Chocolate stains are considered by many to be among the most difficult to remove. But with the right technique, you can have your clothes back to normal in no time. Read on for the science-backed secrets to removing chocolate stains.
Key Takeaways
- Hot chocolate contains tannins, proteins, fats, and oils, which all make stains harder to remove.
- It's important to act as quickly as possible to avoid the stain settling in.
- Whatever you do, don't expose the stain to heat, as that can cause the stain to bind to your clothes and become essentially permanent.
- Instead, start by scraping or dabbing off excess hot chocolate with a dry cloth.
- Next, rinse or soak the stain in cold water.
- You can pre-treat the stain with a variety of ingredients, from commercial stain removers to kitchen ingredients.
- Only once you've done all this should you put your clothes in the washing machine.
See Related: Can You Drink Hot Chocolate When Pregnant?
Removing Hot Chocolate Stains From Clothes
You likely know the feeling. You're enjoying a delicious cup of your favorite hot drink, when some spills on your clothes.
Hot chocolate stains might seem intimidating, but you don't need to panic. It's possible to remove chocolate stains from clothes with a few simple steps and basic cleaning ingredients.
What Makes It So Hard to Remove Hot Cocoa Stains?
To understand how to remove hot chocolate stains, you need to know what makes them stick.
Many of the ingredients that make hot chocolate so delicious also make it uniquely suited to settling into your clothing.
First, cocoa contains dark pigments called tannins. They bind to proteins, which can make the stain more difficult to remove.¹ In fact, tannins have been used for thousands of years to dye clothes.²
Hot chocolate also contains fats and oils, which cause stains that are difficult to remove.³ And it has proteins that can bind to the fibers in your clothes.⁴
However, much of the perceived difficulty of removing chocolate stains comes from people not knowing how to remove the stains. With the right know-how, hot chocolate stains can be quite easy to remove.
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Basic Method
Different people have their own specific methods. Many of these methods rely on the same core steps.
Before anything, make sure to act quickly. The longer you leave a hot chocolate stain, the harder it gets to remove.
Step 1: Remove Excess Chocolate by Hand
First, grab a butter knife (or some other dull knife) or spoon and try scraping off any excess chocolate on your clothes. If the stain is still wet, try blotting it with a dry paper towel.
Be careful, because too much force or pressure could press the food stains into the fibers of your clothes, making them more tricky to remove.
Step 2: Rinse Stained Item in Cold Water
The next step involves a rinse in cold water. The key word here is cold.
Usually, warm or hot water is the key to removing stains. But with chocolate stains, hot water is actually a terrible idea!
That's because the heat can literally cook the proteins in the chocolate and set the tannins. Warm water or hot water can even cause the stain to become permanent.
Try to rinse the fabric with cold running water on the reverse side of the stained area. If that's not possible, a good soak will do.
Some people recommend gently scrubbing or rubbing the stain while rinsing or soaking
Step 3: Pre-Treat Stain
After you've rinsed and/or soaked the stained fabric in cool water, apply detergent or a stain remover. Make sure to spot treat both sides of the fabric.
Step 4: Wash With Laundry Detergent
Wash immediately after treating the stain. At this step, you actually want to use warm water. Check the care label on your clothes to see how hot you can make the water.
It's important to use a powerful laundry detergent for the best chance of beating the stain. You ideally want one that incorporates enzymes, as these can help break down the proteins that make chocolate stains so persistent. ⁵
Just make sure your chosen detergent is safe to use on your clothes and won't irritate your skin.
Step 5: Air Dry
Once your clothes have been washed, conduct a stain check. Hopefully, the stain will be gone!
It's possible the stain will have lessened but not completely disappeared. If that's the case, consider running through the above steps again.
Whatever you do, don't put your clothes in a hot dryer unless the stain is completely gone. The heat can lock in the stain, making it practically impossible to remove. To be extra safe, consider air drying your clothes instead.
Extra Tips For Removing Chocolate Stains
Unfortunately, some chocolate stains are seriously stubborn, especially when on white clothes or when left to set for a while before cleaning. If your hot chocolate stain persists, try some of the following tips.
Can Bleach Remove Chocolate Stains?
By itself, bleach likely won't remove chocolate stains. You'll still want to perform all the above steps, including rinsing under cold water and spot treating with detergent.
If those steps don't work, try applying a diluted bleach solution to the stained area. Chlorine bleach is one popular option. Make sure to wash immediately after.⁶
The reason you shouldn't jump straight to bleach is that it can, well, bleach your clothes. If you're worried, try testing a little bit of the diluted bleach solution on a hidden part of your clothing.
Using Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is another chemical that can sometimes help remove stubborn stains. Combine it with dish soap first, then apply it directly to the stain.⁷
You don't need very much. Combine one part of dish soap with two parts hydrogen peroxide for the perfect mix.
Like with bleach, you should then wash your clothes right away. Also, like bleach, hydrogen peroxide can bleach your clothes, so be warned.
Dish Soap to Protect Clothes
One interesting technique is to add a few drops of dish soap to your washer. It may help cut through stubborn grease, keeping your clothes stain-free.
Some people recommend adding a little liquid dish soap to a rag and putting that in with the wash, rather than adding the dish soap to the washer directly.⁸
Lemon Juice and Vinegar
If you want something more natural (or need to use ingredients already in the house), don't worry. Both lemon juice and white vinegar can be used to pre-treat the chocolate stain.
Let it sit for a few minutes to give the vinegar or lemon juice time to work, then rinse and wash.⁹
Conclusion
Hot chocolate stains might seem intimidating, but they can usually be removed with the right technique. Act fast and follow the steps above, using the appropriate water temperature and correct ingredients, and you should have that pesky stain out in no time. Now you can enjoy your hot cocoa in peace!
Keep Reading: What Makes Sugar-Free Drinks Sweet?
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Get Hot Chocolate Out of Clothes?
Yes! Hot chocolate stains might seem tricky to remove, but it's totally doable.
First, manually remove excess chocolate from the stained garment. Then rinse or soak thoroughly in cold water. Pre-treat the stain with your ingredient of choice (see above for the options) and then pop it in the wash.
Does Hot Chocolate Come Out In the Wash?
If you stain your clothes with hot chocolate, you might want to throw them straight into the wash. Don't! The heat can actually lock the stain into your clothes for good.
Instead, follow the steps above. Start by rinsing or soaking the stain in cold water, removing as much of it as you can with gentle rubbing or scrubbing. Next, try pre-treating the stain.
Only once you've done all that, it's time for the washer.
Will Dawn Dish Soap Get Chocolate Out of Clothes?
Dawn dish soap is a popular option for stain removal, including for chocolate stains. But it alone likely won't be enough to remove the stain.
First, remove any hot chocolate from your clothes with a clean cloth or knife, then rinse them thoroughly with cold water.
Once you've done that, try putting a little bit of Dawn dish soap on the stain. Rub it in and let it sit for several minutes. The soap should help cut through the oils that make chocolate stains difficult to remove.
Once you've left the dish soap on the stain for a while, pop your clothes in the washer.
Sources
- How to Remove Five Stubborn Stains - Cleanzen
- A Mass Spectrometric Study on Tannin Degradation within Dyed Woolen Yarns - PMC
- Methodological study on the removal of solid oil and fat stains from cotton fabrics using abrasion - Ruben Mercadé-Prieto, Serafim Bakalis, 2014
- Protein & Food Stains
- The role of enzymes in detergent products
- The right way to remove chocolate stains from your clothes and furniture - Mulberrys Garment Care
- How To Remove The Toughest Chocolate Stains | Puracy
- Do's and Don'ts for Using DAWN in the Washing Machine
- The right way to remove chocolate stains from your clothes and furniture - Mulberrys Garment Care
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