Removing Gasoline Stain From Clothing After Normal Wash Didn't Get It Out

by Ripley

Ripley wrote me the following question about removing a gasoline stain from clothing.

Ripley says:

A friend got gasoline on her clothes and washed them normally. The smell is gone, but the spots remain. Any tips on post washing gasoline stain removal?

Taylor says:

Ripley, thanks for your question.

It would be easier for me to answer you if I knew if your friend had run the clothing both through the washer and the dryer, or just washed in and then let it air dry when she noticed the spots remained.

Preferably she did not run the gasoline stained clothing through the dryer, because heat helps set stains (so this would violate one of the top 10 rules for removing stains).

Try this treatment, either way, but it has more chance of success if she let the clothing air dry, then if it was run through the dryer.

First, put a little bit of dishwashing liquid on the stained area and scrub it in gently, with an old soft toothbrush, for example. Then, let it sit for 5-10 minutes. Then, immerse the clothing, still with the dishwashing liquid on it, into hot water (as hot as allowed per the washing instructions) and let it sit for 30 minutes. These steps will help get rid of any oily residue from the gasoline which could be causing the gasoline stain. Then, rinse the clothing thoroughly.

Next, rinse this out and if the stain remains try a paste of baking soda and water. Apply a thick paste to the stain and let it sit until it dries, and then gently scrape it off.

Finally, if the stain still remains pretreat with a laundry stain remover and let this sit for 5-10 minutes, before washing.

In any event wash the clothing again, in the hottest water allowed for the garments according to their care labels.

Hopefully this will remove the gasoline stain.

Make sure to not run it through the dryer until all the stains are removed, for the reasons explained above.

In addition, if this happens again in the future check out these more extensive instructions for removing gasoline stains, so hopefully you can avoid the problems in the future. Also, read this page for safety warnings regarding running clothes through the dryer that have gasoline residue on them -- a big no no!

I hope this helps!

So, do you need help with removing a stain? If so, submit your stain removal help question here and I'll do my best to answer it.

Photo by spakattacks

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Taylor

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CAUTION: This website is provided for informational purposes only, and Stain-Removal-101.com provides it as is, without warranties or guarantees. Some stains just won't come out, and are permanent. Further, some stain removal methods can harm your item, so if the stained item is sentimental or expensive call a professional. See disclaimer of liability for more information.