Six Tips to Stop Stains from Setting

Six Tips to Stop Stains from Setting

We love removing stains and bringing your treasured garments back to their best appearance. Help us do our best for you with the following pointers:

1. Avoid letting stains get comfortable. Try not to put items away with spills or stains on it. The warmth of a closet and exposure to natural or artificial light and the atmosphere can contribute to setting a stain.

2. Catch stains before they set. Bring in a stained garment as soon as possible, preferably within a few days, to prevent stains from setting.

3. Avoid ironing or drying stained or soiled clothes. Ironing will set stains and drive the soil deeper into the fabric. It’s best to have soiled clothes cleaned before ironing. Heat from ironing or drying can help some invisible stains like ginger ale oxidize and become more noticeable like the image on the right above. Setting also makes stains like this harder to successfully remove.

4. Test for colorfastness before attempting home stain removal with water or cleaning fluid to avoid creating a faded area or streak. Wet an inconspicuous area, such as an inside seam, and blot with a paper towel to make sure the color is fast.

5. Avoid rubbing stains, especially when attempting to remove a stain from silk. Blot the stained area. This will help remove the staining substance without spreading the stain and will avoid damaging the fabric.

6. Let us know of the location of specific stains and any procedures you have used to remove them, even if the stains are no longer visible.

Source: DLI Consumer News Vol.71