Miracle Stain Remover and a Healthier Alternative to Dryer Sheets
I’ve been keeping a secret from y’all and I just can’t live with it anymore. I have a miracle stain remover recipe that has time and again proven to work on some of the most stubborn stains. Plus, find out why we don’t need dryer sheets anymore!
Miracle Stain Remover and a Healthier Alternative to Dryer Sheets
Recently, Pretty Handsome Guy came back from a business trip with a stained button-down shirt. It had wing sauce on it AND it had been allowed to settle for a few days AND he hadn’t pre-soaked it or used any stain remover. (Have I not taught him anything?! Sigh.) I thought for sure the shirt was a goner. But, I decided to put my miracle stain remover recipe to the test. Low and behold after 24 hours of soaking in the concoction, the stain was magically gone! No scrubbing, it was simply gone. Can I apply for a magic wand now?
I can’t lay claim to the recipe. I found it on our local “Mommy” message board back when I was a new mom. But, this recipe has worked on more stains than I can count.
I mixed up a batch today to try on one of my son’s shirts that got blueberry jelly on it. My mom tried to wash it to get the stain out, but it was still there after laundering. Normally once a stain goes through the dryer it is set in. But, that didn’t deter the me from trying my Miracle Stain Remover. Sit back and learn young Jedis (we watched Star Wars last week, so it is on my brain.)
Miracle Stain Remover…
Ingredients:
(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)
- 1 scoop of Oxi-Clean
- 1 scoop of Liquid Clorox 2
- 1 scoop of Cascade powder dishwashing detergent (or another powered brand.)
Fill your basin with warm water then add the Oxi-clean, Clorox 2, and powdered Dish Detergent. Give it a swirl and mix until the powders dissolve and bubbles form.
Place the stained garment into the mixture, being sure the stain is submerged. After two hours you can take a peek! My stain was gone.
For tougher stains, let it soak overnight. Remove the clothing to behold the miracle! Normally I will throw the garment into the wash, but you could simply rinse and dry it.
And, this formula is also safe for colors as well!
Laundry Detergent…
In the spirit of sharing, I also have this recipe for Making Your Own Laundry Detergent for only $1.25 per year! I mean, have you seen the price of laundry detergent lately?! 200 oz. for “gulp” $35! Whereas the recipe I made yielded 250 oz. for….are you ready for this…$0.61! This is a 97% saving on detergent by making your own.
And the best news is that it is safe for HE washers. You only need 1/4 cup per load. Click Here to Get the Recipe for Making Your Own Laundry Detergent for $1.25 per year!
Drying clothes…
And since I’m talking laundry today, this post wouldn’t be complete without mentioning my secret weapon for drying clothes.
I use two of them! They may look like medieval torture devices or rabid animals, but these little hedgehog dryer balls have completely kicked our fabric softener sheets to the curb! I haven’t used dryer sheets in over 9 years now! At first I was concerned about static (the bane of my hair’s existence), but then a friend told me that you can eliminate static by not letting your clothes over dry. Simply shut off the dryer when your clothes are about 95% dry. Don’t let the dryer run and run and run until the clothes are piping hot and there isn’t a spot of dampness on them. Instead, let the moisture sensor (if you have one) do its job and it should shut off right before the clothes are dry. The waistbands in jeans or sweatpants may feel slightly damp, but everything else feels dry. And most importantly, pull out fleece, polyester, or synthetic clothes about halfway through the cycle.
The dryer balls (you should use two) work together to punch, separate, fluff, and dry your clothes. They also help keep wrinkles to a minimum, but I’m not afraid of a few wrinkles (see my no iron solution to wrinkles post.) The Dryer Balls cost less than $10, but the cost savings of not using dryer sheets is definitely worth it. Plus, you don’t have to stress about the chemicals that are in dryer sheets. These little wonder balls (I can’t believe I just typed that) last for a long time, but it’s good to have three in case one hedgehog loses a nose (it can happen.) I have been using mine for over nine years. They start to get darker on the nubs from dye in your clothing, but it doesn’t transfer and it doesn’t hurt their effectiveness.
I was wondering if this stain remover would work on old deodorant stains (the gross dark ones, not the yellow sweat stains) and if not, does anyone know what will???
Mitzi,
I’m not sure, but it’s worth a try!
This sounds so awesome. I really am excited to try this, ha! I don’t have any kids yet; just a 26 yr old accident prone eater. It’s nearly become a game; we guess when the stain will actually occur. It’s hilarious when it happens during appetizers. Especially when he forgets Not to wear a white shirt. I spend some time scrubbing under the faucet. Usually, I just use bar soap, or whatever antibacterial hand soap in the bathroom.
But anyway, I did have questions! For the Laundry Detergent, is it equal amounts per ingredient? And how did you make it liquid, plain water? If so, how much liquid should be added to the formula? And the ingredients listed above, the Borax, Super Washing Soda and Fels Naptha, those alone would be the Powder Detergent formula correct?
TYIA! Great tips.
Rita, the laundry detergent recipe and how to make it are on this site: http://busy-at-home.com/blog/diy-laundry-detergent-save-big-have-fresh-clean-laundry/?utm_source=feedburner
I found that the liquid recipe goes a LOT further. Just made the powdered version using the same amount of the ingredients and we are almost out after 2 weeks. The liquid lasted over 6 months!
Has anyone mixed up a big batch of the miracle stain remover and kept it for a long period of time? I have 2 small boys and I use stain remover EVERY SINGLE DAY. 🙂 Anyway–just wondering if it congealed or remained fluid. I want to use it, but don’t want to have to mix it up constantly……TIA.
Kelley, I haven’t yet. But, this sounds like a great idea! Maybe I’ll keep some in a spray bottle!
Okay. No prob. I will give it a go! Hopefully it’ll be just fine w/ a shake each time before I use it. I’ll let you know 🙂 . Thanks for the recipe! I’m very excited to try it b/c I go through bottles of Resolve Max like crazy.
I tried mixing up the Stain remover and it did not go well. There was a delightful chemical reaction that caused a lot of heat and frothing. After removing the “experiment” outside overnight, it had solidified. Going to try to break it up into a powder later (fingers crossed). Not sure how it will work if I’m successful at removing it from the bottles…
Angie, it sounds like you didn’t use enough water. Also, did you use the brands I recommended? I haven’t had any chemical reaction other than suds.
Well, I tried to save time later by mixing up a “concentrate” so I would just have one container instead of three. I may try just using the powder Clorox 2 next time and mix all the powders. Just call me Mr. Wizard…..
Angie (aka Mrs. Wizard), I see. I typically just fill a small tub with the mixture and soak the stained garments in it overnight to get it out. Let me know if your concentrated concoction works 😉
What is the ratio of the engrediant in the laundry recipe?
Dianne, the recipe is on Busy at Home’s site: http://busy-at-home.com/diy-laundry-detergent-save-big-have-fresh-clean-laundry/
Hello! I have used another homemade laundry soap, the all powder one, and I love it as well! It’s borax, super suds, baking soda, and fels naptha all mixed together. <3<3<3 it, also my friend has used the liquid one for a few months now and loves it as well 🙂 I have the dryer balls too, the only thing I hate is using the dryer at night, its fairly loud with those balls bouncing around in there, but other then that, my clothes have come out softer then ever, and I actually don't use softeners at all, mainly because my and my daughters skin is irritated by it! Thanks for all your hard work! Love your site! Keep on being handy!
Jenny, thanks for your comment. I have an HE washer, do you know if I can use the powder kind in it? I’m guessing I’d have to just toss it in with the clothes instead of using the dispenser.
yes, you have to put it in the drum, not in the tray, otherwise it gunks up! but it works fantastic!
Tennis balls really stink in the dryer, really stink. I always used them for down comforters and jackets. Because they smell so bad it makes me wonder, is there some chemical released that would be better in the synthetic balls than in our lungs? You might want to try WOOL DRYER BALLS. I found the directions on line. Basically you wind wool yarn into a ball. (I’m learning to spin and have LOTS of “less than perfect” yarn so this is cheap for me.) when it gets to be a few inches tuck the end of the string into the ball, put the balls into an old nylon, tie a piece of string between the balls, throw that ball sausage into a load of laundry (hot is best, warm will work,) and then throw it into the dryer (again, hot works best.) When you cut them free start more yarn around the balls to make it the size you want (– tennis ball size or larger) and repeat the washer/dryer felting process. When you take them out of the dryer, check one to make sure they felted enough and will stay together. With use they’ll felt even more.
Vinegar’s a wonderful rinse for dishes, clothes, and hair (just rinse it out of your hair or you’ll smell like vinaigrette!) It seems to soften our clothes and leaves them clean and fresh. It’s summer in New England, so that means mostly line drying after the vinegar rinse… but I’m going to do a load of laundry now so I can try out that wonderful idea of safety pins on rags!!! That would be wonderful, and it makes sense that they could draw out the electrostatic charge. I’m thinking it will work because I washed my husband’s pants with a 18K gold medal/chain in the pocket (who knew?) which also had a finger rosary (metal ring with bumps) in the same pocket. When they came out he had an 18K plated gold finger rosary. It was very cool, but he wasn’t happy. Maybe the safety pin rags would be a good static buster for your daughter’s clothing. Genius idea if it really works!!!
Haven’t used fabric softener for years… Married to a firefighter and evidently fabric softenerd mess with fire retardency (real word?) of clothing for the little people at my house and I’ve read too that it makes clothes actually hold a stain. Another idea to reduce static… Pin 2 safety pins each to 2 rags and throw in with wet clothes. Ta da, little to no static. Its a science thing, someone can explain I’m sure (not me!).
No way! Just 2 safety pins on a rag will clear the static cling? I’m sooo going to try this. Thanks for the idea.
I’ve been using the powder recipe for about a year and think it qworks quite well but have noticed this summer my husbands work shirts not getting very clean. He works in a machine shop and gets VERY sweaty and greasy. His t-shirts will never look clean but don’t quite smell clean either esp. under the arms. Any suggestions for REALLY dirty clothes. I wash them alone and with extra detergant and double rinse of homemade softner. I hang out to dry also for extra airing. Help!!!!
Debbie, now that’s some dirty laundry! 😉 I actually just googled how to get stinky towels clean. There were a couple of solutions. The one I tried was filling the softener dispenser in the washer with vinegar. I’ve also heard about putting a quarter cup of baking soda in with the laundry. Good luck.
I have been using the miracle stain remover for years, but I only use the Clorox 2 and Cascade powder. It works like a charm! Try it without the Oxyclean and save some money!!
Sharon, I’ll have to try it with just the Clorox 2, but I’m afraid it won’t whiten as much. But, I’m up for anything ;-).
For those of you with oily stains, pizza, spaghetti sauce or most stains, use the while handcleaner GOOP. It is in the auto supply of Walmart or other retailers. I am in my mid 50’s and about 10 years ago I learned this trick. The grease attracts grease..I have had it work on stains that were “set” from the dryer that I did not notice. Rub it on the stains, let it sit a few minutes and then wash. It works! It was at one time, 99 cents a container, more now but worth it!
Excellent idea Susan! Thanks for the tip on using Goop.
I have used the laundry detergent recipe for a while now. As for the smell, I bought some Lavender essential oils and put 10-20 drops in each batch. Increases the price some (to about $1 per gallon) but it’s worth it to me! Also have been using homemade softener AND I found a recipe for homemade oxi-clean to use with the stain remover recipe!
Angi,
Mmmm, that sounds like a great addition. I love lavender!
I tried the stain remover & loved it! I have been wondering if you have tried it as a spot treater. I have a messy 15 month old & would love if the process was a little quicker & im afraid to try things before they are recommended! Thanks for all your great information & projects!
I haven’t, but then again, isn’t soaking it in the concoction before laundering the same as spot treater?
Great post! I’ve made my own laundry detergent before and was very satisfied with the job it did. The best part is it costs pennies per load compared to commercial detergents.
Can’t wait to try the miracle stain remover!