How to get brown food stains out of baby's white vests

[butteroneverything]

Weaning has meant that despite my best efforts with bibs, my 7 month old's white vests have brownish stains round the necks and (on the long-sleeved ones) on the sleeves. They look awful! Washing at 40 degrees with biological powder doesn't seem to have done the trick, so what should I do next? Soaking in bleach? I'm a total laundry novice (just spent ages mesmerised by the other washing threads!) so please give v basic instructions.

You just need to hang it in the sunshine and it will bleach it back to normal (same for poo stains!). Through a window will do in the winter. It might take a few days but your whites will return to white.

You can soak in thin bleach too.

I always use Milton/own brand sterilizing liquid on white cotton things with stains, bowl or bucket of cold water, slosh of the liquid, soak for a few hrs or overnight, squeeze out, quick rinse then wash as normal. Same effect as bleach but not as strong. Hope that helps

I use vanish on everything. Spray stains and add powder to wash and gets them all out.

Vanish, or diluted bleach.

Thanks everyone. I used some Vanish (pretreated and added to wash) and most of it came out. But there's one sleep suit which is still covered in brown stains. Going to try bleach next...

Hydrogen peroxide, cheap, non toxic, more environmentally friendly than bleach. And sunlight.

Daylight - just hang them on the line till they are white again. It works quicker in summer but it still works in winter.

Bleach might turn it yellow. I wrecked a beautiful dress of my DDs by doing that. I now have a dedicated bowl in my kitchen, the stained stuff goes in with some hot water and washing detergent liquid or powder for a good soak before the wash. The clothes usually sit in there for about a day. For really bad stains I'll use vanish instead of liquid/powder in the bowl. I'll also use a good scoop of vanish in the wash.

Also, if at home you can strip him down to just a vest to eat, or have a feeding top that you can put him in that you don't mind him getting mucky!

The sun works great to bleach natural baby stains- food, poo, etc.

My DS uses a long sleeved bib for meals with a normal fabric bib underneath to catch spills if its a messy meal (or a messy child!). Prevents clothes getting messy in the first place.

Sometimes I wash babies whites in bio washing liquid before their normal non-bio wash, better at getting stains out.

Yes, I also strip DD to her vest, use a fabric bib then a long sleeved plastic bib over the top and she has stopped ruining her clothes.

She still spills water all down herself so needs a change of vest with every meal, but water I can deal with!

Wash the vest at 60 degrees - that gets out more stains.

This isn't going to help, but I used to strip mine to just a nappy for weaning. Easier to wipe a tummy than wash a vest. It was a warmer time of year though.

I'd suggest a soak in weak bleach, then as hot a wash as you can manage.

For food stains I used to soak in COLD water, then wash as normal. Think if in warm or hot water it denatures the protein and stain stays (according to Home Ec students I shared flat with many moons ago..)