Vaseline is great for moisturising your skin, but it is greasy and can leave marks on your clothes and furniture. Whether you’re using Vaseline for dry lips, or as a body moisturiser for dry skin, you’ll notice that it does tend to smear. If your clothes touch an area of your skin that’s covered in Vaseline or you don’t wash your hands after applying it, you will notice grease stains starting to appear. Before you panic, you should know that there are a few different ways to get Vaseline out of your clothes so that it doesn’t end up causing long-lasting damage. In this post we will look at how to get Vaseline out of clothes.
How To Remove Vaseline Stains From Clothes
- Firstly, you will want to scrape as much vaseline off the item of clothing as possible, without pushing it deeper in. You can do this by scrapping with the dull side of a butter knife or a plastic spatula.
- Dab the remaining stain with a cloth.
- Once the excess is removed, use some dish soap that generally works to break down grease, and gently rub it into the stain. For delicate fabrics, use your fingers or a soft cloth to rub the dish soap in. For more durable materials, use a soft brush or toothbrush.
- Next, you can use hot water to rinse the excess soap and hopefully the stain away.
- After washing the vaseline, you can place the item into the washing machine. Put it on a hot water setting with your regular laundry detergent and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar.
- After the washing cycle finishes, check your clothes to see if the vaseline has been completely removed. If the stain is still visible, don’t put it into the tumble dryer yet. You wouldn’t want the stain to set in.
- If the stain remains, apply rubbing alcohol to the clothing item. Just be careful with coloured fabrics.
- Repeat steps 2 to 4 until the stain is completely gone.
If stained clothing items are labelled as ‘dry cleaning only, take it to a professional dry cleaner. They’ll know how to get vaseline out of clothes.
Other Ways To Get Vaseline Out Of Clothing
Isopropyl alcohol is effective at getting rid of Vaseline and can be a faster solution to dish soap. Vaseline is not soluble in water, but is in alcohol, which is why it is effective. However, it’s important to test a small area to make sure that it doesn’t damage your clothing material. All you have to do is soak the stained clothing for 10 to 30 minutes, then scrub the stain with a wet clean towel until the mark is gone.
Vinegar is also another natural cleaning agent, commonly used with baking soda to remove stains. Using vinegar is not as effective as dish soap, but is also better if you don’t want to use harsh detergents or if you have sensitive skin.
Ironing the stain is also an effective way to get Vaseline out of your clothes. If the label of your garment says it’s suitable for ironing, you can iron the Vaseline out of your clothing without using soaps or detergents. If you’re not sure about the best setting to put your iron on, it’s best to start on the lowest setting to ensure you don’t burn your clothing. Learn the best tips on how to read laundry symbols so that no mistakes are made.
Simply remove as much Vaseline as possible with a butter knife or spoon, without smearing the Vaseline further into the fibres. Place a thick stack of paper towels underneath the stain and one on top. Then, on the lowest setting, iron over the top of the paper towel so that the heat adsorbs the Vaseline. For larger stains, you’ll want to replace the paper towels multiple times so that a fresh bunch of towels can absorb as much of the grease as possible. Allow the fabric to cool and be sure that all of the stains are gone. If not, repeat the process
Conclusion
If you accidentally smear some Vaseline where it’s not needed, at least now you know how to get Vaseline out of clothes. If you want just to place your garment into the washing machine to remove the stain, it’s best to use detergents that are made especially for removing oils and grease. Keep in mind that if you place the clothing item into the dryer and the stain remains, it will set the stain further into the fabric and make it harder, or possibly even impossible to remove.
If your clothes have other types of stains, learn how to remove nail polish from clothes and other fabrics or how to get ink out of clothing, so that yours and your family’s clothes are kept free of stains. For all other household chores of the highest quality, book a cleaning service with SweepSouth. You won’t be disappointed!
