Stain Treatment for Common Food Stains in Chicago

Stain on white fabric.

How often has this happened to you? You are out with your significant other or with friends to a nice meal wearing your favorite shirt, and, all of a sudden, your good time goes sour because a piece of food dropped on that garment. Or, you are at home enjoying dinner and a rogue meatball falls from your plate right into your lap.

Food stains are no fun. They can cause permanent damage to your clothes or linens if they aren’t cleaned properly.

We thought we would put together some helpful tips here on how to remove some of the toughest food stains. If you wash your clothes with Chicago’s only Ozone Power Wash Laundry, Drop and Dash, we’ll make sure to do our best to help you get your clothes cleaned and fresh. Some of these tips can help you to prevent that stain from setting while you wait for your laundry pickup.

Removing a Baby Formula Stain
If there is a baby in the home, there’s inevitably going to be a formula stain on your clothes.

  1. Soak the clothes in warm water.
  2. Wash in the hottest water that is safe for the fabric.
  3. Use the right bleach, if applicable.
  4. If the stain persists, soak in warm water again with a pretreat product.
  5. Rinse thoroughly and wash it again.

Removing an Egg Stain
Whether cooking breakfast or eating it, eggs seem to get everywhere you don’t want them to be on your clothes.

  1. Scrape off excess egg with a dull knife.
  2. Soak in cold water.
  3. Pretreat the stain.
  4. Wash using the hottest water that is safe for the fabric.
  5. Use the appropriate bleach, if applicable.

Removing a Chocolate Stain
Who doesn’t like chocolate? But, somehow chocolate finger prints or a little melted candy can ruin your day when it drops on your clothes.

  1. Sponge the stain with cold water or soak in cold water.
  2. Pretreat the stain.
  3. Launder with bleach using the hottest possible water for the fabric.

Removing a Ketchup Stain
If you are eating a hamburger and fries (you’re from Chicago, so we hope it’s not on a hot dog… ha!), ketchup or any tomato product can cause a very stubborn stain.

  1. Scrape off excess egg with a dull knife.
  2. Soak in cold water.
  3. Pretreat what remains.
  4. Wash using the hottest water that is safe for the fabric.
  5. Use the appropriate bleach, if applicable.

Removing a Mustard Stain
Okay, Chicago hot-dog lovers, you probably know this stain all too well.

  1. Pretreat the stain and wash in the hottest possible water for the fabric
  2. Use chlorine bleach, if appropriate.
  3. If anything is left, soak warm water with a pretreat product.
  4. Rinse thoroughly and rewash

We hope that you won’t have to use any of these techniques, but, just in case, use this guide to help get those unwanted blemishes from your wardrobe.

Use our app to schedule your laundry pickup. Do laundry the easy way with Drop & Dash!