How to Easily Remove Blood Stains from Different Materials
Blood stains can be especially difficult to remove because the hemoglobin in the blood acts as a binder when it hits the air and binds with the fibers in your clothing. As with any stain removal technique, you will want to try a test application on a small, inconspicuous spot to be sure it does not damage the color or fibers of your clothing.
Here are our top laundry tips on how to remove blood stains from clothes. The problem is that blood stains are not just any old red mark. A blood stain is an organic stain, which means it’s full of proteins, and proteins are programmed to bind together when heated, making them set fast into our clothes. This means it’s important to resist the temptation to wash blood stains out with hot water and instead approach with slight more caution.
The quicker you are able to deal with the blood stain, the better. Fresh blood is fairly easy to remove in fact. And by ‘fresh’ blood I mean a garment or fabric that has had blood on it for less than about 10-15 minutes or so.
The first thing you should do is rinse the garment under cold running water. Slightly agitate the fabric with your finger, ensuring that cold water reaches the interior of the fabric.
And rinse liberally. Use lots and lots of cold water. You can typically see the blood stain start to lighten in color. If you’ve caught the stain early enough, you might even see it disappear under the running water.
Removing blood stains from unwashable fabrics
If the care label says the clothing is not washable, the easiest thing is to take the item straight to the drycleaners. If you would prefer to try to remove the stain at home however, try blotting the stain with a towel and some dry cleaning fluid available from hardware shops or supermarkets. Blot inside the clothing to push the stain outwards.
Removing blood stains from carpet or furniture
Blot up as much of the blood as possible with paper towel. Then you can try a couple of different methods once you’ve tested the carpet or furniture material for colorfastness.
• Mix a quarter teaspoon mild detergent with one cup water (try to avoid using a detergent that contains optical brighteners or it can discolour fabrics and carpets over the long term). Blot from the outside of the stain into the centre with white towels or paper towels to see how much of the stain transfers.
• Fresh blood stains can sometimes be removed by placing ice cubes over the stain and blotting with paper or cotton towels.
Stain remover notes
• The quicker you deal with a stain, the more likely you are to remove it.
• Unless it’s a fat stain, cold water is best for rinsing a stain, so as not to set it and make it harder to remove later.
• Before using a cleaning solution, test on an inconspicuous section, such as the inside of a sleeve, to check it won’t ruin the fabric.
• Always rinse out one cleaning solution before trying another to remove a stain as certain chemicals are not supposed to be mixed.
• Read the care instructions on the item of clothing before attempting vigorous stain removal. Some clothing may be too delicate to attempt stain removal and are better taken straight to the drycleaners.
• Don’t rub fabric harshly to remove stains as this can abrade fibres and cause fading.
• The white towel blotting method is often recommended for stain removal. Simply fold a clean white towel and, once you have treated the stain with water, gently dab it with the towel and check to see how much of the stain has transferred to the white towel.
• If using commercial stain removers and detergents, always follow the product label to understand the proper use and safety precautions you may need to take.
• It’s always easier to treat a stain on a washable fabric.
Sources:
howtocleanstuff.net
persil.com
mamaslaundrytalk.com
kidspot.co.nz
Other links:
How to Remove Ink Stains from Clothes Easily?
How to remove tomato sauce stains
Shoe Odor- Get rid of it
