How to get grease out of clothes

Why grease behaves differently from other stains

Water beads up on oil, which is why rinsing a greasy spot under the tap does almost nothing except spread it. Detergents work by surrounding oil droplets so water can lift them out of the fiber, and dish soap is designed to do exactly that with cooking fat. Heat also helps, because warm oil is thinner and releases more readily. Iowa State University Extension recommends pretreating oil based stains with a stain remover, liquid laundry detergent or dish soap, then washing in water as hot as the garment will tolerate.

Many food stains are mixtures, such as a tomato sauce with oil in it or coffee with cream. Cornell Cooperative Extension advises treating the greasy part of a combination stain first, then whatever color is left. If you jump straight to a color treatment, the oil can hold the pigment in place. Ballpoint ink is a similar mixture of oil and dye, and our guide to getting ink out of clothes covers it separately.

Before any of this, check the care label. Hot water is the most useful tool for grease, and it is also the one most likely to shrink or fade a garment that was not made for it. Our guide to reading laundry symbols explains the temperature dots.

How to get grease out of clothes when it is fresh

The steps below work for cooking oil, butter, salad dressing, lotion and most kitchen grease on washable fabrics such as cotton, linen, denim and polyester.

1. 01

   Blot and scrape, do not wipe

   Press a paper towel onto the spot to soak up surface oil and lift off any solid bits with a dull knife. Wiping drags the oil across clean fabric and makes the stain larger.

2. 02

   Cover with an absorbent powder

   The University of Georgia Extension suggests talcum powder to absorb as much grease as possible; cornstarch does the same job. Leave it for at least 15 minutes, longer for a heavy spill, then brush it off. The powder should look darker and clumpy where it has drawn out oil.

3. 03

   Work in dish soap or heavy duty detergent

   Rub a few drops of liquid dish soap or heavy duty liquid laundry detergent into the stain from both sides, using your fingertips. Let it sit for five to ten minutes so it can break up the oil.

4. 04

   Rinse with the warmest water the fabric allows

   Rinse from the back of the fabric. You should see the dark, translucent patch shrink and lighten. If it has not changed, repeat the soap step before washing.

5. 05

   Wash hot where permitted

   Wash in the hottest water on the care label with a heavy duty detergent, as the University of Georgia Extension recommends. Wash the item on its own or with similar colors.

6. 06

   Air dry and inspect

   Oil spots are easy to miss on wet fabric, so let the garment air dry and check it in daylight. If a dark patch remains, treat it again. The dryer only comes after the stain is gone. Our guide to air drying clothes covers doing it without stretching or stiffening the fabric.

How to get car grease and black grease out of clothes

Grease from an engine, a bike chain or a door hinge is thicker than cooking oil and usually dark with grime. Scrape off as much as you can first, then blot. Dish soap can handle a small smear, but for a heavy stain the University of Georgia Extension recommends a commercial prewash cleaner containing petroleum distillates, applied until no more stain comes out, followed by a heavy duty detergent in hot water. Look for a laundry pretreatment labeled for grease and follow its directions exactly.

Solvent cleaners are flammable and have strong fumes. Use them in a ventilated room away from flames and pilot lights, wear gloves, and keep them away from children. Let the treated area air out before the garment goes in the washer. Never put anything that still smells of solvent into a dryer. Heavily soiled work clothes are best washed in a separate load so the grease does not redeposit on the rest of your laundry.

Black grease often leaves a gray ghost after the first wash. That is normal. Repeat the pretreatment and wash cycle two or three times before deciding the stain is permanent, and keep the garment out of the dryer between rounds.

Oil stains on clothes after washing and drying

Those dark spots that appear on a favorite T shirt after laundry day are usually oil that was never fully removed, then set by the dryer. You can still improve many of them. Work liquid dish soap into the dry fabric, let it sit for half an hour, then scrub gently with your fingertips and rinse with the hottest water the label allows. Wash again and air dry. Old stains often need three or four rounds, and each one should look a little lighter.

If a yellowish or brownish tint remains after the oil itself is gone, the American Cleaning Institute suggests a wash with chlorine bleach where the fabric allows it, or oxygen bleach for colors. Follow the dilution on the bottle and use only one bleach at a time. On white cotton, our guide on washing white clothes covers keeping them bright once the spot is out.

Denim needs a lighter hand, because repeated hot washes will fade it. Treat the spot rather than the whole garment and see our guide to washing jeans for how to protect the color.

Silk, wool and dry clean only pieces

Delicate fabrics rule out the two strongest tools, heat and vigorous rubbing. On silk, wool or anything labeled dry clean only, blot the oil and dust the spot with talc or cornstarch, leave it for an hour and brush it away gently. That alone can remove a surprising amount of a fresh spill. Do not add water or dish soap unless the label allows washing, because water can leave a ring on silk that is harder to fix than the oil. Our guides to washing silk and hand washing clothes explain what these fabrics tolerate.

After the powder, take the garment to a professional cleaner. Dry cleaning solvents dissolve oil very effectively, which is why grease is one of the stains cleaners handle best. Point it out, say what it was and mention anything you applied. Cornell Cooperative Extension notes that professional cleaners have skills and resources not available at home, and a greasy stain on a good jacket is exactly where they earn their fee.