Fabric Dye Removal

It is no secret that fresh stains are easier to remove than older ones. Adequate cleaning with water removes a fresh stain. But for old or tough stains, cleaning products like color removers or bleach are required. Given below are a few effective methods for fabric dye removal.

Basic Washing
For a fresh stain that you just found on one of the clothes in your washed laundry use this fabric dye stain removal treatment. Wash under running water immediately. Pour a good amount of detergent on the stain and scrub it with a toothbrush. You might have to repeat this procedure for complete fabric dye removal.

Bleaching for Stains
If the above washing fabric dye removal method fails to remove the stain, it's time to use bleach. Use fabric bleach for removing stains from your clothes. All fabric bleach (oxygen bleach) is gentler than chlorine bleaches. Check the tag on your stained cloth to check if it is bleach safe. In a utensil, boil water, add bleach and stir well. Use 8 parts of water to 2 parts of bleach. Soak the garment in the water and stir it. This method removes the stain easily. After the stain is removed, wash the garment normally in a washing machine.

Borax for Bleach Sensitive Garments
Boric acid or borax can be purchased at any grocery store. For stain removal from clothes, use borax instead of detergent in the washing machine. Use one and half spoon of borax for one apparel.

Lemon Juice
Lemon in general is a great cleanser. And, your clothing will smell fresh after you wash them with lemon. To fix dye transfer, blot the stain with lemon juice and wash with water. Repeat, if necessary, till the stain completely vanishes.

Using Enzymes
Commercial enzymes can be used for fabric dye stain removal. Such products attack the stains. They break down the proteins, which bleach and detergent fail to do. Follow the instructions on the product, for damage control on the garments and again wash the garment. If the stain is still there, then use bleach.

Color Removers
Many fabric dye color removers are available in the market. They are effective for removing stains. In some cases, they reduce the color of the stains to a satisfactory level, so that you can re-dye your garment to another color. They also help to whiten dingy clothes. There are many good commercial fabric dye removers in the market, that could help make your task easy.

Dry Cleaning
If all the above methods fail or you don't have the time to remove the stain yourself, then give the stained garment to dry cleaning for fabric dye removal.

Important Tips
Here are some of the valuable important tips for fabric dye removal:

• Never mix different stain removing products, as they might react together and form toxic substances.
• To prevent stain from spreading, place the stained cloth upside down on a white towel and then work on the stain.
• Use appropriate amount of bleach to avoid an uneven patchy looking garment.
• Sometimes to remove fabric dye, repeated treatments are needed.
• Double-check the stain in your garments before you dry it. Drying can permanently set the stains, and make it impossible to get rid of the stains.
• Many fabrics you buy from stores tend to leak when washed. To set dye in cotton or silk garments, soak each cloth separately for half an hour in cold water with some salt and vinegar.
• There are fabric stabilizers available in the market, which when used in the wash load, absorb the leaking dye from the garments.

One can prevent fabric dye stains by washing colored clothes and whites separately. Wash same color clothes together like red with reds and avoid mixing even-colored clothes. These are some effective fabric dye removal methods. But, if everything fails and you don't wish to part from your favorite garment, you can always dye it to a darker color and reuse it.