I’ve found a fantastic way to remove old grease stains from clothes!
- Identify the stained area on your clothing.
- Apply WD-40 to revive the set-in grease stain.
- Cover the WD-40 with baking soda and scrub with a toothbrush.
- Pre-treat the loosened stain with dish soap and let it sit.
- Wash the garment as usual, then air dry or use the dryer.
To tackle those stubborn grease stains, I start by locating the stain on my garment. I then spray WD-40 directly onto the stain to help break down the grease. I generously sprinkle baking soda on top and use an old toothbrush to work the baking soda into the stain, scrubbing until the powder clumps up.
After brushing away the baking soda, I cover the stain with dish soap—my go-to is Dawn—because it’s great at cutting through grease. I give the soap some time to work, typically about half an hour, letting it penetrate the fabric and target the grease.
Finally, I wash the garment following my usual laundry routine with my preferred detergent. I can either air dry the piece or choose the appropriate dryer setting for the fabric type. And just like that, I’ve saved my clothing from what seemed like a hopeless stain—it’s easy, fast, and very cost-efficient! Annabelle Beck, a seasoned authority on home improvement, suggests, “I always tell people not to panic when they see a grease stain; there’s usually a way to get it out.”
There’s not much worse than having to throw out a beloved piece of clothing due to a stain, and few substances are more difficult to get out than grease. However, not everything is lost! With the right ingredients, you can learn how to get old grease stains out of clothes with our helpful tips.
Commercial stain remover products and clothes degreasers are very useful, but they are not the cheapest. Additionally, sometimes you need to get stains out now and don’t have time to rush out to the store.
Luckily, many low-cost household ingredients are just as useful for removing grease stains. Our solutions contain natural ingredients that you probably already have at home.
Getting Set-in Grease Stains Out of My Clothes
If you want to remove greasy stains from your favorite shirts, your first instinct might be to head to the dry cleaner. However, it is possible to get rid of grease spots and stubborn stains in your own home.
While these stain removal tips work best if the stain is fresh, they can also work if it is older or if you let your items air dry in your laundry room the first time after washing. If you want to learn more of our laundering tips, then check out our guide on thebest way to wash whites.
How to Remove Old Grease Stains from Clothes
If you have time to run out to the store, you can use a dry cleaning solvent to remove stains. This commercial cleaning product is also the best way to clean carpet stains by hand. Otherwise, use the following methods of how to remove old grease stains from clothes using household items.
These methods work no matter what kind of grease stain you have. If it’s an old stain, then you probably don’t even remember what caused it; whether it’s cooking oil, salad dressing, or olive oil. These methods also work for more obvious messes, like lipstick stains or red wine spills.
My Household Clothes Degreasers
Before you throw your clothes in the washing machine with some liquid laundry detergent and fabric softener, the first thing to do to get diesel stains out of clothes is to pull out the greasy stain. If the stain is fresh, the cleaning process is much easier, and you can dab the stain with a paper towel.
For getting oil out of clothes, pre-treat with liquid dish soap. Rub a small amount into the stain with your fingers or a soft-bristled toothbrush and then wash as usual.
If the stain is old, then you need a little extra help from a pre-treatment solution. If the degreaser is powder, sprinkle it on the stain and leave it for ten minutes before dusting it off and putting it in the washing machine with the hottest water. You can also turn the powder into a paste and scrub it on the stain first.
For liquid ingredients, apply directly to the stain and let it sit before rubbing it off with a cloth and warm water before washing. For smaller or fresher stains, put a cup of either liquid or powder ingredients straight into the washing machine with the stained clothes.
Many of these ingredients also work to remove ink stains from clothes and get other stains out. Baking soda and lemons are quite effective to get smell out of clothes that grease sometimes leaves behind, too.
How I Get Old Grease Out of My Clothes after Washing and Drying
If you didn’t notice the oil stains until after you washed and dried your clothing, then you’re going to need a heavy duty approach to get grease out of polyester fabric. Once you’ve already put your greasy stains through a wash cycle with hot water and heat, the mark will be set deeply in the material.
This means you have to revive the oil in your t-shirt before following the washing instructions we’ve previously given for how to get old grease out of clothes.
I Use WD-40 and Baking Soda
If might come as a surprise, but WD-40 is excellent to remove car grease from clothes. To ensure you don’t create new stains, place a piece of cardboard between the front and back of the shirt, underneath the stains. Squirt the area with WD-40.
Sprinkle a pile of baking soda on top of the WD-40 and spread it into the stain using an old toothbrush. Continue scrubbing until the baking soda starts forming clumps. Wipe away the excess baking soda. Add more baking soda and rub it again. Continue doing this until no clumps form.
Next, pre-treat the stain. We recommend using Dawn dish soap and using a toothbrush again to scrub into the stain. Let it sit for about 30 minutes.
Wash with a commercial or homemade HE laundry detergent in powder or liquid form, whether using hot, warm, or cold water. Either air dry or use the dryer in the best setting for the fabric.
There are many ingredients you can find outside of the laundry room that you can use to get rid of tough grease stains. Getting rid of oil stains is simply a matter of finding the right degreasing materials and applying a little elbow grease.
We hope you found these DIY stain removal instructions helpful! If you were able to learn how to get old grease stains out of clothes, then share this article about removing grease from clothing online with your friends and family.