Yellow Arm Pit Stains.. What's a Mom to do?

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yellowbird

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My teenage daughter has to wear a white polo shirt to school. In the wintertime she has to wear a sweater over it… but in mid-April the sweater rule is lifted. She just noticed that ALL of her white polos have yellow stains under the armpits and she very tearfully insisted she CANNOT wear them to school like that because people will make fun of her.

What’s a Mom, who is apparently laundry-challenged to do? I tried washing them in Tide, very warm water and 1 cup of bleach. They look nice & white… except for the pits, which are still quite yellow. I don’t want to have to buy new polos with only 6 weeks of school left…

Any ideas?
 
yellowbird said:
My teenage daughter has to wear a white polo shirt to school. In the wintertime she has to wear a sweater over it… but in mid-April the sweater rule is lifted. She just noticed that ALL of her white polos have yellow stains under the armpits and she very tearfully insisted she CANNOT wear them to school like that because people will make fun of her.

What’s a Mom, who is apparently laundry-challenged to do? I tried washing them in Tide, very warm water and 1 cup of bleach. They look nice & white… except for the pits, which are still quite yellow. I don’t want to have to buy new polos with only 6 weeks of school left…

Any ideas?
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It could be her deodorant. My husband had that happen to his white undershirts and no matter what I did, I couldn’t get it out ( sorry). But he changed deodorant and it stopped happening. Undershirts aren’t too expensive to replace so it wasn’t a huge deal for us, but I understand why you wouldn’t want to replace her shirts now.
Are they all white? I remember my aunt washing my cousins white football pants in dishwasher detergent, becareful, because it will take color out of things very easily!! ( I got it on my shirt the one day while loading the dishwasher, to the color out right then and there!!!) But you could try that.
 
Vinegar is supposed to do the trick. Add it to your wash water when you put in the detergent. You can also google Mary Ellen’s helpful hints for other ideas. Martha Stewart has things like this too.

Or you could go buy shirts in the next size up for next year and let her start wearing them now.
 
*You could try soaking in a bleach/baking soda compound, that ‘sometimes’ helps. But, once a stain is permanently on there like that, it’s tough to get out…after being washed over several times. I have always wanted to try oxyclean…that might work?

After all the product cost and efforts, it might be easier to just buy new. 😃 *
 
happymommy said:
It could be her deodorant. My husband had that happen to his white undershirts and no matter what I did, I couldn’t get it out ( sorry). But he changed deodorant and it stopped happening. Undershirts aren’t too expensive to replace so it wasn’t a huge deal for us, but I understand why you wouldn’t want to replace her shirts now.
Are they all white? I remember my aunt washing my cousins white football pants in dishwasher detergent, becareful, because it will take color out of things very easily!! ( I got it on my shirt the one day while loading the dishwasher, to the color out right then and there!!!) But you could try that.
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*Thanks for posting this, my dh has the same issue with undershirts…and we couldn’t figure it out…what deodorant does your dh use, may I ask? lol 😃 I’d like to pass that along to my dh!! *
 
According to an article I once read, armpit stains are often a chemical stain from the deodorant; you need to wait to put on the shirt until the deodorant is dry.

And, an apparent second problem, bleach can combine with perspiration to stain the shirt. So try not bleaching the shirts.
 
A few things to try, but once you’ve dried these in the dryer, the stain is often “set”.

Stain removal mixture:
1 C Clorox II powder
1 C Cascade dishwasher detergent
several gallons of HOT water (I do this in my washer)
Mix the soaps up in the washer with hot water and let sit overnight. Wash as usual.

Vinegar is also good at getting these stains out, but I think best if you soak the shirts in the vinegar for a bit of time.

For any stain removal to really work well, you have to scrub the stain with whatever remover you are using. You can’t just apply and wash. It needs to be scrubbed and sit for at least 10 min.
 
In the future, she can wear a white undershirt to as an absorbant barrier. This will keep the stains OFF the white polo.
 
Maybe just buy 2 or so white polos to get her through the rest of the school year…and like a pp said, it wouldn’t hurt to buy them a little big so she’ll be able to wear them next year. 👍
 
The undershirt is a good idea. On my hubby’s chef coats, which can get just awful as you might imagine, I use a Fels-Naptha bar and a brush to treat the really bad stuff, then soak in Oxi Clean overnight (or so) before washing.
 
Ahhh, Fels-naptha, that’s what I forgot. You really need to scrub that into the stain, but it can work WONDERS!! Find it in the laundry aisle of many stores.
 
Good ole hydrogen peroxide. It works on any sort of organic stain… blood, armpits, whatever.

However, it will take color out of everything. Put it on the stain, and if it bubbles, it’s doing the trick. If it doesn’t, the stain is too set and you won’t be able to get them out.

in Christ
Steph
 
whatevergirl said:
*Thanks for posting this, my dh has the same issue with undershirts…and we couldn’t figure it out…what deodorant does your dh use, may I ask? lol 😃 I’d like to pass that along to my dh!! *
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I’ll have to ask him and get back to you, I don’t remember…

He uses Degree now and doesn’t have any trouble.
 
You could try oxyclean - it gets out a lot of stains. I would just go for the two new shirts. Maybe they are on sale now that it’s the end of the year…
 
**

Is it a Perspiration Stain or Deodorant/Antiperspirant Stains?​

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It can sometimes be confusing as to whether that underarm or armpit stain is from perspiration or deodorant/antiperspirant. If the stain is yellow or green in color and has a crunchy or crispy texture, it’s due to perspiration. If the stain, however, is white or clear with a greasy texture, it’s due to the antiperspirant and should be treated as a grease stain with the appropriate solvent
**
mrscleannw.com/tips/perspiration-stain.html

Here’s a search. Try each one til you see what works.

google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&aq=s0&oq=removing%20yellow%20armpit&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4RNWE_enUS309US309&q=removing+yellow+armpit+stains
 
HouseArrest said:
You could try oxyclean - it gets out a lot of stains. I would just go for the two new shirts. Maybe they are on sale now that it’s the end of the year…
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This is what I’m going to do… just get the 2 new shirts. And to avoid this problem in the future, I’m hoping that if pre-treat them before washing, they won’t set.

Thanks all! 🙂

But while we’re on the subject of arm pit issues, I have noticed that since I’ve had children I sweat alot more than I used to? Maybe it’s hormones (although my baby is 3?) or maybe it’s age but when I get the least bit nervous in social situations I find myself noticably sweating. It’s embarassing to be at church or whatever and have wet spots under my arms. Does anyone else have this problem and if so, what do you do? I had ordered some disposable “dress shields” but they didn’t really stick.

Any thoughts?

And can I just say that this is what I LOVE about Catholic Answers… I really feel like I can ask you guys just about anything! :o
 
Spray and Wash Stain Stick - this is truly a miracle product.

Stain Stick

This stuff is truly amazing. You rub it on generously, get it into the fibers of the clothes. Let the item sit like this over night at least. Then soak it in the machine with Tide in the hottest water possible that won’t shrink the garment. Do NOT put it in the dryer until the stain is gone, you will set the stain if you dry it with heat.

I have used stain stick on all sorts of stains and it works better than anything else I’ve every used. The only thing that has ever come close is Lestoil - full strength on the stain, let it sit for about an hour, then wash as usual. Lestoil is great for greasy work clothes too. But for a white polo, try the stain stick routine first.

👍

~Liza
 
yellowbird said:
I have noticed that since I’ve had children I sweat alot more than I used to? Maybe it’s hormones (although my baby is 3?) or maybe it’s age but when I get the least bit nervous in social situations I find myself noticably sweating.
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Try switching brands of anti-perspirant. Sometimes they quit working. I alternate between secret and suave because I’m cheap.
 
My ex had a HORRIBLE problem with perspiration - we found this and it worked wonders for him. You don’t use it forever either, once it starts working you only need to use it occasionally.

Certain Dri

~Liza
 
Try dishwashing liquid directly on the stains. My hubby had a bunch of undershirts with armpit stains on them and the dishwasher liquid worked wonders.

My problem now are dingy whites. I now have one of those new energy efficient washers and am paranoid about what I can and cannot use in it.

Any suggestions?
 
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