Say Goodbye To Palm Oil Stains With The Help Of This Pantry Staple

Getting a bit messy in the process of cooking is expected, like when that pot of pasta water boils over or a vigorously simmering sauce splatters your backsplash. You can easily wipe these kitchen surfaces clean. The problem is when that hiccup happens on your favorite garment and leaves a stain. If it's palm oil, it immediately forms a damp-looking spot that you just know will be a headache to remove. But guess what? This oily stain can be easily eliminated with a simple baking soda laundry hack you need to know about.

Oily stains are particularly challenging to get rid of because oil is immiscible with water; you can't just rinse it off. Rather, it clings to the textile fibers, making cleaning more difficult. Using baking soda is a perfect laundry hack for pretreating grease stains. You probably already have it in your pantry. The baking soda does two things: it absorbs the oil from the clothing and neutralizes the acids in the oil, breaking it down. The stain comes out easily in the wash. It makes tackling tough palm oil stains effortless and budget-friendly.

Before you get started, make sure the garment can withstand an application of baking soda. Otherwise, you might end up ruining your favorite shirt. Perform a patch test by applying a little baking soda to a small part of the garment, preferably somewhere hidden. Wash the baking soda off after about 15 minutes. If it doesn't leave a mark, carry on. Also, keep in mind that this baking soda hack works best on relatively fresh palm oil stains. So the earlier you do it after the spill, the higher your chances of success.

Start by blotting any excess grease on the fabric using a paper towel. Next, cover the stain with a generous amount of baking soda and leave it undisturbed for about an hour. If you have a large stain, the baking soda will clump noticeably as it absorbs the oil. This may not be so obvious with small stains, but trust that the powder is still working. Once the hour is up, use a small brush to gently remove the baking soda from the stain. It should come off with a significant amount of grease. If there's still some oil left on the garment, repeat the process.

Once the baking soda has absorbed most of the oil, you can wash your garment as usual. Most items of clothing can simply go in the washing machine, but avoid drying oil-stained clothes in the tumble dryer. The heat can set the oil stain if it hasn't been completely removed, making it tougher to deal with later. Instead, air dry your clothing after washing. Once the item is dry, check if the stain is gone. Repeat the above steps if the stain fails to come off the first time. If you are dealing with an old stain, you may need to try other ways to get dried, set-in stains out of clothes.