Stain Remover Made From Household Items

5 Materials

$10

5 Minutes

Easy

STAINS! We all get them and I can venture to guess that we all hate them. Between having a toddler, a husband, a dog, and myself being an artsy person who doesn’t take the time to change clothes every time I want to work on a project, stains are a regular guest in my house. I’ve tried just about every mainstream, name brand stain remover, and while some of them worked (some of the time!), others were just a waste of money. Last year I came across a miracle stain remover that actually works, not just on fresh stains but also on stains that have been washed and dried.

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SUPPLIES:

-Dawn soap (I know I’m going to get questions about whether or not any other dish soap will work and I’m going to go ahead and answer that I HAVE NO IDEA. I’ve only tried this formula with Dawn and I’m going to stick with it since I know it works.)

-Hydrogen Peroxide

-Baking Soda

-container to hold mixture

-small funnel (optional)

If you want to buy the glass bottle I used, you can find it here.

STEP 1: Mix ingredients

For this formula, you’ll want to mix 2 PARTS HYDROGEN PEROXIDE with 1 PART DAWN SOAP and 1 PART BAKING SODA. For example, if you want to make a big batch that’ll last you a little while, mix 2 CUPS Peroxide with 1 CUP Dawn soap and 1 CUP baking soda. I didn’t notice any difference in what to mix first, second or third. Clearly, if you’re using a funnel and you pour in the baking soda first, you won’t have to deal with the baking soda sticking to the inside of the funnel when you you go to mix your wet ingredients. ;)

You may want to use a little spoon or your finger to get the excess Dawn soap out of your measuring cup after pouring it into your container.

You can't really see it in the picture, but when I added the Peroxide I could immediately see the reaction it had with the baking soda...cool little science experiment.

*NOTE: the baking soda is going to want to settle on the bottom and that’s ok—you can either put a little spoon in the container to mix it up every time you want to use it or you can make sure to have an air-tight lid on the container in order to shake it.

STEP 2: Apply stain remover to stain

Next, pour out (or scoop out with a spoon), enough stain remover to cover the stain you want to get rid of. I don’t glop it on but I also make sure to have a generous amount so that the stain is fully covered in the stain remover mixture.

*Note: I spilled coffee on this linen table cloth which is what I was trying to remove without ruining my table cloth.

Then, you can either brush the stain remover into the stain with a scrub brush or do what I do and rub the stained area together. Let the stained item sit for 30 minutes to an hour with the solution. I haven’t timed it but I’ve always had results after this amount of time.

STEP 3: Wash as normal

After I’ve let my stained item sit with the stain remover on it, I through it in the wash at it’s normal cycle with washing detergent. Then I dry it (depending on what the item is…you’ll want to make sure to read your care instructions for whatever it is that you have is stained).

That’s it! I love when I can use household items that I already have on hand to accomplish the same results of if I go out and pay for a bottle of stuff I have no idea what’s in it. Just after Christmas, my husband was totally disappointed because his brand new shirt that he had only worn once somehow got smudgy black stains on it (I still have no idea what he managed to get on it), so I tried this solution on it even after I had already washed and dried the shirt (because I had no idea it had been stained to begin with). Amazingly, the stains came out! I’d say that was a SCORE for this housewife.

*I didn't have to purchase anything to make this stain remover as I had all supplies on hand. I estimate the cost of all supplies as being roughly $10 but that will obviously make a ton of stain remover and the price will vary based on how extravagant of a container you purchase.

If you want to buy the glass bottle I used, you can find it here.

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Frequently asked questions

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3 of 44 questions

Julissa on Jan 11, 2019

Can this be used on carpets? I too have two dogs 🐕 soon many more since my girl is having puppies. Please advise, thank you!!!

4
Rose on Feb 09, 2019

How to cover up scratches on hard wood floors

1
Virginia Grundman on Mar 09, 2019

Why not just use the best stain remover I've ever used: Shout. Works on anything UNLESS the stain is very old. Some stains are not removable.

1

Comments

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2 of 100 comments

Lynn Hutchison on Mar 14, 2019

YES

Like Reply
Linda W on Jan 24, 2020

Stella, thanks for the science behind hydrogen peroxide. I had wondered why it didn't come in larger containers like vinegar does if it's such a great disinfectant. Now, I understand it has storage limitations. Good to know.

Maybe mixing the baking soda with the Dawn soap in one container but adding the hydrogen peroxide separately to the stain when you're ready to use it. Might be more potent that way.

1 Reply