The Best DIY Laundry Stain Remover Spray For Clothes
This homemade DIY laundry stain remover works better than any of the commercial sprays I’ve ever tried! You only need 2 ingredients to make it: vinegar and dish soap!
I’m going on 10 years and 6 more kids since switching to homemade laundry stain remover. It’s just that good! I’ll never buy the expensive store-bought sprays again.
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What You Need To Make DIY Stain Remover For Clothes:
ingredients
- Vinegar – White vinegar is one of the best natural cleaners! Because it’s mildly acidic, it can help remove tough stains without damaging your clothes.
- Blue Dawn Dish Soap – Dawn ultra cleans dishes like no other and it can work just as well on greasy spots and oils from your skin that collect dirt on your clothes.
- Essential Oils (optional) – Essential oils like lemon, orange, eucalyptus, peppermint, thieves and lavender are known for their disinfecting and deodorizing properties can be added to boost the cleaning power of this stain remover.
Check out how I use vinegar to clean my kitchen sink, shower grout, carpet, toilets, windows, leather furniture, hardwood floors and even fruits and veggies!
supplies
- Spray Bottle – Any kind of spray bottle will work. I like to use these amber glass spray bottles since I add essential oils to my spray and the dark glass keeps the oils nice and strong.
How Do You Make DIY Stain Remover For Clothes?
Combine – Using a funnel, add dish soap, vinegar and essential oils (if using) to a 16 ounce spray bottle.
Shake Well – Replace the lid and shake well to combine.
You can add about 20 drops of thieves or lemon essential oil (or a combination of both!) to add to the cleaning power and to make your laundry smell amazing!
tips for success:
To Use – For best results, use this spray on wet or damp laundry. Spray fresh stains, lightly rub it in with a soft scrub brush or an old toothbrush and let it sit for at least 15 minutes.
The first time you use this spray, spot test on a small area to make sure it doesn’t affect the colors. (I’ve never had a problem after using it for 10 years).
Variations – The essential oils are optional in this recipe. Add 20 drops of your favorite oils. Lemon and thieves add to the cleaning power.
For An All Natural Stain Remover – Swap out the dawn ultra dish soap for castile soap.
about this DIY laundry stain remover
easy to make
You only need 2 simple ingredients that you probably already have on hand: vinegar and dawn dish soap.
Just mix the ingredients in a spray bottle, give it a shake and you’re ready to do laundry!
You might want to try out my DIY laundry scent booster too!
super cheap
Store bought laundry products aren’t cheap. With the amount of laundry I do, I’d be spending a good $70 a year just on stain remover. Making my own DIY recipe has saved me a lot of money!
really works!
This spray works just as well, or better than any other store-bought stain removers I’ve ever tried.
Dawn dish soap works super well at dissolving grease on dishes and it works the same way on oily stains on your clothes.
Vinegar is my absolute favorite natural cleaner! I use it in almost all of my homemade cleaners. Vinegar lifts dirt and grime from the fibers of fabric.
Together, dish soap and vinegar can get out just about everything from grass stains, to blood stains!
FAQ About DIY Stain Remover For Clothes:
what does 1 to 4 parts mean?
It means for every 1 oz. of blue Dawn dish soap you use you will need 4 oz. of white vinegar.
does homemade stain remover spray work on grease stains on clothes?
Yes! Dawn dish soap is known for cutting grease like no other and that’s exactly what it does on your laundry!
does dawn dish soap get stains out of clothes?
Dawn dish soap is one of the best hacks for dealing with tough stains. It can remove oil stains and grease residue better than most commercial stain removers!
does vinegar remove laundry stains?
White vinegar is one of the most versatile and powerful natural cleaning products there is! It gently lifts dirt and grime from the fibers of soiled clothes.
what if an entire clothing item is stained?
Rather than spray the entire piece with homemade stain remover spray, I like to have a bucket of warm water in my laundry room for soaking bad stains till I can wash them.
Just squirt in some Blue Dawn Dish Soap and add a scoop of Borax or Super Washing Soda to keep the stain from setting.
This will help the satins to wash out more easily when you do laundry next. Just check the item again after it has been washed and spray and stains that still haven’t come out.
Laundry Tips And Tricks:
Stain Remover Works best on wet clothes
I’ve found that spraying stains on dry fabric doesn’t work nearly as well as it does when the clothing item is wet or at least damp.
Launder First, check for stains after
Instead of checking for stains to spray before starting the washing machine, go ahead and wash the clothes and check for stains after they’ve been washed (not dried).
This saves time since you would already be checking to make sure stains came out anyway. If you see a stain, just spray it and stick it back in the hamper to wash next laundry day! This gives the stain remover plenty of time to soak in and do its job.
for really messy situations
If you are changing your child after a blow out or jumping in muddy puddles type incident, just go ahead and throw their stained clothes into a bucket of warm water mixed with a scoop of borax or super washing powder.
This will hold it over till you get around to doing laundry and the water will keep the stain from setting!
Check out this post for more ways to keep up with your laundry.
More Homemade cleaning supplies
If you liked this post, I think you’ll really enjoy these other DIY recipes on the blog!
- Thieves Multi Purpose Cleaner From Scratch
- Homemade Hardwood Floor Cleaner
- DIY Laundry Scent Booster
- Homemade Toilet Bowl Cleaner Tablets
- DIY Leather Cleaner
I hope you enjoyed making your own easy homemade stain remover spray! If you make it, I’d love for you to come back and leave a comment and rating so that I know how you like it!
Pin these steps to try later. Tag @athomeontheprairie on Instagram to share what you’ve made with us!
DIY Stain Remover Spray
This homemade DIY stain remover works better than any of the store-bought sprays I’ve ever tried!
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup blue dawn ultra dish soap
- 1 - 1/3 cup white vinegar
- 20 drops essential oils (optional)
Instructions
- Using a funnel, add dish soap, vinegar and essential oils (if using) to a 16 ounce spray bottle.
- Replace the lid and shake well to combine.
Notes
To Use - This stain remover spray works best on wet or damp laundry. Spray the stains, lightly rub it in and let it sit for at least 15 minutes.
Variations - The essential oils are optional in this recipe. Add 20 drops of your favorite oils. Lemon and thieves add to the cleaning power.
Do you think this would work with a less toxic version of soap like castille soap or thieves soap?
Thats a good question! I haven’t tried those but I’m sure there is a recipe out there for a more natural version!
I haven’t found anything for my dishes that works as well on grease as daen dishsoap.
A better alternative is Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds instead is Castile soap.
Nice!! I’ve always rubbed some dawn on my stains but never thought to make a spray with it. Thanks for the great idea!
Me, too! I love this idea. I’m trying it out for the first time today.
This is what I need in my life. We have a bottle of spray n wash but I never use it. It’s so harsh and I want something more gentle especially for my kiddos. I will definitely be giving this a try.
Awesome!!! I’m totally gonna give this a try!
These are great tips. I have a 4 yo who likes getting into everything and insists on doing everything herself – so needless to say I am constantly cleaning up after her! I will definitely need to try your homemade stain remover.
I am really excited to try this!
Can I use this laundry stain remover in a empty spray and wash bottle ( plastic) ?
Yes!
Under ingredients you list distilled water. But never mention how much. Please advise – I have a chocolate milk stain that has set in. I look forward to giving this a try. Thank you!
Hi LaDonna! You just add the ingredients to a spray bottle and fill the rest of the way with water.
Hi, keen to try this as well. I understand it’s a 4 to one ratio of Dawn to Vinegar, then add water, but how much water versus the Dawn/vinegar mixture?
No water in this mixture 🙂
So confusing! My spray bottle is 21 ounces. I understand what the 4 to 1 ratio implies however I don’t understand adding water. If I use 1 ounce of Dawn and 4 ounces of vinegar for a total of 5 ounces…do I then add 16 ounces of distilled water to my spray bottle?? Please explain. Thank you.
I’m so sorry! That was a typo! There is no water in this recipe.
Truly wonderful stain remover! And I love the spray bottles too! Thanks Elizabeth!
Thank you Lydia! I’m glad you like it too!
After you spray, do you ever let it sit for hours/days? I like to take care of stain spraying but then wash the clothes with the load they would go with (kid clothes vs mom and dad clothes), so sometimes they sit for hours or a day or two before that load gets washed.
Yes! I like to let it soak in for at least a couple hours, but longer would be better.