Frugal Friday 25: Thrifty Stain Removers
September 28, 2007 by Karen Weideman
Filed under cleaning, frugal friday, frugal living, household product
A few weeks ago, Cuddlebug snuck a red crayon into the living room and colored on the beige carpets. What to do? I called my frugal friend Revka and thought she might have some tips. Indeed she did and I was inspired to share some stain removal tips with you.
1. Crayon on carpet - Spray with WD-40 and scrub. Follow immediately with dish soap and water or steam clean carpet. The soap removes the WD-40.
2. Ballpoint ink - Place a paper towel or rag under the stain and then saturate the stain with an alcohol-based hair spray or rubbing alcohol, which will help to break up the ink. The paper towel will help to absorb the excess hairspray/alcohol or stain if it starts to run. Then blot the stain with a rag. Continue these steps until the stain is removed and then wash as normal. (You may want to test the hairspray on an inconspicuous area first.)
3. Chocolate – Mix detergent and warm water together and blot the stain. Next, blot the area with ammonia and water. Clean the area again with the detergent solution. Then, clean the area again with clean water (no soap). Repeat as necessary until stain is gone. I found out the hard way that this does work!
4. Chewing gum - Put ice cubes in a plastic bag and place on gum stain. You could even try to put the whole garment into the freezer. Crack or scrape off excess gum. Spray the stain with a pretreatment product. Rub with a heavy-duty liquid detergent such as Wisk, Gain, or Tide. Rinse with hot water. Repeat until stain is gone. If stain will not come out, then try using liquid lighter fluid (test first). Put lighter fluid on a clean cloth and rub over the remaining gum. Wash as normal.
5. Lipstick – Remove any excess, then rub in glycerine or petroleum jelly. If stain persists use grease solvent or stain remover. Wash as normal.
For small and fresh stains – Spray the stain with a stain remover such as Shout! or apply liquid laundry detergent or powdered detergent mixed with water to make a paste. Remember to blot and sponge the stain. Sponge from the outside of the stain toward the inside to keep the stain from spreading.
Other tips:
If you have a mystery stain, soak the fabric in cold water before washing or applying a stain remover. Some stains will set with warm water.
Sponge a stain, don’t rub it. Rubbing sometimes damages the fabric.
Read clothing labels! If it says no bleach, then don’t do it.
Wash delicates in zippered mesh bags. You can usually get these at the dollar store.
Don’t heat dry or iron your clothes until you know the stain is gone. This will cause the stains to set.
Please share your stain removing tips with us! :)
OK, I need to know how to get ballpoint pen off a painted wall. Tried rubbing alcohol. Got anything else?
Have you tried the Mr. Clean Magic Erasers? They’re wonderful!
What about melted candle wax on carpet? Any suggestions for removing that?
PS – those photos I took …
The first set with the 2 little girls, was at the family’s property, and the 2nd set with the mom and dad and son, were at an awesome private property in Statesville that I have access to for photo shoots.
For candle wax, try using ice cubes in a plastic bag on the wax to set it. Pick off as much wax as you can. On any remaining wax, put a clean absorbent cloth over the stain and iron. Remove any remaining stain by rubbing with methylated spirits, then shampoo. You can also try Weiman brand wax remover. It is sold at places like Target and Wal-Mart.
Does anyone know how to get nail polish off from carpet?
The only way I’ve found is to buy a rug that covers it up:-)
Karen, we have even gotten candle wax off our speaker covers with a white towel and an iron. It works great! Tam, I just put up a list of ways to gbet nail polish out of your carpet. Check it out.
Also, try these suggestions:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_can_you_get_nail_polish_stains_out_of_carpet
Great tips, Karen. I think we all learn the hard way. I would never imagine some of the things my girls come up with!