How to wash diesel fuel off clothes, or how to get rid of “sun oil” stains

by Abbas Jahangir · July 10, 2024

Diesel stains appear not only on repairmen’s overalls, but also on presentable clothes of diesel engine car owners. Here are several ways to get rid of such an unpleasant decoration.

Removing a fresh stain

Like any oil formation, it is advisable to clean the trace of diesel fuel immediately. To do this, you will need products that can be found in every home.

Salt

It is sprinkled on the stain, rubbed and waited for the product to absorb the oil. After this, the fabric is shaken off and the procedure is repeated again. Starch, talc and chalk ground to a flour state act similarly to salt. Of course, these products will not be able to completely clean clothes, but they will allow you to degrease them as much as possible.

Salt, talc, chalk or starch

The above substances are more effective in dealing with diesel fuel when ironing. The stained item is turned inside out and placed on a table or ironing board with the stain facing up. The dirty blot is sprinkled with a cleaner and then covered with paper folded in several layers from the outside and inside.

Place the sole of the iron on the stain and slowly move it from side to side. As the stain is soaked with fuel, the cleaning agent and paper sheets are changed.

In addition to napkins, it is recommended to place oilcloth under the dirty fabric so that the diesel fuel does not contaminate other areas of the wardrobe item or the table.

A mixture of vegetable oil and lemon juice

The components are taken in equal proportions and, having moistened a cotton pad with the resulting composition, the trace of diesel fuel is removed.

To prevent the formation of halos around the stain after cleaning, the fabric around it is moistened with gasoline (water) or sprinkled with starch (talc, chalk).

Dishwashing gel

The method of using the cleaner depends on the size of the contamination.

Rub the gel into the drops of “solar oil” locally and leave for 10-15 minutes.
A large stain requires soaking. Fill a five-liter basin with water and pour 2 tablespoons of liquid into it. Whip the solution into foam. Place the stained item in the solution for 3-4 hours. To enhance the effect, add shavings of laundry soap and soda to the dishwashing liquid.

All of the listed methods, except ironing, are suitable for light and colored fabrics of any degree of delicacy.

What to do if diesel fuel has soaked into the fabric

First of all, it is worth paying attention to specialized stain removers.

Aerosols and pencils will do a good job of removing light “blots”.
For cleaning deep stains, detergents in powder or gel form are suitable.
Before purchasing, you should find out what fabrics the substance is suitable for and at what temperature it begins to work.
If you choose a laundry soap stain remover, for example: “Antipyatin”, you should make sure that it will not “eat” the paint from colored clothes.

If the stain is not noticed immediately, or there is no opportunity to remove it quickly, you will have to resort to more powerful chemicals.

You can wash diesel fuel off colored items using ammonia diluted in water (15 ml per 200 ml). To clean white items of clothing, use it in its pure form or mixed with 3% hydrogen peroxide in a 1:1 ratio.
Diesel fuel is removed from most dyed fabrics by purified gasoline. It is used in its pure form or mixed half and half with acetone. A napkin folded in several layers is placed under the stain, a cotton pad is soaked in the substance and the dirty area is rubbed. As the pad gets dirty, it is changed.
Old fuel stains are removed with turpentine mixed with baking soda and lemon juice. The mixture is applied to the contaminated surface and left for half an hour.

Gasoline, turpentine and the vast majority of solvents cannot be mixed with water. For this reason, only dry clothes can be cleaned with these substances.

After local cleaning of the oil stain, the item must be completely washed in the usual way.

Eliminate the smell

Washing diesel fuel off clothes does not mean removing the smell. Even after washing, the unpleasant “aroma” often remains on the item, and during storage in the closet it is transferred to other items of clothing.

To eliminate the obsessive odor, hang the item on a clothesline for a few days. Products with fragrances will also get rid of the smell of diesel fuel from clothes, including:

Fabric softener. It is poured into the machine’s cuvette and added to the rinse water when hand washing.
Toothpaste “Mint”. Apply a thin layer to the stained area and leave for 8-10 hours. Then soap the clothes, wash and wash as usual.
Aromatherapy oils. A few drops of the substance added to a cleaning agent will help remove unpleasant odors from things.

If the smell of diesel fuel has permeated the machine, you should run the washing mode three times without laundry. First, pour a glass of baking soda into the powder tray and drum, then pour in 200 ml of table vinegar, the third time – only with water. Proper cleaning of the washing machine with vinegar copes not only with the unpleasant smell in the drum, but also with scale or mold.

It is quite possible to get rid of an unpleasant smelling greasy solar stain at home. The main thing is to choose the right product and, if possible, not delay cleaning.