Turns out that dishwashing detergent is great for removing olive oil from clothes, as it’s formulated to cut greasy stains on dishes. Remember that liquid dishwashing detergent generally makes tons of suds, so you should only use it for pretreating, and rinse it away before you load the washing machine. If not, you’ll likely end up with excessive foam.
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What you need
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Clorox® Disinfecting Bleach with CLOROMAX® -
Clorox® Clorox 2® for Colors Stain Remover and Laundry Additive -
Dish detergent -
Laundry detergent -
Measuring cup
Steps to get olive oil out of clothes
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1
Keep the clothes dry
Work the olive oil stains while the fabric is dry. That is, don’t rinse the clothing before pretreating.
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2
Pre-treat the oil stains
Apply a few drops of liquid dishwashing detergent to each oil stain and gently massage it in. After 5 minutes, rinse the clothing thoroughly with warm water.
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3
Machine wash with the appropriate bleach
If your clothing is white and bleach-safe (check the care label for the fiber content), wash the item in hot water using a good laundry detergent and 1/3 cup Clorox® Bleach.
For items with any spandex or colored clothing, wash in the hottest water recommended on the care label using detergent and Clorox 2® for Colors.
TipAlways avoid bleaching wool, silk, mohair, leather, spandex and non-fast colors.
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4
Air dry and check for any remaining stains
Air dry your clothes, and check for success. Remember that damp or wet clothing can hide residual olive oil. If you miss any of the oily stains when you pretreat with the dishwashing detergent, you’ll probably have some residual oil that you can get all the way out by repeating the treatment, starting again with dry fabric.
