No matter what kind of stain, it is fundamentally important to start and remove stains as quickly as possible and rinse the area with plenty of water.
In well-stocked supermarkets you’ll usually find a large number of special products and all-purpose stain removers for the treatment of “minor stains”. However, we swear on various household remedies, which work often even more effectively and, above all, are usually much more textile-friendly than commercial stain removal products.
• The best way to pre-treat the garment is to carefully remove any residues of the sauce from the material with a spoon or knife.
• Then rinse the T-Shirt with cold water. Make sure that the water is cool or lukewarm at most. You should avoid rinsing it with hot water as this could cause the stain to penetrate the fabric even more.
• You can add detergent to the rinsing water, which also acts as a solvent and might improve the result.
• Treat the garment quickly with cool sparkling water. The more carbonic acid, the more effectively the stain is removed from the fibres.
• If this is not enough because the stain has already dried or is more persistent than expected then the next step is to sprinkle the garment or stain with talcum powder (or potato or corn flour) so that it can absorb the fat.
• The stain should then be carefully rubbed out with a brush.
• Fat and oil stains can alternatively be treated by soaking them in cool water and a little detergent.
• Deodorant usually leaves yellow stains on white or light-coloured textiles. These can be pre-treated with citric acid.
• To do this, dissolve 10 grams of citric acid in a litre of water and soak the garment overnight (denture cleaners and baking powder are also well suited).
• White deodorant marks on dark textiles: You can remove stains like this with vinegar or gall soap. It is advisable to check the material for colour fastness beforehand to avoid possible damage. After testing, gently rub in, or soak in, dissolved vinegar essence.
• To remove sunscreen stains, moisten the area lightly with water and cover the stain with baking soda.
• After you have left everything to act for half an hour, you can wash the garment in the washing machine.
• Caution: Colored textiles may be bleached by the baking soda.
• Therefore, use vinegar water for colored fabrics. Soak your clothes in vinegar and water (ratio 1:10) for one hour. After that, all stains should be removed.
• Use bile soap, which you rub into the fabric with a soft brush and leave there for a few hours.
• Then rinse the soap out of the clothes with clear, cold water.
• If there's a coffee stain on your favorite item, you should take the garment off as quickly as possible and rinse it with plenty of water. The longer the stain sits in the material, the deeper it will penetrate the fibres. Then, take the following steps:
• Liquid detergent can easily be added to the moistened area. Afterwards you should leave the shirt to settle for at least five minutes.
• If necessary, this procedure can be repeated several times.
• Sprinkle the stain with lemon juice, then add salt and let the red wine absorb.
• Finally rinse gently with mineral water and off into the machine.
• Under no circumstances should the stain dry out nor should the garment be placed in the washing machine without pre-treatment.
• Rinse the garment under ice-cold running water as soon as possible (warm water should be avoided at all costs, as this will cause the stain to stick to the fabric and no longer be water-soluble).
• Then spread the detergent on the stain and put it in the washing machine!
• Garments with dried blood can be soaked overnight in a cold water bath with salt (five tablespoons of salt per liter) and then washed accordingly.