How to wash a pen from white clothes: 8 best ways

Accidents happen unexpectedly, and the law of meanness works exactly when we are most afraid of something. Well, we put on a white shirt in the office and in the evening we will certainly get the result in the form of a beautiful stroke of a ballpoint pen.

Experienced office workers and parents of schoolchildren probably have a couple of secrets in store on how to remove an ink stain. We have collected their experience, tested all the methods in practice and offer you the 8 most working methods.

What is ink made of?

Ink often consists of 2 components. Depending on the structure of the writing knot, the pigment can be of different density. Let’s look at the table

Based on the tabular data, we can conclude that the principle of removing a trace from a pen comes down to the destruction of the pigment or the dissolution of the ink base.

How to get a pen out of clothes

Most home methods involve chemical destruction of the base of the paste and subsequent mechanical washing of the dye. Household products affect the paint, destroy its structure and discolor.

Rules for handling white fabrics

Even though it is easier to remove stains from white clothes than from colored clothes, mistakes do happen that lead to damage to things. To prevent this, we recommend paying attention to the following points:

1. 
   The fresher the stain, the easier it is to get rid of.. If possible, do not let the soiled thing stale.

2. 
   Do not scrub with coarse brushes. A hard pile can fluff the fibers of the fabric, they roll up or stretch out, forming a pile spot on a smooth fabric. The most gentle way is to use an old toothbrush. The stain should be rubbed with soft small circular motions.

3. 
   Intense rubbing of the stain with your hands can lead to a violation of the structure. fabric, weaving deformation and thread pulling.

4. 
   Do not leave chlorine-containing products on fabric for a long time. undiluted formulations. In addition to the stain, chlorine simultaneously destroys the threads, which can lead to the formation of holes.

5. remember, that wool fabrics react unpredictably to various chemicals. Therefore, before use, test the selected product on an inconspicuous area.

6. When choosing bleach as a bleach, keep in mind that the treatment area can become significantly whiter than the overall tone of the clothes.

Organizing a place to remove stains

First of all, allocate free space for yourself on the kitchen table or in the bathroom and cover it with oilcloth. Do not experiment on lacquered or painted furniture, otherwise, in addition to the old stain, you can get a new one from the dissolved varnish and, in addition, get damaged furniture.

The selected stain removers and tools should be placed in front of you. Here’s what you might need:

1. cotton pads;

2. an unnecessary clean toothbrush;

3. container for mixing components (plastic or glass);

4. small and large spoon for measuring and mixing compositions;

5. water (hot and cold);

How to remove stains at home

First, let’s see what we have at hand. We assure you that in different corners we can find products that can easily cope with ballpoint pen stains.

mustard powder

It can be called a universal natural bleach. It also does an excellent job with ink stains. Let’s prepare the supplies. We will need:

1. mustard powder;

2. small mixing bowl

3. water at room temperature;

4. big spoon.

To remove the stain, do the following:

1. In a cup put 2 tbsp. l. mustard powder and pour 2 tbsp. l. water. Mix the paste. If you see that the spot is small, you can reduce the consumption of components by half.

2. Lay out the soiled cloth on a flat surface. If the product cannot be unfastened (for example, a turtleneck), place a colorless plastic bag between two layers of fabric. This will protect the bottom layer from getting wet and exposed to the active substance.

3. Put the gruel on the stain with a spoon and leave to act for 30 minutes.

4. After the time has elapsed, rub the contamination with your hands and rinse the fabric under water.

5. If necessary, repeat the procedure.

6. Wash the item in the washing machine as usual.

Toothpaste

This tool erases fresh traces of ink in just 5 minutes. You need to take white toothpaste. You will also need an old, but clean, toothbrush and water.

Lay out the clothes on the table and do the following:

1. Squeeze the paste out of the tube and evenly distribute it along the lines from the handle.

2. In small circular motions, begin to rub the stain with a toothbrush.

3. If the fabric is thin, the stain on the eyes will lighten and disappear. On thick fabrics, the process is a little slower.

4. Rinse the cleaned clothes in water or wash them in the washing machine.

We recommend that you don’t use a colored dentifrice, otherwise you’ll have to look for a toothpaste stain remover.

Ammonia

The only negative of the liquid is the strong smell of ammonia. Therefore, in case of respiratory diseases or allergies, ammonia cannot be used.

If the stain is small, we see no reason to dilute the product with water. Just apply 2 drops of ammonia to the stain and rub the area with your fingers. Do not be afraid that the paint will begin to spread. The main thing is not to let the stain dry out and move to other parts of the clothing. After a few minutes, wash the soiled area with a few drops of dishwashing detergent.

Fairy for dishes

Some housewives use this liquid only in emergency cases, since the composition of the product is quite aggressive. Indeed, Fairy is good at helping with various everyday problems. And just as easily, he washes stains from the handle.

What we need:

1. dish liquid Fairy;

2. warm water;

3. soft brush.

Sequencing:

1. Lay the fabric in one layer or put a plastic bag between the layers of clothing.

2. Apply to the Fae stain and rub it into the stain a little.

3. Using a spoon, apply a few drops of water and rub the area again with a brush.

4. Leave for 5 minutes.

5. Then rub the stain between your fingers. If the ink mark disappears, rinse the cloth. If some contours are still left, let the product work for another 5 minutes.

6. Wash your clothes in the washing machine.

Special detergents contain components that actively affect one or another pollution. Sodium laureth sulfate and propylene glycol solvent allow you to remove even complex contaminants.

Alcohol

Buy the cheapest colorless alcohol-containing liquid from the pharmacy and keep it on hand. It will always come in handy on the farm. You can use hygienic hand gel for alcohol or vodka.

To remove the trace from the pen you need:

1. Moisten dirt with alcohol.

2. Wait a few seconds and rub the fabric.

3. The ink trail may spread into a large spot. This is a normal reaction.

4. After the disappearance of the contours of the handle, wash the treated area with laundry soap or dishwashing detergent.

5. Light residues of soiling can be re-treated and then put into the washing machine.

To enhance the effect, you can mix alcohol and ammonia solution in a 1:1 ratio. But, we do not consider this to be appropriate, since each tool individually copes well with the task.

Hair spray

It is a fact! Hairspray copes with painting on clothes in seconds. We will need any hairspray, water and soap.

We will deal with the stain like this:

1. Place a paper or cloth napkin under the contaminated area.

2. Apply hairspray to the stain.

3. Without waiting for drying, rub the stain between the fingers and wash off the remaining varnish with water.

4. If light outlines of lines remain on the fabric, they will be washed off after washing in the machine.

The secret behind hairspray is that it contains alcohol. But it happens that there was no alcohol at hand, but there is an opportunity to use hairspray.

chemical eraser

This tool can be used as a focus. It works right before your eyes. For its manufacture, the following materials will be required:

1. water;

2. potassium permanganate;

3. acetic acid (70%);

4. hydrogen peroxide.

To remove ink lines, you need to do the following:

1. In 1 tsp. acetic acid, add crystals of magnesium permanganate (at the very tip of a thin knife) and stir until a dark solution is obtained.

2. Apply the product to the stain with a cotton swab. The ink will instantly begin to discolor. A yellowish-pink spot from potassium permanganate will appear.

3. Using another cotton swab, apply hydrogen peroxide to the stain. All traces of pollution will instantly disappear.

4. Rinse the product with clean water.

Household chemicals

Sometimes it happens that home remedies cannot cope with the hardly soluble ink pigment. The reason can be different factors: the chemical composition of the dye in the paste, the density and composition of the fabric, the age of the stain.

A feature of white fabrics is the ability, almost without fear, to use various bleaching agents on them. We list the tools that do a good job of removing marks from a ballpoint pen:

1. Liquid bleaches Vanish, Nika;

2. Powder oxygen products Boss, Cinderella, Persol, Antipyatin, Typhoon.

3. Chlorine-containing bleaches Whiteness, Chistin, Steril.

4. Amway stain remover.

5. Special tools for removing pen marks: Dr.Schnell Novo Pen-Off, VMD 88 ink remover, Dr. Beckmann Stain remover from ballpoint pen and felt-tip pen.

Before using these products, we recommend that you read the instructions for use. We also recommend that you take precautions. Wear protective gloves when handling corrosive liquids. Avoid getting chemicals in your mouth and eyes.

Ink stains from a ballpoint pen are not amenable to ordinary washing, but easily disappears when treated with improvised means. Our methods are simple and really work. Take them into service and your white shirts will be flawless.