How to remove colour stains from white clothes

It is a total bummer to see even a tiny stain on your favorite white garment. Who would want to wear white shirts stained with pizza sauce, anyway? So, if you are curious to know how to remove color stains from white clothes, you have come to the right place.

As all of you surely know, stains can make you feel some relatively strong emotions. Whether it is your favorite lily-white party gown or your white office pants, stains can be a severe pain to deal with. But, once you get over those feelings of devastation, you shouldn’t waste any minute. It is now time for you to take the next step: to search for the best ways to get rid of that ugly-looking stain.

So, what is the best and most effective stain remover for your white clothing garments, then? The answer is that it will depend on what type of stain it is in the first place and what specific fabric your garment is made of.

Removing most kinds of stains from white clothes doesn’t have to be an issue as long as you know the correct methods to use. Preventing these stains will always be the best and wisest way. Always make sure that your white garments don’t come into close contact with sweat, makeup, food, beverages, grease, fragrances, and others.

Dealing with simple stains in your white clothes will also depend a lot on what is stated in the care labels of the garment. If the label says that it is for dry clean only, it is not recommended to use the home remedies that will be discussed below. Instead, it is best to pack your clothes and send them over to the dry cleaners with the hopes that they can do something to remedy the problem. Just make sure that you choose one with positive reviews and a good reputation so you can be sure that they will have the best solution for your concerns.

How to Remove Spots of Discoloration

If there is only a spot or two of color that was transferred to your white clothes, it is recommended that you try to use oxygen bleach before anything else. To do this, oxygen bleach should be dissolved in hot water before adding enough amount of cold water for cooling down the mixture. Soak your stained garment in the solution for about 15 to 30 minutes before rinsing it.

In case the stain is still there, you can use 3% hydrogen peroxide. Use this to wet the stains and let them sit for several minutes before thoroughly rinsing them. Our previous guide clearly proof that hydrogen peroxide can remove stains from mattress too. Some people use it to remove wood stains from carpet.

If this one still fails to work, chlorine bleach is your next best option. Pour 1/8 cup of chlorine bleach into a sink filled with water. Just be very careful to ensure that you don’t splash any of the bleach on your skin or into your eyes. Let the garment soak in the solution for around 15 to 30 minutes before running this through a wash cycle. You can repeat the process if necessary. Avoid machine-drying the item until you have completely removed the stain.

What to Do If All White Clothes in Your Laundry Gets Colour Stains

Remove first the item that brought about the problem. Wash the affected clothes again with oxygen bleach based on the directions in the package, the regular detergent you are using, and the hottest allowed temperature of water stated in the care labels of the garment.

If the stains remain and using chlorine bleach is allowed as indicated in the care labels, you can rewash the clothes, and this time, you can use cold water, your usual detergent, and 1/8 cup of chlorine bleach. Repeat the procedure as needed.

Once you have removed the discoloration, you can run through the entire load with another rinse cycle to get rid of residual chlorine.

It is also recommended by the experts to use a packaged color remover for restoring white clothes that picked up the colors of other fabrics. Launder the pieces as usual once you have removed the color. Just take note that there are color removers that are exclusively meant for white clothes only.

Other Tips to Remove Colour Stains from Your White Clothes

You always do your best to make sure that your clothes look new and fresh all the time. Unfortunately, even the most careful of people still experience accidents like color bleeding. The surest and simplest way to prevent accidental dye stains in your laundry is to always separate the colors and the whites before you add them to the wash. However, if accidents still happen, don’t despair because you can use readily available products for cleaning and removing stains.  

1. Sort through your laundry and take out the colored garment. Wear a pair of rubber gloves for your hands to stay protected from chemical irritants.
2. Pour a heavy-duty liquid laundry detergent on the stained parts of your white clothes.
3. Rub the fabric vigorously together or you can also use an old toothbrush for working the detergent on the stain. Use warm water to rinse your garments. Repeat the procedure until the colour stains start to fade away.
4. Get a bucket where you can soak the white garments in a mixture of warm water and powdered bleach. You can also use a white towel if needed to weigh down the garments to ensure that they are completely submerged. Make sure you follow the measurement for bleach as indicated by the manufacturer as well as the exact instructions for soak time when preparing the solution.
5. Wash your clothes using the hottest temperature safe for the fabrics using a commercial color remover.
6. Repeat the fifth step if there are still leftover stains.

Even just a single color piece of clothing can easily transform and ruin your white clothes in a blink of an eye. When this kind of disaster happens, don’t lose just yet. Just follow the tips above and before you know it, your white clothes can soon go back to being light and bright in no time at all.

We also strongly recommend you read our previous guides how to get essential oil out of clothes and how to get chapstick out of clothes.