Hot Water Archives - Page 10 of 10

5 Effective Grease Stain Removal Tips

You probably already have some of these cleaning agents in your home, and a couple that might be worth bringing home. Here’s how to take grease stains off clothes, step by step.

Dish Soap and Hot Water

Treat stained clothes the same way you would a sink full of greasy dishes – remove grease from the surface with dish-washing liquid. Dish detergent is designed to break up surface grease and allow it to rinse away.

Place the garment stain-side down on white paper towels. (Printed paper towels could transfer ink color to your clothes.)
Squirt a dime-size amount of dishwashing liquid on the backside of the grease stains. Gently rub the dish detergent into the stain center and work your way to the edges. Give it a minute or so to work its breakdown magic.
Rinse the treated area under warm to hot running water for a minute or so to remove the dish detergent. The water temperature will depend on what the fabric can handle. For 100 percent cotton, you can usually use hot water.
Follow the rinse with a spin in the washing machine, using the hottest water that’s safe for the fabric and your regular laundry detergent. If you can’t read the clothing label care tab, choose a warm water wash.

Laundry Detergent Pre-treatment

Rub a liquid laundry detergent into the stain, and let sit for 3-5 minutes.

Wash the stained item separately from the rest of your clothes in the hottest recommended water, adding a little bleach or bleach alternative to the wash water. Extend the wash cycle to give the garment some extra time in the spin cycle.

Absorbent Powder

Another good tip that works on grease stains that are fresh is to use absorbent powder (such as cornstarch, salt, baking powder or talcum powder).

Apply the absorbent of choice, and let it set until the powder has absorbed as much of the grease stain as possible. Brush away the absorbent remnants with a stiff-bristle brush.

WD-40 and Dish Detergent

Place the garment on paper towels, grease stain side up. Spray the greasy area with WD-40. Let stand 10 minutes.

Turn the garment over and spray the underside as well. Allow to sit another 10 minutes.

Using paper towels, blot on some hand dishwashing liquid, replacing the towels as they absorb the grease.
Rinse the treated area, and wash separately from the rest of your laundry.

Lestoil Heavy Duty Cleaner

Lestoil Heavy Duty Cleaner is made by Clorox. It safely removes oil spots, grease stains and tar from washable fabrics. It’s effective and easy to use, but it does have a very strong smell.

Simply pour Lestoil onto the greasy stain and let it soak in for about 20 minutes before washing. And if you’re washing a huge greasy load of laundry, add some to the wash water to get the load clean and grease-free.

Lestoil is also good for removing stains from fabric on sofas, chairs, carpets, and concrete driveways.

Last But Not Least

Inspect the treated area before drying to ensure the greasy stains are completely removed. If you can still see any residue, repeat the pre-treating and washing process until clear.

Then, go ahead and dry the garment as usual.

Choosing the Correct Water Temperature

Most people think the way to get the job done is to wash everything in a single load with cold water. That way, you get it all done at once, and there’s no color transfer between clothes, but that’s not always the case. Washing everything together in cold will prevent color transfer, but unfortunately it won’t get everything clean.

When to wash in hot water

Hot wash works well on ground-in and hard-to-remove dirt on sturdy fabrics.

Generally speaking, you should wash white clothes in hot water. Washing colors in hot water is also recommended if the clothes are really dirty or greasy, and they’re made of sturdy, color-fast fabric. (Wash them separately, of course.)

Use it to clean seriously soiled sturdy garments (gardening or children’s clothing), and to regularly disinfect dish towels, washcloths, bath towels, bedding, and pillowcases.

Light and dark fabrics should be separated as hot water may cause these clothes to bleed.

Delicate and coarse or sturdy fabrics should be separated to prevent abrasion and protect clothes from wear and tear.

When to wash in warm water

Warm water (or permanent press wash setting) minimizes color fading and wrinkling. Wash light clothes, as well as regular and sturdy fabrics, towels, jeans, 100 percent manmade fibers, and blends of natural and manmade fibers. It’s also appropriate for moderately dirty clothes that don’t need the extra power of a hot water temperature wash.

When to wash in cold water

Washing clothes with cold water will protect most dark or bright-colored clothing from running and minimizes shrinkage. Use the cold wash cycle for lightly soiled fabrics and clothes with blood, wine or coffee stains, dark or bright colors that may run or fade, delicate fabrics including washable silk, Spandex swimsuits, and active wear; and delicate lingerie. It’s also okay for lightly soiled clothes.

There’s a misconception that washing clothes in cold water won’t get clothes clean. This is because detergent is formulated for, and fully activated in, warm water. Cooler water won’t fully activate detergent, which means you’ll need to use more to make up for the temperature difference to get your cold wash clothes clean. Thankfully there are several brands of detergent that are designed to work in all temperatures. Tide, Arm & Hammer, All, and Wisk are just a few that we recommend.

How to Wash/Dry Microfiber Towels

Washing and drying microfiber towels properly ensures towels will last longer, stay softer, and produce better results when trying to clean your windows, appliances, drying off your vehicle after washing, or using them for waxing your vehicle.

Step 1: Separate Your Towels

Before washing your microfiber, separate your towels into specific groups such as windows, appliances, vehicles, wheels, etc. Washing your towels in separate groups reduces the chance of cross-contamination during the washing process. If you wash your waxing towels and your window cleaning towels in the same load, wax residue can become embedded in the window towels and can cause streaks when cleaning glass, or appliances such as stainless steel.

Step 2: Use Proper Microfiber Wash

Choosing the correct microfiber wash solution is important to maintaining the condition of your microfiber. Using generic laundry detergent can reduce the life and performance of microfiber towels. We recommend only using a microfiber specific washing solution, such as Chemical Guys Microfiber Wash, to achieve the best results when washing your towels and microfiber goods. Microfiber Wash is designed to safely remove dirt and contamination from your microfiber without harming the material. Using generic laundry detergent can make microfiber feel stiff and rough. DO NOT USE FABRIC SOFTENER! Fabric softener clogs the fiber material and reduces microfiber performance. Fabric softener blocks liquids from being absorbed by the microfiber material.

Step 3: Use the Correct Wash Settings

Place your microfiber towels in the washing machine. Select “Hot” for the water temperature. Washing microfiber with hot water opens the fibers to release dirt and contamination. Add 1 oz. to 4 oz. (depending on load size) of Microfiber Wash to the machine. Press start and allow the machine to do the work.

Step 4: Drying the Microfiber

Now that the towels are washed, it’s time to dry. Machine drying is recommended to ensure the towels are clean, fluffy, and ready to detail. Place all your microfiber goods in the dryer, and set the temperature to “low”. Do not dry microfiber goods on high heat. Using high heat on microfiber can fry the polyester in the microfiber, causing the towel to feel stiff and hard. Towels that are dried on high heat can lead to scratches and swirls when used on cars, appliances or windows.

Step 5: Fold and Store

Once the towels are dry, properly fold and store them. Microfiber can easily hold dirt and dust. To ensure the towels stay clean, store the them in a clean cabinet, closet or container. Storing the towels properly can ensure that no dirt, dust, or debris lands on your towels.

How to Clean Stinky Mildew Towels

At some point most of us have used a towel, for whatever reason, and tossed it in to the dirty laundry and forgotten it was wet. A few days later and the smell will remind you! That smell is caused by mildew that sets in, and isn’t very easy to get rid of. Washing your towels a few times on a normal setting may get rid of that stink, but if that isn’t enough to combat the mildew smell, I’ve found a way to get your towels back in shape and get that unpleasant smell out quickly. Here is how:

Place your smelly towels in the washing machine and fill with the hottest water possible. Add in 2 cups of white vinegar and let them soak for at least 30 mins. Do not add any other products (detergent, softener etc.). This will allow the vinegar to penetrate the material without interference.
Run a full cycle after your towels have soaked in the vinegar water. Leaving the towels in the washer repeat step 1, only this time use baking soda instead of vinegar. Run a full cycle once again.
Dry the towels on hottest setting possible until they are fully dry

Your towels will smell like brand new!