I’ve been using the same tried-and-true homemade powdered laundry detergent and DIY stain remover for years, but as my kids have grown, so have the size of their grass, oil and ketchup stains.
My old stain remover recipe just wasn’t up to the task – especially when it came to oil stains – so I awhile ago I tested a few variations with ingredients like hydrogen peroxide, castile soap, glycerin, cornstarch/arrowroot flour, and lemon essential oil.
Using the leftovers from my potholder project, I rubbed all kinds of things on several t-shirt strips. After letting the stain set, I sprayed them with several different recipes and then rinsed the cloth in the sink.
Formula #3 was by far the best – especially in dealing with oil stains – so that’s what I’m sharing with you today. It’s worked beautifully for me in removing food stains, oil stains, grass stains, blood stains and a few mystery stains.
Below is a before/after photo of one of my son’s favorite shirts. The stains are many months old so I wasn’t expecting much when I started using the new recipe, but just spraying the shirt and letting it sit overnight before washing has made a huge difference. (I’ve sprayed it three times so far.)
There are still a few very light spots that I’ll continue to spray before washing, but this shirt has moved from the “only at home” category to “wear in public.” (I’m not the only one who has those categories, right?)
So why does it work? Hydrogen is a weak acid, and castile soap is a base. Normally when you mix the two together they cancel each other out, so I was shocked that this was the winner.
I wouldn’t have even tried putting the two together, but I’d seen so many sites recommend Dawn dish soap mixed with hydrogen peroxide that I had to see what all the fuss was about. (This recipe is based on that formula, only with natural castile soap instead of Dawn and the addition of lemon essential oil for extra degreasing oomph.)
It’s possible that the soap dampens the effect of the hydrogen peroxide just enough to make it a color-safe form of oxygen bleach. Most “color-safe” bleaches contain stable ingredients that turn into hydrogen peroxide when added to water. Still, it’s important to do a patch test before applying just in case – some fabrics will fade even with color-safe products.
Another possibility is that the soap works as a degreaser while the hydrogen peroxide lifts the stain and breaks down organic components. I’m not sure. All I know is it works way better than my old recipe!
Sometimes, when I have an oil stain that is particularly stubborn, I’ll spray this stain remover on it and then sprinkle it with diatomaceous earth, baking soda, arrowroot powder or cornstarch. The powder will help absorb the oil from the stain.
After testing a few brands including Fit Organic, Attitude, and Better Life, I found that Better Life was my top choice for ingredients and performance when I don’t have time to make my own.
Attitude was a close second, but it’s designed to treat the stain when it’s fresh, not later when you find it in your kids hamper.
