How to get red wine out of white clothes

How to remove red wine from white clothes

1. 1

   Blot right away

   Press a white cloth or paper towel on the wine to soak up as much as possible. Don't rub. If you're away from a sink, sprinkle table salt on the wet stain to absorb some of it.

   Why: Wine that's lifted before it dries doesn't get the chance to bind. Rubbing spreads it and roughens the fibers.

2. 2

   Rinse or soak in cool water

   Rinse the stain from the back under cool running water, or soak the garment in cool water for about 30 minutes.

   Why: Anthocyanin pigment and wine sugar dissolve in water, so a cool rinse removes much of the color before it sets.

3. 3

   Soak in a detergent and vinegar solution

   If color remains, soak the stain for 15 minutes in 1 quart of warm water with 1/2 teaspoon of detergent and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar. Rinse thoroughly with water afterward.

   Why: This is the University of Georgia's wine soak. The mild acid works against the blue shift that alkaline detergent causes in wine pigment. Rinsing is essential before any chlorine bleach.

4. 4

   Pretreat with liquid detergent, not bar soap

   Rub liquid laundry detergent or a prewash stain remover into what's left, from both sides. Avoid bar soap or soap flakes.

   Why: Detergent lifts the remaining residue. True soap can set tannin stains and make them permanent.

5. 5

   Wash hot with the right bleach

   Wash in the hottest water the care label allows. Add diluted chlorine bleach through the dispenser for bleach-safe white cotton or linen, or oxygen bleach for whites that can't take chlorine.

   Why: Oxidizing bleach breaks down the anthocyanin and tannin color that detergent leaves. Whole-garment bleaching keeps the white even.

6. 6

   Hang to dry and check

   Line-dry the garment and check the spot in daylight. If any pink, gray or brown shadow remains, repeat the soak and bleach wash before using the dryer.

   Why: Heat sets leftover pigment, and over time the sugars in wine can turn a missed stain brown.

Why red wine is so visible on white

Red wine is a tannin stain. Its color comes from anthocyanins, water-soluble pigments from grape skins, together with tannins that bind to fibers, plus sugar, acids and alcohol. Anthocyanins change color with pH: red in acid, shifting toward blue or purple as pH rises. That's why a wine stain can turn grayish-blue when alkaline detergent hits it, even though it's still the same pigment.

On colored fabric a faint tint may never show. On white, it does, which is why whites get the extra bleach step. The general method for all fabrics is on red wine on clothes.

Chlorine or oxygen bleach

The American Cleaning Institute's wine method adds chlorine bleach if it's safe for the fabric, and that's the strongest option for white cotton and linen with an empty bleach triangle on the label. Use oxygen bleach instead on white polyester blends with spandex, wool, silk, resin-treated (durable-press) cotton and some nylon, which chlorine weakens or yellows.

Never add chlorine bleach while vinegar is still in the fabric: acid and bleach release chlorine gas. See chlorine bleach for dilution and safety.

By situation

Fresh spill at a party or restaurant

Blot, sprinkle salt if you have it, and sponge with cool water or club soda. Iowa State suggests letting club soda fizz on the stain for about 10 minutes before blotting. Then wash properly when you get home.

Dried or old red wine stain

Soak longer in an oxygen bleach solution, overnight if needed. Kentucky Extension notes old tannin stains may need bleaching for complete removal, and the American Cleaning Institute adds that older beverage stains may respond to an enzyme presoak before laundering.

It already went through the wash or dryer

A gray-blue or brown mark that survived needs an oxygen bleach soak and a hot rewash, or chlorine bleach on bleach-safe whites. Machine-dried stains may need several soaks.

White tablecloths and napkins

Cotton and linen table linens usually tolerate hot washes and bleach better than clothing, but check the label. Treat wine spills the same night, before sugars brown.

White silk or wool

Blot and rinse gently with cool water, skip chlorine bleach entirely, and take it to a dry cleaner.

White shirt with colored trim

Use oxygen bleach rather than chlorine, and test it on the trim first.

What not to do

• Don't use bar soap or soap flakes. Natural soap can make tannin stains permanent or harder to remove.
• Don't rub the stain. Rubbing spreads the wine and damages fibers.
• Don't add chlorine bleach before rinsing out the vinegar. Vinegar and chlorine bleach together release chlorine gas.
• Don't dry or iron it until the stain is gone. Heat sets the remaining pigment.

Other methods that work

Club soda

Pour club soda on a fresh stain, let it fizz about 10 minutes, and blot. Iowa State suggests it, though it mainly dilutes the wine the way cool water does.

Caution: It's a first-aid step. Follow with a proper wash and bleach.

Rubbing alcohol

If color remains after the vinegar soak, the University of Georgia sponges the stain with rubbing alcohol, rinses and launders with bleach.

Caution: Alcohol can remove dye from colored trim, so keep it on white fabric.

Boiling water poured through

An old government method for fruit and beverage stains on cotton and linen stretches the stain over a bowl and pours boiling water through it. It's traditional, with weak evidence for wine compared with bleach.

Caution: Only for sturdy white cotton or linen. Never on wool or silk, and watch for scalds.

Hydrogen peroxide (3%)

A mild bleach that oxidizes wine pigment. It's often suggested, but it's traditional advice with weak evidence for wine, since the sources used here don't cite it specifically.

Caution: Test on any trim first, and rinse well.

Stain still there?

The stain turned blue or gray in the wash

That's the anthocyanin pigment reacting to alkaline detergent, not a new stain. Soak in the vinegar solution, rinse thoroughly, then wash with bleach safe for the fabric.

A brown shadow appeared on an old stain

The sugars in wine darken over time. An overnight oxygen bleach soak, then a hot wash, usually lightens it.

The white looks yellow after chlorine bleach

The fabric may contain spandex, nylon or a resin finish that chlorine yellows. That damage usually can't be reversed. Use oxygen bleach on those items next time.

Safety

• Never mix vinegar or ammonia with chlorine bleach. Rinse thoroughly between steps.
• Dilute chlorine bleach before it touches fabric.

Never mix cleaning products; see chemicals you must never combine.

Questions

Red wine on other surfaces

• Red wine stains: the complete guide
• Red wine on carpet
• Red wine on clothes
• Red wine on a couch

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