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How do I get bike grease out of my clothing?
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All my pants seem to inevitably get stained with bike grease. What's the best method for getting rid of grease stains from pants? Is there a product that works particularly well?
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I use ProLink bike lube not only to lube my chain, but to clean bike grease off my hands and out of my clothes. Use clean cloth as a blotter. If it doesn't get it all out, I follow up with a spritz of WD-40, then a wash. |
Grease is just a long and complex hydrocarbon chain, so the best way to remove it is with a short or light hydrocarbon solution which would dissolve the grease and then could be flushed away. You could DIY it with a little gasoline, naphtha (white gas), vodka (ethanol), or something similar. Alternatively if you have a larger stain or want some professional cleaning services you could have it dry cleaned. But make sure it is not a cleaner that uses the new "green" dry cleaning fluid as it is not a solvent and will not dissolve the grease. |
Goo Gone. I've used it on dress shirts and all kinds of pants. So far, no bleaching/discoloring and no vestiges of the grease stain. |
Fels-Naptha. (http://www.felsnaptha.com/) Old school soap. I had a pair of khakis that I got old chain grease on, washed them regularly about 3-4 times. Regular wash didn't get the stain out, so I called it a bust. Then 3 months later I use a little elbow grease and fels naptha, just rubbing the fabric against itself for 5 minutes, and sure enough, came right out. The soap is good for plenty more as well. |
The white lard-like goop that auto supply stores sell in tubs as hand cleaner. It gets out every grease stain known to man. As an added bonus for cyclists, if you slop it all over your black filthy bike chain the grease will dissolve and you can wash it off with a garden hose. |
I've always used Fuller Pre-Laundry Stain Spray to remove any grease related stains from clothing. This stuff excels at black grease type stains, and will magically remove most stains that you run across. It was originally recommended to me by relatives that live on a farm, and always have stains like these to get rid of. They bulk order this stuff by the box. |
Try OxyClean For the future you may want to check out the Leg Shield. It is a neoprene leg strap that prevents the bike grease from getting on your pants. I use it for commuting. Great solution. |
Dead easy: Brake cleaner. Comes in a spray can from Pep Boys for $3-4. One can will degrease half a dozen shirts or pants. Spray it through the cloth until the grease stain visibly disappears. Let the item dry--mostly--and throw into the laundry. The pants will have a horrendous-looking watermark but that washes out (only if fresh--thus the "mostly" dry comment. The odor washes out, too). This method will amaze your friends and horrify your spouse--but it works. I have used it for everything from crayon to creosote, on both natural and synthetic fibers--including white fabric (careful with synthetics! Try first on something that won't show. If it dissolves your rayon dancing shirt--you were warned) Dave |
We found on the net to use rubbing alcohol (not sure e if it is the same as vodka, but way cheaper) and it works really well. |
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