Removing Mud Stains

Today is International Mud Day.  Who knew there was such a holiday?  Apparently it began in Nepal with the intention to cheer up 58 orphans by getting them outside to enjoy nature.  After splashing around in the mud, it is said that the children’s moods and attitudes improved.  While I was never one that really liked getting dirty, I do recall a summer day where my sister and I took some aluminum pie pans, made mud pies, and created a huge mess for my mom.  She wasn’t pleased.  I can understand why.  I live with a mud magnet, and sometimes those patches and skid marks all over his shorts and pants take more than one attempt to remove.

A few weeks ago, we talked about removing dirt and mud from rugs.  Given that dirt and mud first come into the house on either shoes or clothes, I thought it would be appropriate to share how to remove it from clothes as well.  Here’s how to go about it:

• Hang up the garment and allow the mud to dry.
• Gently scrape off the dried mud and shake to remove as much as possible.
• Spray the area with a laundry pre-treating product or cover the area in a liquid laundry detergent.  Allow it to sit for 15 minutes.
• Fill a bucket or sink with water and place the garment in the water to soak.
• After letting it sit for 10-15 minutes, try flexing the material around the stain to loosen the ground in dirt.  Alternate flexing and soaking until the stain is removed or you no longer see progress.
• If necessary, pre-treat the area again and launder according to the care label’s directions.
• Once it has run through the washing machine, check the area to make sure the stain has been removed before placing it in the dryer.  If it hasn’t, try repeating the process.
• As with any stain removing attempts, you need to know when to stop.  There comes a point where you could damage the fibers or pull the color. 

If you get to that stopping point, drop the item by one of our locations.  Our trained staff will be glad to take it from there.