How to Remove Blood Stains from Clothes

Have you ever put on a shirt with a Phil Cplins photo album and had to let go of the Christian Bale image in your heart? Hopefully never like that. But no matter what, you need to deal with blood stains on your shirt. Doesn’t have to be thrown away. Take action now. Here’s all you need to do.

Table of Contents

With Fresh Blood

Soak or soak in cold water. If the blood stains are small, simply soaking them with water will help remove them. But if the stain looks like a river of blood red, soak it all in water. The important thing here is that the water is “cold”. Any method you are doing should use cold water – hot water will make the stain stick harder.

If available, add 2 tablespoons of salt or ammonia solution. ^{[1] X Research Source} Dishwashing liquid or laundry bleach may also be a good choice.

For darker fabrics, scrub with bar soap. For lighter fabrics, hydrogen peroxide can be used (this also acts as a bleach). Gently rub the stain. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Be careful with hydrogen peroxide! This is a bleach, so it can fade fabrics. Let’s do a little check first.

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Wash as usual. Then what you need most is luckier Lady Macbeth; in other words, the blood stain should disappear. However, if you didn’t treat the blood stains when they were new then you need to use some tricks.

Using the Solution with Salt

Add 1 cup of salt to 2 liters of water. Stir until the salt is dissolved. For extremely small blood stains, use an equally small amount of the mixture.

Soak the stain in the mixture for half an hour. You’ll probably turn the cloth over and over in the mixture, but there’s really no need to. Just soak the stain in the mixture and leave it alone.

After 30 minutes, check the stain. Rub the back and front of the cloth with your hands. Is the stain still there? If it is, apply some soap and continue scrubbing again. How’s the stain now?

It’s very likely that the stain has COMPLETELY Gone. At least only a faint shadow remained.

Wash as usual. If the salt mixture worked like magic, the stain would be nothing but a memory of the past. If the stain is still clinging to the fabric, try some of the other methods listed in this article.

Using Ammonia

Spray or apply a small amount of stain remover to the fabric. Alternatively, you can use some bleach. Soak the stain in bleach. Please increase the amount of bleach and soaking time.

Pour a little dilute ammonia on the stain and leave it there. Ammonia is a strong solution and is great for stubborn stains. It will be easier to handle when you use cotton gauze, or a rag. If you don’t have an ammonia solution, consider a few that you have at home: ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Saline (poured directly on the stain)

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Vinegar (poured or soaked in stains)

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Baking soda (2 parts water, 1 part baking soda, blot the stain)

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Saliva (works best with silk ^{[4] X Research Source} )

Wash as usual. Use specialized enzyme bleach to remove stubborn stains. You are advised to use a product such as OxyClean.

Once the stain is gone, it is essential to dry it off. However, the heat will harden the stain – so if the stain persists, don’t leave it in the heat. If they don’t go away after two or three methods, you may have to give up.

Use Hydrogen Peroxide

If the blood stain is fresh, blot with a paper towel. Make sure you don’t press the fabric together – or the stain will spread elsewhere.

Carefully absorb gently. Don’t rub too much or scrub too hard – this will fix the stain faster.

Pour hydrogen peroxide directly onto the stain. ^{[5] X Research Source} This substance can damage some fabrics, so be careful. If the fabric you’re dealing with can handle it, pour some hydrogen peroxide into the bottle cap then pour it directly onto the stain. The spot will bubble up – this is a sign the substance is starting to work!

After the hydrogen peroxide has worked on the fabric, do you see any more stains? If so, continue with the same procedure as before and add hydrogen peroxide again. Repeat until the stain is almost gone.
If you are concerned, dilute the hydrogen peroxide with a little water.

If the stain is stubborn, use your hands to rub the hydrogen peroxide onto the stain. This will help to work directly on the cloth so that stubborn stains can be reached. For large stains that are already firmly attached, such rubbing is necessary.

Use stain remover and wash as usual. Really, you only need stain remover if blood stains remain. Wash as usual – but don’t dry the fabric until you’re sure the stain is gone. The heat will permanently fix the stain on the fabric.

Use Lemon Juice and Baking Soda

Make a mixture of 2 parts lemon juice and 1 part water. ^{[6] X Research Source} Stir well.

Pour the mixture directly onto the stain. ^{[7] X Research Source} Use your hands to gently rub the stains to treat them.

If the stain does not dissolve, apply baking soda paste to the stain. Using cold water, make a paste of 2 parts baking soda to 1 part water. Apply the mixture directly to the stain and let it sit for about half an hour. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

Remove the paste and blot with a paper towel or damp cloth. Thanks to that, the stain will completely disappear. If the tissue or cloth is soaked, replace it with another one.

Wash as usual. If there are only a few stubborn stains, wash with a cup of vinegar. ^{[9] X Research Source} This method will help remove stains without affecting the color of the fabric.

Hanging clothes outdoors. It’s best to avoid extreme temperatures, you won’t be able to tell if there are any stains left when the fabric is soaked in water. If the stain persists, simply switch to another method!

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Advice

Hydrogen peroxide can be used to treat blood stains using a dropper, but can damage fabrics. So first dilute it with 50% water.
As soon as you spot the stain, use bleach and soak the stain for a few minutes, or if it’s stubborn, soak it overnight.
To remove blood stains from clothes right away but you can’t wash them right away (maybe at a gathering); if this happens, remove your clothes, wet the fresh stain, place a damp cloth, towel, or paper towel under the stain and then lay the garment on a flat surface. Now take a wet cloth, towel, or other paper towel and blot the stain vigorously several times. This can cause the water in the towel to seep into the garment/clothing, and the blood stain will then seep into the towel. Use some soap and ask your best friend to help you.
Sprinkle some baking soda, salt, and meat tenderizer on the blood stain and let it sit for about half an hour before washing to help clean up the stain. The products used in this process work to remove stains by dissolving any remaining blood stains on clothing, if the food stain remover you’re thinking of has the same effect as the three products. All of the above products can be tried! This method seems better because you don’t have to worry about fabric fading, like when you use hydrogen peroxide or bleach.
Many standard laundry detergents today contain enzymes that will help dissolve blood stains.

Warning

Remember that blood stains will still show up under a dark light even if you have used some chemicals.
At all costs avoid using hot water. The heat will make the blood stain permanent.
Know and isolate the cause of the blood stain to prevent further risks. If unsure, always wear protective gloves while handling the stain. Taking safe precautions will help you avoid the possibility of blood-borne diseases. Not everyone is always safe.
Be careful with the fabric you are handling! Remember that blood is protein. If you use meat tenderizer or enzymes for animal products (wool, silk) you may be destroying the texture of the fabric.
If you are involved in any illegal activity in which there is blood on your clothes, it is against the law to attempt to remove the blood stain and not report it to the police.

Things you need

Method One: With Fresh Bloodstains

Fabric (to absorb)
Salt or ammonia (if available)
Bar soap (for dark stains)
Cold water

Method Two: Using the Solution with Salt

Salt
Cold water
Tissue or cloth

Method Three: Use Ammonia

Stain remover
Ammonia/bleach
- Other options: baking soda, salt potion, vinegar, saliva
Hydrogen peroxide/bar soap
Cold water

Method Four: Use Hydrogen Peroxide

Cloth or tissue
Hydrogen peroxide
Cold water
Stain remover

Method Five: Use Lemon Juice and Baking Soda

Lemon juice
Cold water
Baking Salt
Cloth or tissue
Vinegar

Steps