A rust stain is no normal stain. This type of stain is stubborn, odd-looking, and can be quite difficult to get rid of if you do not know the right tricks to remove it. If you are unfortunately suffering from rust stains on clothes and are planning to throw away the garment for it, then we’ve some good news for you. We have got you covered with effective tips to remove rust from clothes and make your clothes shiny and completely free from rust.
However, before you directly dig into the methods on how to remove rust stains from clothes, you must know how your clothes can get this rust in the first place. Many common places can cause your cloth to develop a rust stain. For instance, when your clothes come in direct contact with furniture that have caught rust, or if you are using a car, bike or any other vehicle that have somehow developed rust on them, then this rust can easily pass on to your garment, eventually creating a nasty-looking stain.
Moreover, the rust stain can also sit in your water pipes or water storage containers, water passing through which reaches your taps which you eventually use to wash your clothes. Rust is nothing but zinc-based bacteria which is easily transmittable to your clothes. Hence, you might want to look into the water supply system of your household or any item you use in your daily life for rust and get rid of that, then move on to remove the rust stains on clothes.
Easy Rust Stain Removal Techniques
Different types of fabrics will require different methods to remove rust stains from clothes. For clothes that are delicate and not used in your daily wear and tear, professional cleaning of rust might be required. Examples of such delicate clothes could be silk and wool, which are soft. Rigorous scrubbing to remove rust stains from them might end up destroying the overall quality and finishing of your garment. Hence it's best to hand them over to professional hands. You must read the fabric wash care tag to fully know the washing methods suitable for your fabric and clear out any confusion.
On the other hand, you can remove rust stains on clothes that are normal and used regularly by you using the tricks mentioned below.
Ingredients Checklist:
Laundry detergent
Vinegar
Lemon juice
Salt
Rust Stain Removal from Washable Fabrics
First, washable fabrics are the ones you can wash manually or in the washing machine. Cotton, linen, etc., are fabrics that are considered washable.
1. Pre-treating the Rust Stain:
Create a fine paste by combining 2 teaspoons lemon juice with 1 teaspoon salt. Mix well and apply the paste to the rust stain and leave for half an hour. Since lemon juice is acidic in nature, it will help to remove the stain. But make sure it is not left for too long as it might tamper with the finishing of your cloth.
2. Washing Off the Stain with Vinegar:
After letting the paste rest for half an hour, rinse it with a water and vinegar solution, which will help further with fading away from the stain. Mix 1 cup of water with 3-4 teaspoons of vinegar and wash the stain away.
3. Applying Laundry Detergent:
Once you're done with the first two steps, wash your clothes like you usually do. If you have a washing machine, you could rely on the Surf Excel Matic liquid, which has been specially curated for clean and effective machine washes. On the contrary, if you wash your cloth manually, you could use the Surf Excel Easy Wash powdered detergent. It works well in manual washing techniques. Finally, you are ready to dry off your garment in the open air and see the stain disappear. If the stain still persists after washing, you may repeat these three steps for permanent removal of the stain.
Rust Stain Removal from Non-Washable Fabrics
Non-washable fabrics usually do not support your regular means of washing technique. They usually happen to be sofa or swing covers, leather, or any other type of cloth that needs to be dry cleaned. Read on to know how to remove rust stains from clothes that are non-washable.
1. Creating Stain Removal Paste:
Combine 3-4 teaspoons of salt with the same amount of vinegar or lemon juice to form a smooth, thick paste. Apply this paste using an old, bristled toothbrush or by wearing a hand glove onto the rust stain and rub it on it.
2. Soaking the Stain in the Sun:
After treating it with the paste, leave it under natural sunlight for about an hour.
3. Dampen + Brush it Off:
Dampen the dried paste on the stain by adding 2-3 teaspoons of lemon juice on it. Afterward with an old toothbrush, scrub off the stain.
If the stain remains, you might have to hand it over to your dry cleaner for professional cleaning.
Mind you that rust stains may not always be stubborn. You might sometimes stain your cloth with rust dust, which can easily be removed if you wash your cloth like you usually do. While stubborn stains can be a problem, you have absolutely nothing to worry about since we have backed you up with apt solutions!