Set-In Blood Stains, Part II

[danemodsandy]

If those of you who read my post on accidentally setting some blood stains (from shaving nicks) into a white pillowcase will recall, I was pretty worried about getting them out. As I mentioned, I discovered the stains while ironing the second side of the pillowcase - which meant they had already been through a hot wash, a hot dry, and some ironing.

I found a tip online that seemed very gentle and unlikely to cause further damage, so I gave it a try, figuring that if it didn't work, I could always pull out the bigger guns later. The tip was: Soak the item in cold water with a small amount of ammonia and a little detergent.

I am here to tell you it worked, and how! There is absolutely no trace of the former stains, none whatsoever. The pillowcase is like new.

I did the soaking in the kitchen sink, with perhaps 1/4 cup of ammonia and just a couple of teaspoons of Oxydol liquid (I use Oxydol powder in the machine, but I keep a couple of Dollar Tree bottles of the liquid around for hand-washing). The soaking was followed by my customary hot wash with Original Oxydol, OxiClean, and softener.

So, that was what worked for me. Your mileage may vary. Objects in mirror are closer than they appear. Offer void where prohibited.

 

[turboace]

Amonia!

When I was little I suffered from bloody noses alot due to a sinus thing that was corrected. But before that, I remember my mom just using full strength amonia on blood stains. She would just open the jug, cover the top of the jug with the stained section and tip the bottle over so it got wet with full strenght amonia and toss it into the washer. The amonia is pretty caustic or basic which causes the protein in the blood to unwind, denature and break down, which releases the stain from the material.

 

[yogitunes]

As I always said....no matter what new product comes on the market to remove stains....

ALWAYS stick with the basics...and the simplest

Ammonia
Bleach
Peroxide
Baking Soda
Hair Spray

Tide Powder or any powder
Dawn Liquid

and theres a few others...or home remedies that work best...at a fraction of the price....and you probably already have them in your cupboard

Thanks for sharing your "recipe" for removing blood.....I once had blood splattered on me at a hospital emergency room, and the nurse took my shirt and poured peroxide on it and the blood disapeared in seconds....who would have thought!

 

[danemodsandy]

Yogi:

Peroxide has long been my sovereign remedy for fresh blood stains, but this was several spots that had been "set" with heat. I was, quite frankly, amazed.

Someone here suggested a rust remover, which made sense from the standpoint of the chemicals left in the stain, but I hesitated, because these sheets are a poly-cotton blend made in China, and I've had more than one experience where a Chinese-made material didn't behave exactly like the American-made fabrics I grew up with did.

So, glad there was a happy ending here. These are new sheets, and I bought them to live with them for a long time.

 

[rapunzel]

I just dab on some Shout or Trizyme

Even if I don't launder it straight away. The enzymes break down the blood and it washes out without trouble, even if the stain has had time to set. I find that this also works if stains have been through the wash/dryer already.

Olav

 

[tomturbomatic]

I believe I read that hospital wash formulas use a caustic compound in the first bath to avoid setting blood stains with high temperatures. Glad the ammonia worked. I have had very good results with Wink (sp?) rust remover on iron-based stains, including blood.

 

[polkanut]

Here is the link to the Whink products website. An American company located in Eldora, IA which has been in business since the late 1940's.

http://www.whink.com