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Triumph Over Summer Stains

(NC)—Whether you're having a backyard picnic or on a trip to the beach, stains seem to tag along. With the range of effective cleaning products available, you can enjoy the warm weather without letting summer stains ruin your fun.

The Canadian Consumer Specialty Products Association offers helpful tips to treat the following stains:

Mustard: Pre-treat the stain with a pre-wash product and then launder the item using chlorine bleach, if it is safe for the fabric, or colour-safe bleach. If a greasy film remains, soak the item in warm water using a pre-treat product, rinse thoroughly and re-launder.

Ketchup, BBQ and spaghetti sauces: Scrape and treat with dry-cleaning solution, rub with liquid detergent and scrub stain under hot water. Then wash the stain in the hottest water that is safe for the fabric.

Grass stains: Use a pre-treat laundry product and then launder the garment as soon as possible. Make sure the stain is gone before drying, because the heat of the dryer could set the stain. If the stain persists, launder the garment again using bleach that is safe for the fabric.

Sunscreen lotion: Pre-treat the stain with a pre-wash product and then launder it in cold-warm water.

Ice cream: Use a pre-treat laundry product and then launder. If it is an old stain, let the garment soak for several hours.

Perspiration: Use a pre-wash stain remover or rub with a bar of soap and then launder in the hottest water that is safe for the fabric. If perspiration has changed the colour of the fabric, apply ammonia to fresh stains or white vinegar to old stains, then rinse. Stubborn stains may respond to washing with colour-safe bleach in the hottest water that is safe for the fabric.

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For more tips on effective laundering and cleaning, visit www.healthycleaning 101.org.

- News Canada

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