How to remove common laundry stains

Coffee

A spilled cup, a drip down the front. For machine-washable clothes only — anything else, see below.

1. Blot up what you can with a paper towel or a clean, dry cloth. Dab — don't rub.
2. Turn the garment inside out and run cold water through the back of the stain until the water runs clear.
3. Work a little liquid laundry detergent into the stain with your fingers and leave it for about five minutes.
4. Wash it as the care label says.
5. Before it goes anywhere near a tumble dryer or an iron, look at it. If the stain is still there, do the steps again — heat can set it for good. Let it air-dry once it has gone.

Watch for: If it has already dried, start at the detergent step.

Checked against: Persil: how to remove coffee stains · University of Georgia Extension: remove stains from coffee, tea

Tea

A spilled mug, a splash from the pot. For machine-washable clothes only — anything else, see below.

1. Rinse or sponge the stain in cool water as soon as you can.
2. Rub a little liquid laundry detergent into it — one with enzymes in, if that is what you have.
3. Wash it as the care label says. If the label allows bleach, add the kind it allows to the wash, as the bottle says — oxygen ("colour-safe") bleach wherever the label rules chlorine out.
4. Before it goes anywhere near a tumble dryer or an iron, look at it. If the stain is still there, do the steps again — heat can set it for good. Let it air-dry once it has gone.

Watch for: Bleach only ever on its own, and only as the bottle and the care label say. Never chlorine bleach on silk, wool, elastane (spandex) or anything whose colour runs.

Checked against: University of Georgia Extension: remove stains from coffee, tea · Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: quick stain removal guide, washable fabrics

Food grease and cooking oil

Cooking oil, butter, salad dressing, a chip-pan splash. For machine-washable clothes only — anything else, see below.

1. Blot off as much oil as you can with a tissue or paper towel.
2. Hold the stain under warm running water.
3. Rub a little washing-up liquid into it, then rinse. Do this again if the oil is still coming out.
4. Leave it to soak for about ten minutes in water with some liquid laundry detergent in it.
5. Wash it as the care label says.
6. Before it goes anywhere near a tumble dryer or an iron, look at it. If the stain is still there, do the steps again — heat can set it for good. Let it air-dry once it has gone.

Watch for: Grease often needs the whole thing doing twice, and it darkens the longer it sits, so start soon.

Checked against: Persil: how to remove oil and grease stains · Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: quick stain removal guide, washable fabrics

Tomato sauce and ketchup

Pasta sauce, pizza, ketchup. For machine-washable clothes only — anything else, see below.

1. Scrape off what is sitting on top with a spoon or a blunt knife.
2. Turn the garment inside out and run cold water through the back of the stain for five to ten minutes.
3. Work a little washing-up liquid into it for the oil in the sauce, then rinse in cold water.
4. Work a little liquid laundry detergent into it, then rinse in cold water again.
5. Wash it as the care label says.
6. Before it goes anywhere near a tumble dryer or an iron, look at it. If the stain is still there, do the steps again — heat can set it for good. Let it air-dry once it has gone.

Watch for: Tomato can stain for good, so the sooner the cold water goes on, the better.

Checked against: Persil: how to remove tomato stains · University of Georgia Extension: remove stains from ketchup, tomato and tomato-based sauces

Grass

Knees, elbows and the back of a football shirt. For machine-washable clothes only — anything else, see below.

1. Brush off any loose grass and dirt.
2. Massage liquid laundry detergent — or a pre-wash stain remover, as its bottle says — into the stain and leave it for ten to fifteen minutes, then rinse in cold water.
3. Still there? Soak it in an oxygen ("colour-safe") bleach, made up exactly as its packet says, for at least an hour — but only if the care label allows bleach, and never on wool, silk or anything delicate.
4. Wash it as the care label says.
5. Before it goes anywhere near a tumble dryer or an iron, look at it. If the stain is still there, do the steps again — heat can set it for good. Let it air-dry once it has gone.

Watch for: Grass is a dye stain, from the green in the leaves, so it can take more than one go.

Checked against: Persil: how to remove grass stains from clothes · University of Georgia Extension: remove stains from grass, flowers

Ballpoint pen ink

A biro mark, a pen left in a pocket. For machine-washable clothes only — anything else, see below.

1. Lay the stained part face down on a clean cloth. Run cold water over it and dab, so the ink moves into the cloth rather than spreading.
2. Work a little liquid laundry detergent into it and leave it for about ten minutes.
3. Wash it in the hottest water the care label allows.
4. Before it goes anywhere near a tumble dryer or an iron, look at it. If the stain is still there, do the steps again — heat can set it for good. Let it air-dry once it has gone.

Watch for: Treat it while it is fresh. Washing can set ink, and some inks do not come out at all.

Watch for: Permanent marker and permanent ink are not this — they need a dedicated ink remover or a professional cleaner.

Watch for: Skip the old milk trick: it can leave a second stain or set the first.

Checked against: Persil: how to get ink out of clothes · University of Georgia Extension: remove stains from ink · New Mexico State University Extension: removing clothing stains (Guide C-502)