Sweat and perspiration are a part of life, and so are those smelly yellow stains they leave on your shirt. While unattractive and sometimes frustrating to get rid of, these stains can be easily taken care of with a few simple tips and the right stain remover.
Armpit stains are what most of us think of when it comes to sweat stains and shirts but sweat can also cause stains on the back of the shirt and neck line. In the armpit, sweat stains are often more prominent and often have a stronger odour because of the bacteria in and around the underarm region.
Did you already know that a pure sweat stain can easily removed by washing. That is the case because the main components of sweat, like water, salts, sugar, urea and sebum, are mostly soluble in water and no problem at all for a detergent to remove.
Even your deodorant, which is designed to help keep sweat at bay and cover up the sweat-related odours, can cause stains in this area. If the deodorant has aluminium in it, the aluminium can react with your sweat and create white stains. You’re definitely going to notice that on your little black dress.
Luckily, getting sweat stains out of shirts isn’t too difficult. Just follow these steps.
- Check if the shirt is washable
- Choose a detergent and stain remover
- Apply the detergent or soak for stubborn stains
- Wash at the highest possible wash temperature safe for the fabric
- Check the stain after washing
Before removing sweat stains, check if the fabric is washable. If it is, use Cold Power Liquid or Cold Power Powder. For outdoor and sport shirts you can use Dynamo Professional with Odour Eliminating Technology; this will not only remove the sweat stain, but will also neutralise the odour.
If the stain appears quite heavy, use Sard Wonder Super Power Spray as pre-treatment or apply a small amount of your selected detergent directly to the stain.
Soak the garment
Let this soak in for up to 10 minutes; this lets the stain remover settle into the fibers and gives it a chance to coat the entire stain. For stubborn cases, you can also soak the shirt in a mixture of water and your chosen stain remover.
Without rinsing the shirt, place it in the washer and wash using the highest temperature that is safe for the fabric. For an extra boost with dyed and colourfast laundry, you can also use Sard Wonder Super Power Powder in the wash.
Check the stain after washing
After washing, check to see if the stain is gone. If it isn’t, repeat the steps above. Don’t dry before the stain is faded, as the heat from the dryer may set the stain.
It’s much easier to see yellow armpit stains on white shirts, so getting rid of the stain completely is important. For these shirts, you’ll want to choose Cold Power Liquid or Cold Power Powder as your detergent, combined with Sard Wonder as your stain remover. This detergent is specifically made for delivering bright & white results.
Never use natural or homemade solutions like lemon juice or bleach on coloured shirts with sweat stains or dry them in direct sunlight. Instead, use a combination of Cold Power detergent together with Sard Wonder Super Power to get rid of stains in coloured clothing.
When removing sweat stains from shirts, keep in mind that every fabric type is different. While cotton, polyester, linen and denim are machine washable, silk, rayon and wool require hand washing in warm water.
In addition, certain types of fabric, like cotton and polyester should never be exposed to bleach. Bleach can cause further yellowing on polyester and damage cotton fibers.
Sweat stain removal made simple!
Sweat happens. Be prepared when it does and take care of yellow armpit and neck stains before you wash and dry your clothes.