How to get stubborn stains out of sheets and pillowcases

To remove stains from sheets, blot up what you can, flush the spot from the back of the fabric with cold water, and treat it by type: enzyme detergent for blood, sweat and drool, dish soap for oils and makeup, oxygen bleach for yellowing on whites. Wash, then air dry and check. Dryer heat sets a stain that's still there.

What are the rules for any bedding stain?

• Cold water first. Hot water cooks protein stains like blood and sweat into the fibers. When you don't know what it is, start cold.
• Blot, don't rub. Rubbing spreads the stain and roughs up the weave, especially on sateen and percale.
• Work from the back. Lay the stain face down on a clean white towel and push water and cleaner through from behind, so it leaves the way it came in.
• Test first. Peroxide, oxygen bleach and alcohol can lift color. Try them on a hem or a seam allowance on colored sheets.
• Check before drying. Air dry the treated spot, or at least look at it in good light while it's damp. If you can still see it, treat again.
• Don't mix cleaners. Chlorine bleach with ammonia or vinegar makes toxic fumes. One product at a time, rinsed out between.

How do you get specific stains out?

Blood

Rinse from the back with cold water as soon as you can. Rub a drop of laundry detergent or an enzyme stain remover into the spot and let it sit for 15 to 30 minutes. For an old or dried stain, soak it in cold water with enzyme detergent for an hour or longer. On white cotton, dab a little drugstore hydrogen peroxide on what's left, let it fizz, blot, and rinse. Test it first on anything colored.

Sweat and body oil yellowing

This is the slow stain: weeks of skin oil, sweat and night cream on pillowcases and the top of the fitted sheet. Rub a little dish soap into the yellow area, wait 15 minutes, then soak whites for an hour or more in warm water with oxygen bleach powder, following the amount on the package. Wash on the warmest setting the care tag allows.

Makeup, foundation and lipstick

These are oil-based. Work a drop of dish soap into the spot with your fingertip, let it sit 10 minutes and rinse in warm water. For waterproof mascara or long-wear lipstick, dab with rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad first, then use the dish soap.

Drool and night sweat on pillowcases

Protein again, so cold water and an enzyme detergent. Soak, then wash.

Coffee, tea and wine from breakfast in bed

Blot, then flush from the back with cold water right away. Work in a drop of dish soap and laundry detergent mixed together, rinse, and repeat. On whites, an oxygen bleach soak handles the shadow that's left.

Pet accidents

Blot up as much as possible, rinse with cold water and use an enzyme cleaner made for pet stains. Enzymes break down the odor, not just the color. If the accident reached the mattress, see our guide to deep cleaning a mattress.

Ink

Lay the stain on a paper towel and dab with rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball. Move to a clean part of the towel as the ink transfers. Rinse and wash.

Do lemon juice and sunshine really work?

On white cotton, yes, for light yellowing and faint marks. Dab lemon juice on the damp stain and lay the sheet in direct sun for a few hours, then rinse and wash. Don't try it on colored sheets. The same bleaching that lifts the stain fades the dye.

What about the stain that won't come out?

Some won't. Old stains that have been through the dryer, rust, and dye transfer from a new red throw pillow often leave a shadow no matter what you do. Repeat the treatment two or three times before you give up, and look at the care tag to see whether a stronger soak is allowed.

Past that point, the sheet is a good candidate for the rag bin or the guest-room bottom drawer.

How do you keep bedding from staining in the first place?

• Use a zippered pillow protector under the pillowcase and a mattress protector under the fitted sheet. They take the sweat and oil so the pillow and mattress don't.
• Wash sheets weekly. Body oil is easy to remove after one week and hard after four.
• Let night creams soak in before you lie down, and dry your hair before bed.
• Treat spills that night. A stain that sits until wash day is harder to get out.

For the pillows themselves, see how to wash pillows.

Where does a house cleaning fit in?

On Standard House Cleaning, RoutineCare, floors are vacuumed and mopped and reachable surfaces and furniture are dusted.

On Standard House Cleaning and Deep Cleaning, the Laundry On-Site add-on washes, dries and folds one standard load, priced per load and picked when you book.

See what's covered at House Cleaning.

FAQ

How do you get old blood stains out of sheets? Soak the spot in cold water with a little laundry detergent or an enzyme stain remover for an hour or more, then work it gently and rinse. On white cotton, a small amount of hydrogen peroxide dabbed on after a spot test can lift what's left.

Why do my pillowcases have yellow stains? Sweat, skin oils, night creams and damp hair build up in the fabric over weeks. Pre-treat with dish soap, then soak whites in warm water with oxygen bleach before washing.

Does hot water remove stains from bedding? Hot water helps with oily stains like body oil and lotion, but it sets protein stains like blood, sweat and drool. Start every unknown stain in cold water.

What if a stain is still there after washing? Don't put it in the dryer. Treat it again while it's damp and rewash, because dryer heat can make the stain permanent.

Book a house cleaning

We clean homes across South Jersey and Central Jersey. Book online at tinascleanteam.com/book-now, or call or text (609) 831-4455, Monday to Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM.