Fels Naptha question

[neparose]

Can anyone tell me if the fels Naptha is good on stain removal? Would like to make my own laundry soap but a very typical 5 year old makes good stain removing properties a necesity. The average day is grass stained knees, ketchup, mustard, choc. milk, ect...

[marnee]

I grew up with my mom using a chunk of Fels Naptha soap to pretreat all of our stains. Her mom did the same.

We've had really good luck with it removing stains, provided we get to them before they stain. :) After they've been washed and dryed a few times, they don't come out nearly as well.

Try it out and see if it works. Check the clothes before you put them in the dryer, and if the stain is still there, you should be able to put it back with your regular stain removal and not have any problems. For the most part, as long as you haven't run the clothes through the dryer, you can re-treat them. If it works, great. If not, you're only out $1.50 or so for the bar of soap.

[neparose]

Thanks marnee!
I'm going to try it. I figure even if I keep a small bottle store bought laundry soap just for stubborn stains, I will still save a lot on the normal laundry.
rose

[NCLee]

I've found that a squirt of Dawn dish detergent works well on stains with an oil/grease base. At least it cuts out the oil. Depending on what colors the oil, may have to supplement that with something else after the oil is gone.

For auto type oil/grease stains, a waterless hand cleaner sometimes works on those. Test on a hidden spot first to make sure it doesn't solve one problem while creating another one.

Yes, NEVER put an item in a clothes dryer before the stain is gone. The heat from the dryer will set many stains that makes them almost impossible to remove later. Don't ask me how I know that, BTW.

For something like a shirt, cloth napkin, etc. I do these by hand, untll I can get the stain out. Then, it goes into the regular laundry. That lets me prolong the soaking time, if needed. Control the temp of the water. Try multiple solutions, AND, the items won't accidently get tossed into the dryer before the stain is out.

Lee

[neparose]

Thanks Lee! Dawn sure does work great on grease. I think I remember reading somewhere that they use it to clean up critters and stuff that get caught up in oil spills. I just never thought to try it on mustard and grass stains. In fact, the kido brought home a new set of grass stained knees today. I think I'm gonna go give them the dawn treatment right now! Thanks again!
rose