Accidents happen, and they can totally put a damper on your otherwise positive demeanor if you don’t know how to properly eliminate the stains they cause around the house.
In case you missed it, you can check out the first 11 proven home hacks for common stains by clicking here for Part 1.
In the meantime, here are numbers 12 through 22:
12. Oxidation on Jewelry
Save yourself a trip to the jeweler by cleaning it at home with ammonia. For verdigris (green oxidation) on jewelry or metal, you should use ammonia, according to Shawn Underwood, who buys and sells vintage items. Dab on with a cotton swab and then wipe with a clean cloth. You may need to do it a few times but it will almost always do the trick.
13. Grease on Clothing
Grease stains are a pain to get out, says podcaster Andrew Dorfman. I had a mechanic friend who would spray all of his grease stains with WD-40. The grease-cutting agent in WD-40 breaks up the oil and grease, so when you wash it in a typical detergent the whole thing is removed. Another at-home grease-removing hack suggests you use baking soda on top of the stain for 15 minutes then blot with a vinegar and water solution until it’s absorbed.
14. Rust on Clothing
To remove rust stains on clothing, use lemon or lemon juice and table salt. Squeeze the lemon onto the stain then sprinkle table salt over it until it is fully covered. Let it sit for 24 hours. After a full day, rinse the spot with cool water.
15. Vomit
Its a dirty job, but somebody’s got to do it. (Not it.) Mix 1 tablespoon of liquid dishwashing detergent and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar with 2 cups of water. Use a sponge to dab the solution on the stain. Baking soda will help deodorize.
16. Beer
Like the red wine earlier, if you’re spilling beer all over the place, the stains are probably the least of your worries. Check yourself before you wreck yourself, dude. To remove beer stains, mix 2 cups of warm water with one tablespoon of white vinegar. Dab onto the stain. You can also spray the stain with cold water and blot with a towel.
17. Food Coloring
Easter is prime time for food-coloring mishaps, especially when little hands are involved. If the dyes end up places you don’t want them, breathe deep and remember that you can handle it. Mix one tablespoon of vinegar with a few drops of mild detergent and two cups of cold water, Johnson recommends. Dip a microfiber cloth into the concoction and blot the stain with both sides of the cloth until the coloring has vanished. After patting the area dry, you may need to spray the area with a carpet or upholstery cleaner to make sure the stains have gone for good.
18. Corrosion on Shower Heads
To remove stubborn residue on shower heads, remove it and let it soak in vinegar overnight. If you can’t remove the hardware, add a couple cups of vinegar to a large freezer bag and place it over the shower head and secure with rubber bands or string.
19. Carpet Spills
For general spills on your carpet, grab the white vinegar. Pour a mixture of half parts water and half parts white vinegar directly on the carpet stain and let sit for five minutes, then blot with a damp sponge and repeat as needed.
20. Sweat
You already know how I feel about sweat stains; thus, I have a lifetime supply of aspirin. Wikihow teaches you how to master the art of removing sweat stains with aspirin just like it did this clothing-stain ninja. That’s me, by the way.
21. Lipstick
Lipstick on your collar? Well … cheating husbands will be especially happy to know there are several ways to remove it. First try dabbing — not rubbing! — over-the-counter rubbing alcohol on the stain until it comes off. Second, spray hairspray on the stain. Allow it to dry and sit for about 10 minutes. Clean with a hot, wet cloth until the stain comes out. Last, a dish detergent such as Dawn is good to use. Dish detergents contain degreasers, and lipstick is often made of oils. Dab a moist cloth with a bit of detergent on the stain for easy removal.
22. Blood
You cheating husbands out there who failed to get rid of the lipstick on your collar in time may need to remove bloodstains from your shirt. Thankfully, Good Housekeeping offers a hack that uses hydrogen peroxide. Of course, you’ll need to see a doctor for the broken jaw.
Photo Credit: ThriftyFun.com
Thanks for these great tips! My mother also told me that vinegar would be a good use for stain remover,
Good suggestions. Couple things that I’ve learned from practical experience to keep in mind:
Grease stains – My wife buys Lestoil and that gets rid of grease in clothes really well. Just dab a bit on there, let it soak, and run it through a wash cycle and it’s gone. I even used it on the carpet. I was using our steam cleaner on the stairs and everything was coming out except one stain that turned out to be grease. Put a tiny bit on there and it went away instantly.
Carpet stains – The vinegar trick works well but I had a carpet guy tell me that if you use vinegar, you need to flush out all the vinegar with water otherwise you’ll end up having dirt go back to those spots. After all, you use the vinegar to find the dirt, so if you leave the vinegar in the carpet, it will attract more dirt. He suggested that if you use vinegar, follow it up by pouring water onto the carpet, and using a shop-vac to pull it up. That has worked to not only get the carpet clean, but keep it clean!