Baby oil is not strictly used on babies, as it has so many other uses around the home. One thing we have all noticed is that no matter how careful we are when using baby oil, we always end up with a few drops spilled. If you are using baby oil for anything, you need to learn how to get baby oil out of clothing due to how easy the stuff drips and spills.
It is just a matter of time before you end up getting some of it on your clothes, so the sooner you learn how to get baby oil out of clothes, the better. If you have ever spilled baby oil on your clothes, you already know just how frustrating the stain is to get rid of. Many people don’t even bother to try; they give it up as a lost cause and toss their clothes in the garbage pile.
Baby oil is so hard to remove from clothes because of how slick it is, and this increases the stain’s ability to repel water, making it that much harder to remove. Not to mention, the stain seems to do nothing but spread; even the slightest amount of rubbing causes the stain to grow twice the original size. What you can do is learn how to get baby oil out of clothes, which will also help you get baby oil out of carpet and upholstery.
Best Baby Oil Stain Removal Methods
Here are three of our best tips for removing baby oil from clothes and other fabrics.
How to get Baby Oil Out of Clothing with Dish Soap
Some people have success with using this stain removal method on old oil stains, but others have not. If this method doesn’t work on the old, set-in stains, try using a different approach until you find one that works. You can even try this method to remove chocolate stains from clothes, as well.
Using your fingertips or an old toothbrush, rub some dishwashing liquid onto the baby oil stains. Rinse the baby oil and dishwashing soap away with warm water. To pretreat the stain before laundering, spray the area with a laundry stain remover product.
Wash using the hottest water allowed for the fabric, as the hot water will break up the oily stain. After washing, look to see if the oil stain is gone. Do not dry garment in dryer until the stain is gone.
If you have success getting that oil stain out but find that after washing in hot water, your have accidentally shrunk your child’s best shirt, you still have options. Unshrink baby clothes, and those for adults, by soaking the clothing in shampoo or conditioner in warm water. Rinse clean and stretch out the clothes and air dry.
How to Get Baby Oil Out of Clothes with Baby Powder
Baby powder or other absorbents work well to get baby oil out of fabric and are safe to use when washing newborn clothes. Begin removing oily stains by blotting up any excess oil with paper towels. Do not rub the cloth as that spreads oily stains.
Before doing anything else, read the label for care instructions. If the tag states dry clean only, do not attempt to remove the stain and take it directly into the dry cleaners. Delicate fabrics call for handwashing, and the labels will include temperature requirements that you need to follow regardless of what we include in our instructions.
Generously sprinkle the baby powder onto the grease or oil stain. With baby powder, grease stains will absorb into the powder, making the rest of the stain removal process more manageable. Allow the absorbent powder to sit for at least 30 minutes before scooping off the oil-soaked powder.
Rinse with either warm or cool water as required by the care instructions. Prewash the stain with Dawn or another liquid dish detergent onto the stain using your fingertips or an old toothbrush. Do not use dish detergent that has added moisturizers; the same rule applies to bar soap or laundry soap if you use those in place of the dish soap.
Rinse again with water and prepare to wash your item. For machine-washable items, toss the garment into the washing machine with regular laundry detergent.
Wash as usual and allow to air-dry to see if the stain remains. If the stain still appears, repeat the above steps or try a different method.
Carpet and Upholstery Baby Stain Removal Method
The method you use to get baby oil out of carpet is the same for upholstery. It will successfully remove oil stains, including cooking oil and olive oil.
Use a handful of paper towels to clean up as much excess oil as possible. Do not rub the oil, as that will cause the stain to spread further. Instead, use paper towels to blot the oil.
Next, sprinkle an absorbent like baking soda, cornstarch, baby powder, etc., directly on the stain. Allow it to sit on the stain for at least 15 minutes and then vacuum or brush off the absorbent. Repeat with new absorbent until no more oil is absorbed.
Next, you need to use a white cloth and dry cleaning solvent, which you can also use to get ink out of clothing, to treat the oil stain. If using on clothing, be sure to rinse the solvent out before laundering. This solvent is what dry cleaners use and is often the best way to remove stains on the most delicate fabrics.
Apply the dry cleaning solvent to the stain and blot with a white cloth until the solution is absorbed. Reapply solvent and blot as needed until the stain is gone.
If the dry cleaning solvent doesn’t work, make a different cleaning solution with dishwashing detergent, white vinegar, and warm water. Add a tablespoon of white vinegar and dishwashing detergent into a bowl with two cups of lukewarm water. Using a sponge, apply the solution directly onto the oily stain.
Blot with a clean towel until stain is absorbed. Repeat steps as necessary until the stain is gone. Once the stain is gone, use cold water and a clean sponge to rinse away the vinegar and detergent solution.
Thank you for reading about our best baby oil stain removal tips. If you found any of these stain removal tips useful, please take a minute to share these tips with others on Facebook and Pinterest so others can also learn how to get baby oil out of clothing.