Can you all tell me how you get stains out of clothes please?

[BeerHunter]

Ideally I would like to put all the stained clothes in a bucket, add some sort of magic potion to soak. Then when I take the clothes out, ta da, the stains are gone.

Isn't that what you do with Vanish powder?

I find that a lot of stains disappear if you put a bit of washing up liquid on it and leave it to soak overnight wrapped in a carrier bag. Liquid glycerine (in the baking department) is also good.

Vanish powder, wash, and then several days on the line.

Doesn't get rid of banana stain or pen, but most other stains yield to this treatment.

Soda crystals and hot water in a bucket is my 'go to' or, for whites that are almost beyond redemption, ace bleach instead.

I do follow up with a 40 wash though.

Going to try the washing up liquid tonight.

The stains have already dried. Will that matter?

Oily stains including food and grass are easily removed with Swarfega which you can get in the car maintenance/hardware bits of shops. Spread on and wash as normal.

Don't get stains hot. Soak cold and wash at 30, 40 if you must. Heat sets stains.

I did not know that about the cold/hot water!

Are they whites?

I had a blob of orange from a tomatoey food - I bleached it and allsorts with no luck. Left it outside on a not that sunny a day and - wow the stain had gone.

Thanks for this thread, I have DD t shirt and my trousers with stubborn oily stain. I will try washing up liquid first then swarfega.

Please be cautious with Vanish. I got an oily stain (vinagrette dressing) on my favourite blue trousers. I put Vanish stain wash in the drum and did a normal wash. Stain wouldn't move. Did a patch test for 10 mins, seemed fine, so then put stain powder, in solution, as per instructions, onto stain patch on trousers. Then I washed the trousers.

Vanish bleached the entire patch, trousers were ruined. When I contacted customer services they were v helpful but explained Vanish is basically bleach and not entirely appropriate for coloured fabric. Who knew?

They are a lights, with various food stains.

A friend mentioned putting stained clothes in the sun and it disappearing. It sounded like voodoo magic to me. Stains can't just disappear without you even touching them, can they?

Oh my, I didn't know that about the powder either.

I hope it's not the same as with the soap bar. I have just smothered all the clothes with stains in fairy and rubbed a load of the vanish soap on for good measure!

try the sun - like I say my one just vanished - it really was magic

1. Rub with vanish
2. Wash as normal
3. Observe stain has not gone
4. Curse
5. Add item to 'home clothes only' pile

I am shit at laundry.

It depends very much what the stain is from, ime. Some stains never shift if they get set in for too long.

Sunlight is incredible on stains, especially bodily fluids.

For foody stains & blood I soak in cold water for a while then put in washing machine as usual. Trouble with hot water is that it "sets" the stain, cold water seems to help shift it out.

That's exactly what I do Antoinette, that's how I got in this mess.

I went through my toddlers wardrobe today. There were so many lovely clothes ruined because of my laziness!!

I am now trying to rectify this situation but I think it's probably a lost cause, as it sounds like I have set the stains.

Vanish, flash with bleach on whites, sunlight.

Do not use Vanish on whites. I now have four different items of white clothing with yellow stains on thanks to that bloody stuff. Well one I managed to bleach out with sunlight but the rest are ruined. It leaves a nasty yellowy stain on anything white.

Tomato based food stains are a nightmare! Bleach won't work, because the grease sets it. I have had very good results with any food great stains with washing up liquid.

I had a lovely coloured skirt that somehow got black mould stains. I put lemon juice on, rubbed salt on and left it in the sun. Gone! I treated pomegranate stains with lemon juice + salt + sun and it worked again!

I do find that stains have to be treated BEFORE washing - if they come out with stains on after washing, it's often too late. And I second the cold water, a cold water rinse can work magic.

Also, a soak in vinegar and bicarb is quite good.

And if you have colour run, make a bath of soap flakes and very hot water (use a pot om the stove to keep it warm) and put the clothes in, stir irt around with a wooden spoon ofr ages, and change the solution if it gets coloured from the colour run, it really works! I washe dmy DDs delicate pinks with dark colours, it came out grey, but the soap flakes solution saved it!

misscph these are the sort of tips I love!

Washing ap liquid and vanish soap didn't work so I am now going to go and raid my larder!

Is baking powder the same as bicarb?

Rub a bit of fairy liquid on the stain, wash as normal, all stains gone

Malt vinegar?

I just shove vanish in with the wash and wash at 50 for an hour. Only stain that has defeated me is dry wipe marker!

Have just made a past consisting of washing up liquid, lemon juice, baking powder, salt and vinegar. It fizzed when I put the vinegar in and doubled in size!

I don't think this is going to end well.