the fabric forever) -- and dry it --.

The 2nd solution is SUNSHINE-- get the item wet- and put it in the sun - -on your deck on a table in your back yard - or even in a window---and let the sun shine on it for an hour or 3 ( unlike bleach- there's do risk of damaging the fabric --) you will be AMAZED at the bleaching power of sunlight-- your grandmothers probably knew - and so do I. This works on things that have been stained for YEARS and it sure will work on many baby stains.

The third is hydrogen peroxide -- look it up online- there are some stains that REALLY like hydrogen peroxide ( you buy it in a little brown plastic bottle at Fred Meyer or a drug store --)

Chlorine bleach is cheap - so is hydrogen peroxide- and of course sunshine is FREE ( and right now- we have a good supply of it :-)

Blessings,
J. - aka - Old Mom -- that how I know about this stuff--

I, too, really swear by Zout these days. A friend turned me on to it a few years ago (I used to use Shout), and I'll never go back. I also soak stubborn stains in OxyClean, but I almost always have great luck with Zout the first time around. It was voted the best stain remover by RealSimple magazine (they advertise that on the bottle now). I even got my change-averse mother to make the switch -- a huge testament to the product's effectiveness. I love that stuff -- I should probably buy stock in the company!

I was just introduced to Murphy's Oil Soap. It works amazingly. It was recommended by a dry cleaner friend.

Hi L.,
I'm pretty sure Oxyclean is most effective in hot/warm water not cold.

My favorite stain remover is Zout which I think works the best. I would also offer up a trick of my grandmas for white items which is to put lemon juice on them and put them in a sunny window. The sun is an amazing bleacher! My son was a master at the blow out and I have to say that some of those clothes just went in the garbage. : (
Good luck!

The stain remover I've found works better than any other is *I think* by spray-n-wash, but it's this one that has two different liquids that are separated in the package, and when you squirt them together they react. I get it at Target; if you look at their stain remover section you'll see what I mean. I was pretty amazed at how well it works on everything, and even doesn't matter how long the stain has been there.

A soaking thing I would recommend is Bac-out, which you can get from most natural foods stores.

I keep a bucket of oxyclean/water in the laundry room and just add clothes that are stained as I go, so sometimes the stains end up soaking for 3-4 days until the next load of laundry. I use about a 1/2 scoop of oxyclean to 2 gallons of water. I also pour most of the water off before adding the soaking clothes to the washing machine, though I suppose I could just pour everything in. It works great for us!

The only thing I've found to work for my breast milk fed baby's blow-outs is Shout spray. Within 1 hour spray area well then soak in warm to hot water for at least 1/2 hour before washing. I soak in the sink or throw it in the washer on the rinse cycle but leave the washer lid open so it soaks and never reaches spin cycle.

The only thing I have tried and had work to get out stain is Shaklee products. Shaklee is over 50 years old and been "green" since it started. I use Basic H2 for the stains - scrub a little and put in washer with Fresh Laundry and Nature Bright. The stain usually comes out. With very few stains that are stubborn I use "Soak the Impossible" which is basically Basic H2, Nature Bright, Fresh Laundry in a tub (bucket) of water - leave for a week or so and NO MORE STAIN. I love it - people who use it love it. It is baby and kid safe - not on the Poison Control list. Not only that but economical also - you save $3400 if you bought the same products at the store. The reason - highly concentrated!

If you would like to get the stain out and have clothes that last a long time go to www.shaklee.net/a_leading_edge/getclean and check out the website on Get Clean.

N.
SAH mom, grandma, wellness coach

Hi,

The best thing to use is SHOUT. Spray and Wash never got stains out for me. SHOUT is the one thing that worked. If it doesn't get it out on the first try spray again and wash. It has never failed me yet :)

Try the non-chlorine bleach. Sometimes it works wonders for me. But the stain has to be fresh. Good luck.

i use dawn dish soap on stains. it really works well. Is is safe for your washer.

I'm so surprised nobody's said this - DISH SOAP!! The cheapest, already have it, easy to get stain remover... I never used it on spit up stains - those nearly always landed on the bib, as my little guy wore one constantly.

Every blow out he had... was scrubbed out with dish soap, and came out stain free. I assume it's because the poop is greasy - that's why dish soap works, maybe? I used cold (ish) water, got the clothes wet, rinse out any chucks, then squirt dish soap enough to thinly cover the stain - I use Dawn with bleach alternative, but assume others work as well - then I use (as disgusting as it sounds) my fingers and nails to scrub the soap into the stain - then wash it, like normal, with the rest of the load of laundry. I always wash cold, so the heat shouldn't actually make a difference.

There were several instances of dried-on yuck, as long as I made sure to scrub it out well before washing in the machine, it was fine.

Hooe this works for you, or you find something that does! Good luck!

we have had much success with Oxyclean (both the baby powder and the regular powder). I rinse/scrub with warm water, then soak with a scoop of oxy for up to 12 hours...the stains (poop stains at least) are almost always gone...then I rinse and wash like normal. I have not had luck with the oxy spray - don't know what version you are using!

My youngest is 8 so it's been awhile. I remember using meat tenderizer on spit up stains. Apply a paste and let sit 10-30 minutes then wash. I don't remember if this works on the poo stains or not. Good luck.

If your washer has a stain remover cycle I would try that. Mine does and it washes it in hot water. So maybe try hot water. Sometimes they just need multiple washes to get the stains out too.

Also the quality of the clothes could be the problem. I found that things I get from target and kmart just don't release the stains, but items suchs as carters, gerber, gap, gymboree, and hanna anderson release stains much better.

Good luck.

there is a great product that I use on laundry. I purchase it at Storables but I cannot remember the name(sorry). I just pretreat, let sit and then wash. You can probably call them and ask for the name. Good Luck.

Try dish soap. Dawn is great. I tried it as like a fluke when my daughter was brand new and used to have a blowout at least twice a day. Put it on the stain scrub a little and let it soak in warm water

Boil them! I'm not crazy, trust me! Keep them from drying if you can (as you said, soaking and bagging them), but I have even had some luck after clothes have been washed and dried and I have discovered stains. Put them in a good size pot (can do several together but sort by color), when it starts to boil add a little laundry soap. Let it sit at a rolling boil for a while (at least 15 min.) and occasionally "stir" them. If you can still see the stain, leave it in longer. Then wash it, check for the stain again, and dry it. It's a process, but I live by it... and I have 4 kids!!!
Also... I'm not sure where you can get it (it's at our Dollar Tree here in Oregon) but there is a product out called "Stain Be Gone"... it's a small bottle with a scrub brush top... that works MAGIC! My daughter plays comptetive softball and wears a white uniform and I have managed to keep it stain free!!!

Hi L.,

Yes, I do have a very good solution for stains. A few years ago I found a natural line of laundry products that work great. The stain remover is excellent for baby poop stains.

I believe that these products would save you a lot of time. If you want to call me for more information...my phone number is ###-###-####.

D....mom of 3 grown daughters and grami to 6 wonderful grandchildren ages 3 months to 8 years.