Cleaning Explained

Stain removal, smells and cleaning, with the reason each method works

Find your stain, surface or smell

Salt for stains: what it actually does and when it helps

Salt for stains works physically, not chemically. Dry table salt soaks up some of a fresh spill and acts as a mild abrasive, and in the salt-and-lemon method it holds the juice in place while the acid and sunlight do the bleaching. It isn't a cleaner on its own, so treat it as a first step and follow with the stain's full treatment.

Best method
Absorbing fresh spills and carrying lemon juice on rust
Time
Seconds on a fresh spill; overnight for a sweat-odor soak
Difficulty
Easy

You will need

  • Table salt or coarse salt
  • Cool water
  • White cloths or paper towels
  • Lemon juice, for rust or mildew
  • Laundry detergent
Wooden bowl of coarse white salt with a scoop and a scrub brush

Step by step

  1. 1

    Blot the fresh spill

    Press a white cloth or paper towel onto the spill to take up as much liquid as you can. Don't rub.

    Why: The less liquid left in the fabric, the less there is to stain.

  2. 2

    Sprinkle salt on right away

    Cover the wet stain with table salt while it's still fresh, as the University of Georgia suggests for red wine.

    Why: Dry salt crystals draw some of the liquid out of the fabric before it soaks in further.

  3. 3

    Sponge with cool water and blot

    Brush off the salt, sponge the area with cool water, and blot again.

    Why: Cool water carries away what's still loose without setting it.

  4. 4

    Carry on with the full treatment

    Pretreat the stain and launder it as its stain type requires, using bleach that's safe for the fabric if color remains.

    Why: Salt only absorbs. It doesn't break down or bleach the stain, so the color is still there until it's treated.

  5. 5

    Check before drying

    Look at the spot after washing and repeat the treatment if needed before the item goes in the dryer.

    Why: Heat can set what's left of a stain.

What salt does, and what it doesn't

Table salt is sodium chloride, a neutral salt. It isn't an acid, a base, an oxidizer or a surfactant, which means it can't dissolve grease, break down protein or bleach color the way real stain removers do.

What it can do is physical. Dry crystals absorb liquid from a fresh spill, and they act as a mild abrasive. In the salt-and-lemon treatment for rust and mildew, salt is mostly a carrier: it holds the juice on the stain and adds a little scrubbing action, while the lemon juice and sunlight do the actual bleaching.

Salt also appears in an older extension remedy for sweat odor that survives washing: a long soak in salt water.

What salt is good for, and what it can scratch

Good for:

  • Fresh red wine on fabric, as first aid only. Georgia's extension says to sprinkle it immediately with salt to absorb some of the stain, then sponge with cool water and continue treating.
  • Rust on washable fabric, with lemon juice and sun: sprinkle salt, squeeze on lemon juice, dry in the sun, rinse, and repeat.
  • Sweat odor that survives washing: soak overnight in 3 to 4 tablespoons of salt per quart of warm water, then rinse.
  • Rust on sinks and tubs, as a paste with lemon juice (Vermont Department of Health).

Can damage:

  • Polished surfaces. The Natural Stone Institute warns that abrasive particles can scratch some stones and finishes. Don't scrub polished marble or other delicate finishes with salt.

Salt and red wine: what the sources actually say

Salt on red wine is one of the best-known home remedies, and the evidence for it is limited. In extension guidance, salt is only a first step that absorbs some of a fresh spill. The stain is then treated with cool water, pretreatment and laundering, with bleach if the fabric allows. The American Cleaning Institute's wine method doesn't use salt at all.

The opposite claim, that salt sets a wine stain, isn't supported by any authoritative source reviewed for this page either. Treat both claims as unproven: salt is optional first aid, not the fix.

The sources list no dangerous combinations for salt. The general rule still applies: use one stain remover at a time and rinse between them.

By situation

Red wine on a shirt or tablecloth

Salt the fresh spill, then sponge with cool water and blot. Pretreat and wash, and use an oxygen bleach soak for color that remains on colored fabric.

Rust spots on white fabric

Cover the spot with salt, soak it with lemon juice and dry it in direct sun. Rinse and repeat until the rust fades, then launder.

A shirt that still smells of sweat after washing

Dissolve 3 to 4 tablespoons of salt in each quart of warm water, soak the shirt overnight, rinse, and wash again.

Colored fabric

Salt on its own won't fade dyes, but the lemon juice and sunlight in the rust method can. Test that treatment on a hidden area first.

Countertops and polished stone

Don't use salt as a scrub on polished stone or delicate finishes. Abrasive particles can scratch them.

What not to do

  • Don't rely on salt alone for a wine stain. It only absorbs some of a fresh spill. The color stays until you pretreat and wash.
  • Don't rub salt into the fabric. Rubbing grinds the stain deeper into the fibers. Sprinkle it on and let it absorb.
  • Don't scrub polished stone with salt. Abrasive particles can scratch some stones and finishes.
  • Don't dry the item until the stain is gone. Dryer heat can set stain residue that salt didn't remove.

Other methods that work

Oxygen bleach soak

For the color left by wine, tea or fruit on colored washable fabric, the American Cleaning Institute uses oxygen bleach as the alternative to chlorine.

Caution: Test colored fabric first.

Prompt cool-water rinse

If you have no salt at hand, blotting and sponging a fresh spill with cool water is the same first step without it.

Stain still there?

The wine stain is still pink after salting

That's expected: salt only absorbs some of the spill. Sponge with cool water, pretreat, and wash, with oxygen bleach for leftover color.

Rust faded but didn't disappear

Repeat the salt, lemon and sun treatment. Older rust often needs several rounds.

The sweat smell came back

Repeat the overnight salt soak, or pretreat the underarms and wash with oxygen bleach.

Questions

Does salt remove red wine stains?

Not by itself. Sprinkled on a fresh spill, it absorbs some of the wine. You still need to sponge with cool water, pretreat and wash.

Does salt set stains?

No authoritative source reviewed supports that claim. Salt is treated as an optional first aid for fresh spills, not as something that sets or removes stains.

Can salt get rid of sweat smell in clothes?

An older Georgia extension remedy soaks the garment overnight in 3 to 4 tablespoons of salt per quart of warm water, then rinses it.

How do you use salt and lemon on rust stains?

Sprinkle salt over the rust, saturate it with lemon juice, and dry the item in direct sun. Rinse, and repeat if needed.

Is salt a good scrub for countertops?

Not for polished stone or delicate finishes. Abrasive particles can scratch them.

Other cleaning agents

Sources

  1. Remove Stains From Alcoholic Beverages, Beer, Wine, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
  2. Remove Stains From Iron, Rust, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
  3. Remove Stains From Perspiration, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
  4. Keeping Your Home Healthy, Safe & Clean: Living Green (June 2017), Vermont Department of Health
  5. Learn About Cleaning Products for Natural Stone, Natural Stone Institute
  6. Stain Removal Guide, American Cleaning Institute

Last updated . Methods are drawn from the sources above; how we research and check our guides.