The good old tomato ketchup has the
reputation of being a painful food to erase from your clothes. We present a
sure-fire way to get rid of ketchup stains.
You’re about to bite into a really
delicious-looking sandwich you just made. You take a hearty bite, closing your
eyes to savour the taste of meat, veggies, herbs and sauce in it. But when you
open your eyes, you see something so nasty that all thoughts about your
sandwich are driven out of your head: you’ve spilled ketchup on your shirt!
Oh, the horror! But you haven’t seen
anything yet. When your back was turned, your toddler smuggled your ketchup
bottle and took it away to his room to ‘play with’. Then he squeezed ketchup on
his face, his clothes and the floor. Wading through the mess, you looked with
dismay at his clothes – and at yours. ‘Our clothes are doomed’ you thought,
because ketchup always leaves a stain.
Not if you get in there first.
The key to getting ketchup stains off your
clothes is to take quick action so that the stain does not set. Once set,
ketchup will always leave an orange discolouration behind. So you will be
forced to junk your stained clothing.
But if you want a good ketchup stain remover routine, try
these steps in the same order as presented:
·
Rinse the clothing at once,
with cold running water. Flush the stain at the back, turning the fabric inside
out.
·
While still wet, treat the
stain to a liquid detergent and tamp with your fingers. Let it stand for five
minutes.
·
Flush with cold water till the
detergent is completely washed.
·
Blot white vinegar on the
stain. Let it stand for five minutes.
·
Flush with cold water. Now
repeat the above steps till most of the stain is removed.
·
Treat the stain with a fabric
stain removal system. Use as directed on the package. Let it stand for at least
half an hour, then wash in the washing machine.
·
Make sure the stain is
completely removed before you put the clothing in the dryer; otherwise the
stain will set permanently.
Some dried stains might require harsher
measures to be completely removed. Use bleach if your clothes can stand the
abrasive nature of the product. You might need to use bleach in your wash after
the garment has been treated to the above steps.
There are excellent stain removal liquids
and powders available today – these are effective ketchup stain removers,
and they work on a variety of stains, from grass to coffee ones. The trick lies
in taking quick action and using the right product to protect your clothes from
stains.
