How to Get Grease Out of a Shirt

It’s as easy as checking under the hood of your car or spilling a little bit of salad dressing on your clothes. It wasn’t intentional, but you’ve now ended up with seemingly irreversible oil stains on your favorite piece of clothing. Understanding how to get grease out of a shirt will spare you the heartbreak of losing your favorite outfit and have it clean and ready for your next outing in no time.

Not only do we know some of the best methods for how to get grease stains out of shirts, but we also have seven easy grease stain removal methods on hand using classic cleaning products like cornstarch and liquid dish soap.

No matter what oily stain has made its way onto your clothes, whether it be a grease spot from cooking oil or removing stubborn wine stains, we have a solution for you. We’ve even figured out how to get bacon grease out of a shirt, so munch away on your favorite breakfast food and wear your clothes without fear of stains.

How to Get Grease Stains Out of Shirts

Before cleaning any oil stains, double-check the care label on your t-shirt. Using a cleaner like liquid dish soap is a great way to remove grease stains from polyester, cotton, or linen clothing, but should not be used on clothes made out of silk or other delicate materials.

How to Get Grease Out of a Shirt Using Dish Soap

To use a dishwashing liquid like Dawn, start by absorbing any excess oil with a paper towel. Once all residual oils dissolve, squirt a few drops of dish soap over the stain to saturate the area. Use a soft toothbrush to scrub the stain, or use your fingertips.

Let the stain soak in the dishwashing soap for approximately 30 minutes before rinsing thoroughly with hot water. Ensure the stain has wholly vanished before tossing the garment into the washing machine for cleaning.

How to Get Bacon Grease Out of a Shirt Using a Baking Soda Paste

If you splattered bacon grease on your shirt while cooking, or dripped some bacon juice, adding baking soda to dish soap is the best option for cleaning up these unfortunate messes. It’s also ideal to remove yellow sunscreen stains from white clothes. An effective degreaser, the cleaning power of your dish detergent increases when combined with another brilliant cleaning solution like baking soda.

This same combination works with hydrogen peroxide when washing white clothes and removing wine stains. This baking soda paste with dish soap is also appropriate for getting sweat stains out of shirts and removing that unpleasant odor.

For this cleaning product, mix the dish detergent and the baking soda until they form a paste. Play around with the proportions until you achieve a consistency that works for you. Apply the paste to the grease stain and scrub using an old toothbrush.

Let the mixture soak into the material for at least ten minutes, then rinse clean with some warm water. Once satisfied with the stain removal, launder the clothing in the washing machine with other clothes. Baking soda also is useful for how to get grease smell out of clothes in addition to the stain.

You can also use this baking soda paste recipe to get deodorant stains out of shirts before you wash them. Scrub the paste into the deodorant stains until they are gone and then stick the shirts in the wash on their regular cycle.

Check the shirts after washing to ensure that the stains are gone and that the fabric has no lingering odor and dry normally. If even the faintest stains remain, re-treat before drying, as the dryer tends to set stains into fabric.

Use Rubbing Alcohol and Salt to Dissolve Laundry Stain

Another effective solution for a grease stain remover is rubbing alcohol. This cleaner even dissolves candle wax out of clothes and works even better when combined with salt. Because rubbing alcohol is a mild bleaching agent, it is best to use this on a white shirt or light-colored garments.

Cleaning with rubbing alcohol and salt requires combining the listed ingredients, then soaking the stain with the solution. Using a soft cloth, scrub the cleaner into the stain and let it absorb the grease for 15 minutes.

Rinse the area with cold water, then toss the garment into the regular wash cycle on the hottest water setting. When your cleaned clothing emerges, there should no longer be a horrifying stain.

Use Hairspray to Remove Grease from Shirt

An unlikely cleaning solution is hairspray. Before using, add a paper towel inside the shirt to prevent the two sides from sticking together during the process. This method works by spraying the stain with the hairspray and letting it soak for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, toss the clothing in the washing machine with liquid laundry detergent. While using hairspray may seem like a strange method, it even works on removing oil-based makeup from clothes, such as how to get lipstick off a shirt.

How to Get Grease Stains Out of Shirts Using Baby Powder

For more delicate fabrics and to get baby oil stains out, use a powdered cleaner like baby powder or baking powder to absorb excess oils and moisture embedded in the fabric. This method is impressive on materials like silk or suede that need to be dry cleaned. To use this cleaning option, sprinkle baby powder over the stain and leave it overnight to soak up the grease.

If leaving the shirt out overnight isn’t an option, you still need to let it sit for several hours before continuing with the process. Finish by sweeping away the remaining powder with a soft cleaning brush. If additional cleaning is needed, wash the clothing or send it to the dry cleaner.

Add Vinegar to Your Cleaning Solution for Suede Clothing

For stubborn stains, especially when it comes to cleaning suede clothing, use vinegar alongside cornstarch for a deep clean. Similarly to how you use baby powder, sprinkle a little bit of the cornstarch over the grease spot on shirt. Leave it on the clothing for at least 30 minutes before brushing away the powder.

Afterward, moisten a lint-free cloth with vinegar and gently scrub at the stain. Allow the garment to air-dry, then clean again with a dry microfiber cloth.

Take Delicate Clothing Materials to the Dry Cleaner

In some cases, stain cleaners and laundry detergent aren’t enough to remove greasy stains. This predicament means sending your clothes outside the laundry room for a good dry cleaning. Materials like silk and wool are the best candidates for dry cleaning.

If you can’t remove the stain using these quick tips, it may also be time to seek professional help. Follow the washing instructions on the care label to know which clothing items belong at the dry cleaner and which remain in the home. Either way, your clothes can always benefit from a nice, deep clean from your local dry cleaner.

Now you have seven new techniques to try when the time comes to clean those messy grease spots. You can eat your salads or greasy bacon secure in the knowledge that there is a cleaning solution out there to salvage your clothes in their hour of need. All it takes is your favorite cleaning solution, a little bit of scrubbing, and a washing machine.

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