Easy solutions for summer stains

Prima online 03.07.2008

Summer can mean stains, here's how to remove the trickiest

Garden table with flowers on

Dyes in food and sauces
You know the culprits - bolognese sauce, red wine, coffee, squash, tomato sauce, berry and cherry stains can be the death of your favourite blouse if spilled down the front. Rinse fresh stains in cold water, flushing through the fabric from the wrong side, or soak for 30 minutes before washing. If the stain persists, soak in biological washing powder overnight. If you're still struggling, use a hydrogen peroxide solution or a colour-run remover on white or colourfast items.

Chewing gum
Put the garment in the freezer for a while, chip the gum off, then use a solvent spot remover on any remnants before washing. Sticky Stuff remover, £3.99 for 250ml, from Lakeland, works particularly well. Also try De-Solv-it Universal stain remover, £2.49 for 100ml.

Curry
Our love of spicy food can spell danger! Speed and pre-treatment is essential in treating these stains, so jump to it. Wash using biological detergent. On white and colourfast fabrics, use a hydrogen peroxide solution to bleach the stain. Stain Devils No5, £1.79 for 50ml, is specially designed for curry and other fatty stains. On carpets, Bissell OxyKIC, £7.99 for 397g, from Lakeland, is best, followed by shampooing.

Barbecue stains
Barbecues are great fun, but they can take a terrible toll on your patio - it's usually unsealed, so spills get readily absorbed. Scrub with a hot solution of Oxi Clean, £2.99 for 500g, at Lakeland - it's more gentle than bleach.

Grease
Get rid of grease drips from the barbecue with crushed cat litter, which is absorbent. Alternatively, try HG Oil & Grease Absorber, £6.95 for 250ml. Spread it on like butter and it soaks up car or barbecue grease very effectively. For a greasy barbecue, soda crystals are great. If you've managed to get grease on your clothes, whether it's bicycle grease or garlic butter, pre-treat with a solvent spot remover or a liquid detergent, straight on the site, then wash in as high a temperature as possible. If you've a load of greasy overalls to wash for work, soak them first overnight in a strong solution of soda crystals.

Bird droppings
It happens! Scrape off the deposit on line-dried clothes and rewash. On parasols and furniture covers, leave to dry thoroughly before brushing with a stiff brush. Spot clean remaining marks with biological washing powder, then rinse.

Perspiration
Spray Dri-Pak white vinegar, 99p for 500ml onto the stain for several minutes, before washing in a biological detergent. Use a multi-purpose in-wash stain remover for a full load.

Fake tan
Eek! The active ingredient in fake tan develops on fabric, as it does on skin, producing a permanent stain. The annoying part is that on your skin the stain fades as the cells slough off. No such luck with fabric. Suggestions from customer care departments include using toothpaste as a stain remover or pre-treating with liquid detergent. Make sue you don't get caught out - desperate calls to advisory lines include fake tan on wedding dresses!

Grass
Pre-treat with De-Solv-It, Oxi Clean or liquid soda crystals as a trigger spray, £1.49 for 500ml, before washing in a biological detergent. If you've been nominated to wash the team's cricket whites, rather than pre-treating, add Stain Go in wash sachets, £1.65 for five sachets. It's easier and it's a whitener, too.

Pollen
Wrap sticky tape around your fingers, sticky side out, to ‘catch' pollen: don't use water or try to brush it off. Alternatively, vacuum up with the crevice nozzle. If it's rubbed in, dab with a cotton wool tip moistened in methylated spirit.

Red wine
Save the expense of the dry-cleaners when you've just got a spot of red wine on a delicate beaded evening top with Stain Go, £1.99 for 75ml. Don't pour salt on a red wine stain - it reacts and leaves a stubborn grey stain. And don't pour white wine on it, it leaves a pink watermark and it's a waste of wine!

Iron mould
Iron mould develops from rusty marks and it's very resistant, so buy Stain Devils No 7 Rust and Ironmould Remover, £1.79 for 50ml. Don't ignore it - iron mould spreads in damp washing. Next time, discourage the kids from hanging their kit on rusty pegs or leaving it outside on rusting garden furniture.

Paint
Whoops! So you've knocked the paint tin over. If you're painting furniture opt for a water-based paint, such as, Cuprinol Garden Shades. Scoop up promptly and wash it down with lots of water and the only paint visitors will admire is on the revamped furniture.

Mud
Before trying to remove mud from fabric, leave it to dry thoroughly. Then brush off what you can. Follow the instructions for grass, using maximum agitation, as the pigment gets caught within the fibres. For light stains, cut a raw potato in half and rub the stain before washing as usual.