How to Get Rid of Sweat Stains?

There are a couple of ways to look at getting rid of sweat stains. You may first want to think about ways to prevent sweat stains in the first place. This may mean changing a few personal habits, such as exercise and nutrition. But when you focus on the subject of sweat stains don’t look at them as something that is “wrong.”

Perspiring is a natural and healthy part of human life. When we work and exercise we sweat. We might be able to reduce the amount of sweat with some slight changes in what we eat and drink. You may also need to change the clothing you wear when working and exercising. An undershirt can help take up the sweat so that it doesn’t stain the outer garments. You may be able to reduce the amount of sweat stains by using a different deodorant.

Clean Up Those Stains
For years, people have used Borax to wash clothes. This natural cleaning agent is very good for general laundry use. It is also good for stain removal when you use it directly on the sweat stain. Of course, you may also want to use liquid bleach. You have to be very careful when using bleach, of course. In the past, many people have avoided using bleach because of the possibility of damage to the clothing. This is still true with many articles of colored clothing.

Hydrogen peroxide can be effective on sweat stains, in addition to its many other uses. This multi-use product can be used as a bleaching agent. For sweat stains in the under-arm area of shirts and blouses, simply use a mixture of Borax and water, a small amount of bleach with water or hydrogen peroxide at full strength.

Moisten the stained area first then wash the garment. If you don’t have any of these laundry items available, you can always soak the stained area in cold water immediately after taking it off. This will help break up the stains during the wash cycle.

Another good method for pre-treating sweat stains involves two very common household items – cold water and half a cup of ammonia. Put half a cup of ammonia in a bowl of cold water (bowl or container should be large enough to hold the shirt or blouse). Let this soak for half an hour. You can help the stain-removal process by rubbing the stained area gently with a small amount of detergent.

Sooner Rather Than Later
You should wash the clothing as quickly as possible after wearing it. Use one of the suggested pre-treatment methods and wash the clothing right away. This may keep the stain from “setting,” making it more difficult to remove. If the methods already mentioned don’t do the job, you may want to try pre-treating the stain with a half cup of white vinegar in two pints of water. You can also use the same amount of white vinegar when you wash the clothing. If worse comes to worse, put a couple of denture-cleaning tablets in water and soak the clothing in the mixture.

One of these methods should help you get rid of those sweat stains.

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