How to Remove Tomato Sauce from Fabrics

You were having that dinner party and someone dropped their plate of spaghetti. They got it on their clothes and your table cloth. What can you do to get the stain out? A lot of tomato sauces and marinara and other similar recipes consist of oil and tomatoes. Both can make it difficult to get the stain out. Or if you have clothes or a table cloth with an old tomato stain, learn how you can try to remove fresh stains and set stains. ^[1]

Steps

Cleaning Fresh Stains

1. Scrape the sauce off of the clothing or fabric. As quickly as possible, remove the sauce from the surface of the fabric without pushing it further in. You can use a paper towel or a rag to remove the excess sauce.^[2]
2. Put the stain under cold running water. Run the water on the back of the stain. You want to push the stain out of the clothing. Do not run water on top of the stain because you don’t want to push the stain deeper in. ^[3]
   
   
3. Rub dish soap onto the stain. Because tomato sauce has oil in it, dish soap like Dawn or Palmolive will work to remove the stain. Rub enough dish soap on the stain to cover it completely and rub in circular motions from the inside of the stain out.^[4]
   
   
   • If your material is dry clean only, do not do this step. Take your fabric to your local dry cleaners and show them the stain, and let them remove it.
   • Apply dish soap to a small hidden section of the fabric to make sure it doesn’t harm the fabric. If the fabric is harmed by the soap, you can use your regular laundry detergent in place of the dish soap.
4. Rinse the dish soap out completely with water. Rinse from the back of the fabric pushing the stain out.
5. Blot (don't rub) the stain gently with a sponge. Using a sponge or absorbent material like a paper towel, blot the stain out with cold water to lift the stain. If you have a white fabric, you can apply a mild bleach, white vinegar, or hydrogen peroxide with your sponge to bleach the stain. ^[5]
   
   
6. Wash as usual and check to see if the stain is still there. Hold the stain to light and see if it is still there. If the stain still remains, use a stain removing stick, gel, or spray on the stain. While the shirt is still wet, apply the stain remover and let it set for at least 5 minutes, and then wash it again. ^[6]
   
   
7. Dry the stain in the sun. Put the fabric in the sun, stain side up, and let the fabric dry completely. The UV rays should help break down any of the remaining stain. ^[7]

Cleaning Acrylic Fabric, Nylon, Polyester, Spandex^[8]

1. Scrape the sauce off of the fabric. As quickly as possible, remove the sauce from the surface of the fabric without pushing it further in. You can use a paper towel or a rag to quickly wipe the tomato sauce off the fabric. ^[9]
2. Sponge the stain with cool water. ^[10] Work outwards with your sponge from the center of your stain.
   
   
3. Apply lemon juice to the stain. Either sponge the stain with lemon juice or use a slice of lemon, and rub the stain with it.
   
   
   • If the fabric is white, you can use white vinegar or hydrogen peroxide directly on the stain instead of lemon juice.^[3]
4. Use a stain remover on the stain. Find a stain removing stick, spray or gel, and apply it to the stain. Let the stain remover sit for 15 minutes.
5. Flush the stain, and then check to see if the stain is still there. On the back of the stain, run cool water through the fabric. Hold the fabric up to light to see if the stain remains.
   
   
6. Soak the stain if it is still there. Soak the fabric for 30 minutes in a solution of:
   
   
   • 1 quart warm water
   • 1/2 teaspoon dishwashing detergent
   • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
7. Rinse the fabric with water and dry it in the sun. Put the stain in direct sunlight with the stain side facing out. The sunlight should break down any of the remaining stain.
8. Wash the fabric. Follow the care instructions for the fabric, and wash your fabric normally.
   
   

Cleaning a Set Tomato Stain

1. Wet the stain with water. This method is for getting old tomato stains out of clothing or fabrics. And you don’t need to get the whole garment wet, just the part with the stain.
2. Rub the stain with dishwasher detergent (non bleaching). First test out the dishwasher detergent on a part of your clothing which is out of the way to see if it changes the color or texture of the garment. Then gently rub the whole wet stain with dishwasher detergent.
3. Rub an ice cube on the dishwasher detergent. Continue rubbing the stain with the detergent using your ice cube. Rub until it looks like the stain has come out.
4. Blot with stain with a sponge and vinegar. If the stain still remains, use your sponge and vinegar, and blot the stain to see if it lifts it. The acid in the vinegar should help to break down the remaining stain.
5. Wash and sun dry the garment. Follow the handling instructions, and wash your fabric normally. Dry the fabric in direct sunlight with the stain side facing up. The UV rays in the sunlight should help break down any of the remaining stain.

Video

Tips

• You can use the white towel method on a new stain after you flush the stain with water. With one clean fold, dab the stain and keep looking at the towel to see how much of the stain you are removing. Keep dabbing and moving the towel until you see that you are no longer removing the stain.
• Check the cleaning instructions of your garment. If it is dry clean only, let the professionals handle it. Let them know what and where the stain is.
• If possible, start cleaning the stain immediately. If you can't get to the stain right away, you can still try cleaning it, but you'll be better off the sooner you start.

Warnings

• Don't throw the fabric in the dryer until the stain is completely gone. The heat can set the stain.^[3]

Related wikiHows

• How to Remove Red Wine from Fabric
• How to Remove Coloring Washed in to Clothes
• How to Remove Gum from Clothes

Sources and Citations

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