Chester's Clean House: Clothing

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Chester's Laundry Stain Removal Guide

If anyone tells you that they enjoy doing the laundry, you have to question their sanity. Laundry is just a fact of life, it has to be done. I don’t mind doing the laundry, but I do hate stains! Especially the set-in ones! Here are some of our best tips for removing laundry stains.

Blood Stain Removal

Hopefully you don’t have to use this great tip too often! The best way to remove blood stains, even dried-on blood stains is to make a paste out of meat tenderizer and water and apply to the stain. Let it stand for about an hour and rinse off with water. If the stain still exists, repeat and this time work the paste into the stain. Rinse off and launder as usual.

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Coffee Stain Removal

Coffee stains happen, luckily making your own coffee stain removal solution is easy. The first thing you should do with a coffee stain is rinse out as much of the stain with water as possible. The best way to do this is to turn the garment inside out and place it under a running faucet. Next mix 1 cup hot water with about 1 tsp of dish soap. Blot with a sponge and dry with a white terry cloth. If the stain is still there, try mixing 1 part distilled vinegar and 2 parts warm water. Again blot the area with a sponge and dry with a terry cloth towel. Do not rub, that will only spread the stain. Wash regularly and verify that the stain is completely removed before you dry it. You can repeat each of the coffee stain removal methods as needed. As always test for color fastness.

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Deodorant Stains Removal

Deodorant stains can ruin any dress or shirt. I have two different tricks for dealing with these stains, however, you must test each one first in a inconspicuous place to make sure that they do not cause the color to fade or damage the fabric. The first trick is to wipe the stain with white vinegar as a pre-treatment for the stain. Launder as usual and the stain should be gone. The second trick is to soak the deodorant stain with denatured alcohol. Once you have soaked the stain, wash with the highest temperature setting that you safely can use.

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Grass Stain Removal

Grass stains are horrible. If you can get to them before they completely set, then just use a pre-wash stain remover such as the Spray and Wash Stick. It will keep the stain from setting even if you pre-treat and ignore until your normal laundry day. However, if the grass stain has set completely, you have to take more drastic measures. Mix two parts of ammonia with one part vinegar. Work the mixture into the stain and then launder as usual.

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Homemade Laundry Detergent

Diane T. sent in her homemade laundry detergent:

Here’s a recipe for laundry detergent which makes no suds, leaves no residue, and leaves your clothes soft. I dry my clothes on a clothesline and since I started using this detergent, I rarely have to iron anything –the wrinkles seem to just fall out! This recipe makes almost 5 gallons at a cost of about $3.00. I use a cup of detergent per full load and get 55-60 loads of clothes from each batch of soap. Pretty cheap, yes? I make mine in a large recycled paint bucket with a lid and store it under the pantry counter. I keep a smaller container by the washing machine which I refill from the large bucket. I buy all the ingredients from my local Kroger grocery store or they can be purchased online, which would increase the cost. Since I have very hard water, I sometimes add ½ cup of baking soda to the wash load to soften the water. (This works great when washing dishes, too, both in the dishwasher and hand washing).

HOMEMADE LAUNDRY SOAP:

Ingredients:

1 very large container (5 gallon )
1 bar Fels Naptha Soap
1 ½ cups 20 Mule Team Borax
1 ½ cups Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

Directions:

Put 12 cups (3 quarts) water in a large pan, bring to a boil.
Grate the bar of soap into a bowl and pour into the boiling water. (I shave the bar of soap with a potato peeler.)
Stir until dissolved.
Add the Borax and Washing Soda, stir until dissolved.
Put 8 cups (2 quarts) HOT water into a 5-gallon container.
Add soap mixture and stir well
Add 2 gallons ( 8 quarts) water, stir well.
Let mixture sit for 24 hours and it will kind of jell, like Jello.
Use a whisk or mixer (or paint blender) to make it smooth. This step is not absolutely necessary, but makes for a smoother soap.
Add 1 cup per regular washer load of clothes.

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Ink Stain Removal

Ink is one of the hardest things to get out of clothing. Inks are made in many different ways, so it is hard for me to tell you what will work best for removing your ink stain since I don’t know what kind of ink it is. The strategy for ink stain removal is to use a solvent to remove the stain from the fabric. Not all ink can be removed but you will not know about your stain until you try. In the worst case the following solvents will at least lighten the stain.

When working with all of these solutions soak a clean terry cloth rag with the solvent and blot at the stain. Never rub an ink stain because you will only work it further into the fabric. If you get an ink stain, treat it immediately if possible to make ink stain removal easier once you get home. You can treat with waterless hand sanitizer or just plain water if that is all that is available.

Hairspray is the most common ink solvent, and it works fairly well. Be patient and keep spraying and blotting. It will take some time for the stain to come up. Sometimes I will let the hairspray soak for a few moments before I blot. Rubbing alcohol, nail polish remover (acetone), Lestoil, and turpentine all work well on removing ink stains. Some ink formulas may need the use of one or more of these solvents to remove the ink.

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Laundry Odor Removal

Teri V. sent in the following tip:

I have a teenage son with raging hormones and body odor! To help fight the odors in the laundry I use the bleach cup in my washing machine and fill it with isopropyl alcohol. The rubbing alcohol not only boosts the power of the detergents, it also removes all of the odors, even the tough ones.

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Laundry Soap Residue Removal

If you start to notice that your laundry is coming out of your washer with soap residue or your clothes seem to be getting stiffer the more you wash them, then you have a detergent build-up in your washer. Adding one cup of white vinegar to your laundry will help to break up that residue. I recommend adding vinegar about once a month to keep your washer clean. Just make sure to never add vinegar to any load of laundry that you are adding bleach to.

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Red Wine Stain Removal

We have all been there before. You are having a wonderful time at a party and turn around to talk to a friend when you accidentally bump into a glass full of red wine. You new dress is ruined. To get the red wine stain out mix 1 tsp of dish detergent and 1 cup of hydrogen peroxide into a bowl. Use a clean towel or sponge to dab the area. Start from the outside and dab your way around the stain slowly working toward the center of the stain as it is removed. Hydrogen peroxide can bleach your clothing so test before you begin.

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Tough Laundry Stain Removal

If a stain has been completely set-in and even if it has already gone through the dryer, Lestoil can still save the day. Work the Lestoil into the stain and launder as usual. Make sure that you never use Lestoil on any garments that are dry-clean only. Also, test in an area that will not be noticed to make sure that it does not fade or damage your clothing.

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Share Your Tips

Do you have a great laundry stain removal tip? Please add it to the comments or email it to us so that we can share it. Together we can knock out even the toughest stains.

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Different Types of Wardrobes for More Bedroom Storage

I constantly run out of storage room in my bedroom. My closet is very shallow and can barely hold my suits and hanging clothes, much less my wife’s. When we got married we inherited two dressers, one large, one quite small. My wife uses the smaller of the two and I quickly overloaded the largest. The problem with dressers is the fact that you cannot hang cloths to keep them from getting wrinkled. This is what started my quest for the best wardrobe for our needs and for the different needs of our readers.

I was surprised by how many different types of wardrobes existed!

First of all, there are many fairly inexpensive wardrobes commercially available. My brother and his wife bought the IKEA Hopen wardrobe system with two vertical storage units and one horizontal storage unit that they placed in the middle for shoes and folded clothes. This was a great wardrobe for their needs, but is simply too large for what I needed. My wife and I have a fairly small bedroom. We need to find the best wardrobe for our limited space that fits are needs. Here is how I broke down the floor space verses clothes needs wardrobe options.

First, determine the amount of hanging clothes space that you require. This is determined by how many hanging items that you have multiplied by their average horizontal space requirements. My hanging clothes require an average of two and a half inches of horizontal space to not become wrinkled. So my calculation was 15 articles of clothing times two and a half inches or 37.5 inches of horizontal hanging space. I also needed room for my folded winter sweaters and fleeces. This means that I also needed a large shelving area. I started shopping for different wardrobes that could meet our needs.

After an exhaustive search, here is what I found. There are a number of wardrobes that are designed to fit in corners. This would be fantastic for us, given our limited space, but all of the different corner models that I found have very limited space for hanging clothes. What I decided on was the 48” Ameriwood Oak Wardrobe. The wardrobe provides over 46” of hanging clothes space and the price was right around $200, which was the limit that I allowed myself to spend. It has adjustable shelves for my folded clothes and has two separate areas for hanging clothes so that I can separate my pants and shirts and jackets. I also was able to purchase it at our local Meijer store so that I didn’t have to wait.

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How To Keep Lint Off Of Your Black Clothing

No matter how well and often I clean out the lint trap, my black items of clothing will sometimes come out of the dryer covered in lint. I’m sure there’s lint on the other clothing; it’s just that the black items show lint more easily. To reduce the amount of lint in your laundry, tie an old pair of panty hose up into knots and throw them into your dryer with every load. The panty hose will attract the lint and because they’re tied up, they won’t get tangled up with your other clothing.

So You Left Your Laundry In The Dryer Too Long...

If you leave a load of laundry in the dryer for too long everything turns into a wrinkly mess. This happens to everyone from time to time as life can get pretty busy. To re-fluff and de-wrinkle the load, just lightly dampen a towel and throw it in. Run the dryer for about ten minutes. Use a bath towel for a large load and a hand towel for smaller ones.

How to Unshrink A Sweater

Okay, so you’ve shrunk a sweater in the laundry. We've all done it. It’s hopeless, right? Not necessarily. There might be a chance to save it. Follow these instructions and you may end up with a wearable sweater, even if it has been a while since you shrunk it.

Unshrink Sweater Home Remedy

Fill a sink with room temperature water and dissolve in a few teaspoon of hair conditioner. Just about any brand will work, just make sure it's not a shampoo and conditioner combination or shampoo plus. The soap in those will work against you. Soak the sweater in the solution for 5-10 minutes. Then lay it out on a large dry towel. Gently stretch the sweater into its original shape and size. Be very careful to stretch it evenly. Let it dry completely in that position. Knitters use a similar technique when blocking a sweater. It doesn’t work in every scenario but many sweaters can be saved. I saved my favorite Woolrich Sweater one this way!

Protect Your Sweaters in the Future

You can protect your sweaters in the future by using this technique to dry your sweaters. Just lay out a towel or even buy a special sweater drying rack. Lay the sweater flat, in a natural position and let the sweater dry for a day. Make sure to not have the sweater hanging from anything because gravity can do just the opposite and stretch your sweater. If your sweater is stretched out, you can also try the above method, but don't use any conditioner. Good Luck.

Protect Your Stored Cloths From Moisture

With the weather changing to fall, I'll be putting all of my summer clothing into the back of the closet until next year. Every fall I place a large box of chalk on one of my shelves to help protect my cloths from moisture. Chalk is great for removing excess moisture from the air. Moist dark damp places are the breading grounds for mold and mildew and nobody likes the smell of moldy cloths. If you don't have any chalk, you can try charcoal. Charcoal will also help with any odors.

Closet Cleaning Tips

It is amazing how much space you can gain by properly organizing your closets. Here are a few tips that really helped me out. Number one, use the back of the door for storage. I bought a shoe rack from Target. It holds over 20 pairs of shoes against the door and cost under $20. Number two, add storage containers. I put all of the shorter hanging clothes on the same side and added a two-drawer plastic shelf below them. It's great for all my small items, such as my dress socks. Step three, add another shelf if you have room. I added a wooden shelf that I bought as a kit from my local hardware store. It is too high for my wife to reach, but I use it only for seasonal items. Step four, and probably the most important, get rid of clothes that you will never again wear. Just be honest with yourself, are you really going to wear the Rudolf sweater out in public?

Lipstick On My Collar

Here’s one I hadn’t had to deal with before because I don’t wear lipstick. I was dancing with my wife at wedding recently. She and my shirt must have gotten a little too close. The problem with lipstick stains is that lipstick is oil based. You need something to cut through the grease. Dawn works great! Apply the Dawn directly to the stain. Rinse using cold water. And be gentle, you don’t want to push the lipstick deeper into the shirt.

Cleaning Your Iron

Your iron can get a build-up of starch and dirt on the surface that reduces its ability to iron your clothes and always makes me nervous that it will transfer to my shirts. To remove this mess, mix a thick paste of baking soda and clean water. When the iron is cool, scrub the iron with a sponge covered with the mixture. Really old, baked-on stains will take more time to remove. Once finished, wipe off the excess with a clean towel. To remove the extra paste from the holes, use Q-tips.

Refreshing Your Cedar Closets

Cedar chases off moths and invigorates your clothing with a wonderful scent. Over time, your cedar chests and closets will begin to loose their effectiveness. Not to worry, rub down your cedar with a high quality cedar essential oil. You can find this at aromatherapy stores or any place that sells essential oils. Make sure that your essential oil is not diluted as this reduces the effectiveness.

Dryer Sheets in your Sock Drawer?

Placing a few unused dryer sheets in any clothing drawer improves odor control and reduces the moisture level in the drawer. Clothes left with dryer sheets smell better longer and will last in the drawer longer without getting that "left in a drawer too long scent." Dryer sheets are cheap and one or two per drawer will do the trick. If you are storing summer or winter clothes for any period of time, dryer sheets are a must! Dryer sheets are also known as a deterrent to many types of bugs, which makes me like them even more.

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