Removing blood stains?

[good-shepherd]

Slipped on some ice last week and smashed my shin on a concrete step refilling the bird feeder at night.

Didn't bandage it up well because I was half asleep and woke up with blood stains on brand new cotton white muslin sheets.

Put some Shout stick stain remover on it but it didn't wash out very well.

Then I tried Hydrogen Peroxide but that didn't seem help much.

Did I set the stain by not using the Hydrogen Peroxide before washing the first time?

 

[ea56]

Sorry you hurt yourself Douglas, hope your healing OK.  

 

As for the blood stain, the best way to prevent blood stains is to rinse the stain with cold water as soon as possible, and don’t use any soap or detergent until the blood is almost completely gone, then wash in cold or lukewarm water with detergent and LCB.

 

 Never use hot water on a blood stain.  Blood is comprised of mostly protein and the hot water will just set the stain by “cooking” the proteins in the blood into the fabric.  I think that peroxide essentially does the same thing.  

 

But once the blood stain has set you may be able to get more of the stain out with oxi clean or maybe even lemon juice and table salt.  But sadly the stain may never come out completely.

 

Eddie

 

 

[tomturbomatic]

I would try a protein stain remover along with STPP. You can also try rust removers like Bar Keepers Friend. These are acidic products which provide a reduction bleaching action instead of an oxidation reaction to remove the blood. In a reduction reaction, you pull the oxygen away from the iron containing hemoglobin to remove the stain. It is amazing to see how it disappears. Hope you injury heals without complications.

 

[appnut]

Biz powder!!!

 

[lakewebsterkid]

Blood

I am guessing you didn't dry these or use hot water to wash them?

I have had great success with ammonia. Soaking in cool water and Biz powder is a good idea too.

 

[askolover]

Back when we nurses wore the white uniforms I relied on H2O2...hydrogen peroxide.  Even if dried by the end of my shift I'd just pour it on, work it with a toothbrush, pour some more, let it oxidize itself, continue until it disappeared.  Always worked for me.

 

[launderess]

Two of best things for "starched whites" were hydrogen peroxide, and Zout (in white bottle).

Zout was actually invented (so story goes) by a nurse seeking to shift povidone-iodine (commonly known as Betadine) stains from uniforms.

Betadine was everywhere back then, pre-op surgical scrub, wound care, etc.. so it invariably ended up on linens and uniforms among other things.

Povidone iodine has largely fallen out of favor with chlorhexidine used instead. Problem is if you get chlorhexidine on fabrics it can be difficult to remove via laundering. If not totally removed and stains come into contact with chlorine bleach it things turn into a nasty brown mark that is difficult to impossible to remove.

It is because of latter that many laundries that deal with healthcare linens or uniforms no longer use chlorine bleach, but oxygen or peracetic acid based products. Oxygen bleaches do not react with chlorhexidine same as chlorine, so it saves creating those nasty brown stains.

 

[donprohel]

Enzymes

I have had good results using enzyme-based stain removers for blood stains: just apply and watch the stain disappear.

I used the Ecover version (which contains a single enzyme: subtilisin) but there are many others that I am sure would work

https://www.amazon.com/Ecover-ECV-1...57&sprefix=stain+remover+bloo,aps,180&sr=8-58

 

[launderess]

Could have sworn typed a response, oh well.

If blood stains were treated with a good pre-treat enzyme based pretreat product, then laundering in a good detergent containing more of same what largely remains then is coloring. Provided blood isn't set by hot water (which in this case seems was not), before laundering or pretreating it shouldn't set.

Applying hydrogen peroxide to blood marks doesn't cause them to set in. Maybe contents of your bottle have expired? Hydrogen peroxide does lose power sitting about. If things didn't fizz when liquid hydrogen peroxide is applied to blood marks, it may have lost a bit of oooph. A fresh bottle may be in order.

You have a few options here...

Soak items again in a good detergent that contains oxygen bleach (TWB or Persil), and or use a liquid detergent along with stain booster product. Or simply soak with an "Oxi Clean" type product.

Soak in warm water using a non metal container for several hours or overnight. If marks haven't shifted, continue soaking. A fresh batch of solution will be required after about 9 or so hours.

Or, apply liquid hydrogen peroxide (from brown bottle sold at chemists) to blood marks, then let sit in well light area. Check for progress now and then, and reapply more peroxide when treated area begins to dry. Once mark is gone give things a quick good rinse.

If you have access to a washing machine that does a good very hot to boil wash, launder items again using good detergent with oxygen bleach, or bit of liquid detergent with several ounces of straight sodium percarbonate or perborate (powder oxygen bleach). Heat merely speeds up action, so what would take maybe hour or longer soaking happens faster at high temps.

 

[foraloysius]

The rare times I have a bit of a stain left in white laundry, I hang it in the sun. The bleaching effect of the sun is great. Most of the time it are tomato stains that didn't get removed totally, but I assume this will also work with blood stains.

 

[DADoES]

 
Hydrogen peroxide worked nicely to remove two- to three-days-old blood from carpet (accident at the parents' house, not a murder, LOL).

 

[rp2813]

I swear by Soilove laundry stain remover.  It has always removed blood stains completely, and it's at the dollar store.

https://www.everydaycheapskate.com/the-story-of-soilove/

 

[launderess]

Soilove should remove blood, it contains ammonium hydroxide commonly sold as household ammonia. With a pH of about 10.9 to 11.0. Most laundry detergents range from near neutral to about 12.0

https://laundrydetergentideas.com/is-laundry-detergent-an-acid-or-base/

https://www.amazon.com/Soilove-Laundry-Soil-stain-Pack-Special/dp/B00FZPL4KA

Base or alkaline substances are rather good at destroying proteins. This is why one shouldn't use things like chlorine bleach on wool or silk (both fibers are made from protein).

Commercial or industrial laundries largely historically didn't bother with enzymes. Instead relying upon chemicals (acid or base pH level), and hot to very water temps. Such laundries for ages relied upon nothing but soap, very hot water and sodium metasilicate for laundering blood stained work such as hospital linens. After two or three washes a bleach bath (chlorine) would take care of any remaining blood or other stains.

 

[good-shepherd]

Maybe contents of your bottle have expired

Thats what I thought. The HP bottle I had in the house was from Pathmark and expired in June 2000, LOL.

So I picked up a fresh bottle at Walmart (56 cents!) it worked a little better and the stains were mostly gone in the second washing but still noticeable in spots.

Thanks to all concerned about my leg, it healed up fine, the blood stains on the new sheets hurt more.

 

[sudsmaster]

 

[maytagbear]

Douglas

M first thought when I have made a stain mistake is  get two boxes of RIT color remover, and also two of the Whitener/brightener

..<I>These go by weight,<I/> not dimensions  Going on....or if the stain is faintly visible, the whitener/brightener might be all that is needed.

 

 

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[askolover]

Heck, Oxyclean in very VERY hot water might get the remainder out.  Also...go to a beauty supply store and get a small bottle of their peroxide...different strengths....but I'd be very careful with it.  The creme kind of developer doesn't run everywhere...it stays where you put it.  Dab some on, watch it, rinse it out. 

 

Different situation but......once I was drying a very poofy comforter in the dryer and it actually got scorched on one side.  I panicked and decided to try anything.  Got a bottle of the brown peroxide at Walmart and put it in a spray bottle.  Sprayed it on the scorch marks and just watched it.....they all faded before my eyes.  Worked like a charm!

 

[good-shepherd]

it actually got scorched on one side.

When I was in my late teens I stupidly stuffed a car cover in our GE dryer.

I don't know WTH I was thinking.

Thankfully, I didn't start a fire but the car cover was ruin and pieces of it were melted to the back to the dryer drum. Took me long time to scrape them off.

 

[good-shepherd]

it actually got scorched on one side.

When I was in my late teens I stupidly stuffed a car cover in our GE dryer.

I don't know WTH I was thinking.

Thankfully, I didn't start a fire but the car cover was ruined and pieces of it were melted to the back to the dryer drum. Took me long time to scrape them off.

 

[iej]

Sorry to hear you were hurt. Take it easy and get well soon!

 

As for cleaning it: Enzymes, enzymes and more enzymes - a hand-hot temperature and plenty of soaking time. Don't wash blood stains at high temperatures as it can 'cook' and become even more difficult to remove, while very cold water (especially winter tap water) will not encourage enzyme activity. So it ideally does need just enough heat to take the chill off, without getting anywhere near hand hot - around 86º - 104ºF anything above that is too hot to deal with blood/protein stains.

 

Blood coagulates when exposed to air, and enzymes like protease will break that down quite effectively. Most high end detergents have a cocktail of high tech enzymes that are usually pretty competent with stains like these.

 

A good detergent should remove this, on its own without much difficulty if you run it through an appropriately long cycle. If you're using a front loader, set a long cycle with a gentle action. If it's a top loader, let it fill, agitate for a while, then turn it off and let it soak for about 2 hours, or if that's not possible - put them in a basin and soak in an enzyme laden detergent solution - at at most hand hot temperature. Very cold water isn't a great idea, nor is anything too warm - you're basically looking for close to body temp.

 

If you're still having issues, maybe consider adding a peroxide based wash booster - although I wouldn't suggest soaking fabric in that, unless it's white or very light colours as it will almost certainly bleach it a little.