My basement flooded due to rain, with sewers over-flowing from outside and creek over-flow as well. What do I use to wash everything down with so it will be disinfected?

Below is information on disinfecting your basement with Clorox^® Regular-Bleach, but first I want to remind you how to work safely with bleach to solve such a severe problem. Because you have such a large area to clean, it is important you wear protective clothing and eyewear. A long sleeved shirt and pants that you can disinfect with bleach when you are finished are fine, and you can get some goggles at your local hardware store. You should also wear gloves, and be sure your basement is well ventilated while you are working.

From the Clorox^® Regular-Bleach EPA master label:

It is critical that your basement be allowed to thoroughly dry, and you may need a de-humidifier to accomplish that. Also, note that these instructions are for non-porous walls. If your basement is finished with sheetrock, you will need to remove the wallboard down to the studs to determine if the floodwaters seeped into the walls, and if necessary treat the area with the bleach solution to prevent future mold and mildew growth. More than one treatment may be desirable to complete the process, and remember that it is critical that everything be rinsed and allowed to dry thoroughly (use a de-humidifier if necessary). Finally, all other items in the basement should be treated with the disinfecting solution per above (check for bleachability on any items/areas of concern), or disposed of.

What is the best way to remove stains from a colored football jersey?

It is almost football season and this is a very common problem thanks to two-a-days and preseason games! Treatment really depends on the fiber composition. Dyed cottons are much more prone to bleeding/dye transfer and should always be washed separately according to the garment’s care label (usually in cool water). This makes it much more difficult to get really clean, however. So, scanning items for stains/spots and pretreating before washing is a must for any colored item. For colored synthetics (polyester/nylon), you usually have more flexibility as the dyes are more "permanent" and can take more aggressive treatment and washing. Use the warmest wash recommended on the care label (the hotter the water the better the cleaning/stain removal), the recommended amount of detergent and consider adding the appropriate bleach. A lot of these items can be bleached. To find out which items can safely be bleached, I recommend consumers do the quick Bleachability Test (2 tsp Clorox^® Regular-Bleach in 1/4 cup water; apply a drop on a hidden colored area like inside seam, hemline or cuff; wait 1 minute and then blot with towel). No color change means it is safe to use bleach on the item. Any color change could also show you the amount of change in color that likely will occur if you proceed with the liquid bleach usage. If you can't bleach the items, wash in the hottest water recommended on the care labels using detergent and an oxygen bleach like our Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster, or even a short 1/2 hour presoak in the oxygen bleach before the wash. Check for success before drying. It might require multiple treatments to get the desired result.

What is the best way to remove baby oil from clothing?

For stains that are concentrated oils, you can pre-treat with a small amount of liquid dishwashing detergent (like Dawn). Apply it directly to the stain, rub it in and then wait 5 minutes. This helps solubilize the oil. Then, if the stained item is white and does not contain spandex, wash in the hottest water recommended on the item’s care label with detergent + ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach. Or, if the item is colored, wash with detergent + Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster. Washing in hot water is very important as this also aids in breaking up the oil for better removal. Air-dry the items so you can check for success, and repeat if any oil remains.

What is the best way to remove marshmallow from clothing?

S’mores are a summer campfire staple, but they sure can be a sticky mess! Fortunately marshmallows are mostly sugar, water, and gelatin, and dissolve rather easily in water. You can also presoak the item in a detergent and water solution prior to washing for an extra cleaning boost. Add a few tablespoons liquid detergent to a gallon of warm water and fully submerge the item for 5-10 minutes. Next, pour off the soaking solution and wash the item in the hottest water recommended on the care label. Air dry the item and check for success--it's always a good idea to keep a stained item you are working on out of a hot dryer until you know the stain is all the way out so you can repeat a treatment if necessary to get a stain all the way out.

How can I remove a sunscreen stain from red and navy cotton t-shirts that remained after washing?

During summer, this is a very common stain! I suspect the oily part of the sunblock formula is what remains on your shirts, and you should be able to get this out as long as the shirts have been kept out of the dryer. Try applying a little liquid dishwashing detergent directly to the stains, and gently rub it in. Wait 5 – 10 minutes (but don’t let it dry on the fabric!) and then wash the shirts in hot water and a good detergent. Air dry the shirts and check for success—this is important to not heat-set stubborn oily stains that would come out all the way with an additional treatment. Also, air drying will help preserve the color of your dark t-shirts.

What is the best way to remove spaghetti sauce splatter from a natural, white cotton knit shirt?

Spaghetti sauce recipes can vary, but usually the stain is a combination of both oil and tomato solids. If you treat the oily part first, your chances of success go way up. Start by applying a little liquid laundry detergent or liquid dishwashing detergent directly to the stain. Gently rub it in and wait 5 minutes – this helps solubilize the oil. Rinse the treated area, and then pre-treat any stain remaining a second time to get rid of the colored part of the stain. How you do this depends on the color and fiber content of the item you are washing.

For items that are white (and don’t contain any wool, silk, spandex, mohair, or leather), apply a little Clorox^® Bleach Pen Gel directly to the stain. Wash immediately in the warmest water recommended on the garment care label with detergent + ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach. Air dry the item to check for success – you want to avoid heat setting the stain in a hot dryer. Repeat the above steps if you don’t quite get all the stain out.

For items that are colored (or have fibers that shouldn’t be bleached, per above), apply a little liquid Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster directly to the stain.  Rub in and wait 3-5 minutes, but don’t let it dry on the fabric, then proceed to wash in the warmest water recommended on the garment care label with detergent + more Clorox2^®. Air dry and check for success – retreat if any stain remains.

What is the best way to remedy sour smelling colored towels?

No one likes a smelly towel, but with the increased use of towels during the summer, it can really stink! I get this question a lot, especially from people with HE washers. Smelly towels usually indicate that there is soil build-up inside the inner workings of your clothes washer that harbors odor-causing bacteria. The odors transfer from the washer to your laundry, and it is particularly noticeable on towels once they get wet. Here are several ways to address the problem:

1. Clean out your washer.  Run an empty washer through a clean-out cycle with hot water and ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach (or fill dispenser to the “max fill” line).  Select the extra rinse option if your machine offers this; otherwise run an extra rinse cycle when the first cycle is complete. Depending on how bad the build-up is, it might take running several clean-out cycles with bleach to fully clean the washer. To keep the problem from coming back, run a clean out cycle with bleach once a month.  Washing at least one white load with bleach per week will also help.

2. Check your towels for bleach colorfastness. Some colored towels can be safely bleached — find out if yours can with a quick bleachability test: add 2 teaspoons Clorox^® Regular-Bleach to ¼ cup water; apply a small drop to a hidden part of the towel, such as under the care label; wait 1 minute then blot dry; no color change means you can safely bleach the towel.  If your towels pass, bleaching them regularly will eliminate odor causing bacteria on the towels. You can just add them to your white load along with your other bleachables.

3. Wash in hot water. The hotter the water, the better the cleaning.  This is especially important for towels that can’t be bleached!

4. Dry towels immediately following the wash cycle. Any item that sits around damp is providing the optimum environment for mildew growth. Be sure to select enough drying time so that towels dry completely, too.

What is the best way to remove yellow printer ink from blue jeans?

Ink is an extremely difficult stain to remove given how concentrated printer ink is--but it's still worth giving a little hand sanitizer a try to break up the stain so it will be easier to get it out. Also, a lot of denim can be safely laundered with Clorox^® Regular-Bleach and not lose much color. If the jeans are no longer wearable anyways, it cannot hurt to try! Here's how to proceed:

1. Apply alcohol-based hand sanitizer to the stain and let it soak in for a few minutes.

2. Wash in the hottest water allowed (check the care label) with detergent and ¾ cup Clorox^® Regular-Bleach.

3. Allow the shirt to air dry and check for success.

The biggest problem with a stain like this is that the ink is super concentrated and may require multiple treatments to get the stain out. Therefore, it’s really important to air dry the blue jeans following any repeated washing until the stain is gone. Also, you will know pretty quickly if the hand sanitizer is effective on printer ink, and if not, maybe you have a new pair of pants for painting and yard work.

How can you remove a red Popsicle stain out of a swimsuit?

With sweltering heat all over the country right now, it is hard to resist a popsicle! Red stains can be particularly difficult to remove, but I would try the following:

1. Apply liquid Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster directly to the stain, and rub it in.


2. Wait 3 - 5 minutes -- don't let it dry on the fabric!


3. Wash in the hottest water recommended on the care label with detergent + more Clorox2^®.

You could also try a Clorox2^® pre-soak (if there are two pieces soak them together) using a capful of Clorox2^® added to 2 gallons of warm water. Allow the item to soak for 30 minutes, then wash as directed above.

Is there a way to remove lip balm from clothing that it melted onto in the wash?

Wax can be easily removed from many fabrics by heating it slightly so it will transfer from the fabric and absorb onto a brown paper bag. If the clothing has been through the dryer, the wax has likely worked its way into the fabric so it could be more difficult to remove, but you can still give the following a try.

1.  Scrape away as much of the wax as possible with a dull knife.  Look for wax both inside and outside the pocket, too.

2.  Cut open a brown paper grocery (light weight) or lunch bag.  Be sure the bag does NOT have any wax coating on it!

3.  Place the bag over the wax spot (and inside the pocket if there is wax inside it, too), and then gently press with a dry iron on its LOWEST heat setting.  You should see dark brown splotches appear on the bag as the wax is absorbed.

4.  Reposition a fresh part of the bag over the wax spot (and replace brown paper inserted into the pocket with fresh paper) and gently press again with the iron.  Repeat until no more wax absorbs onto the bag.

5.  Pretreat any remaining stain (this is likely since the balm also contains natural oils) by applying Clorox2^® Stain Fighter and Color Booster directly to the stain.  Wait 3-5 minutes, then wash in the hottest water recommended on the care label with detergent + Clorox2^®.  Air dry and check for success—repeat if necessary.

Brown paper bags are nice to work with to capture wax because it is very easy to see the wax absorb onto the bag. If the fabric is synthetic, it’s also important to work with the iron on its lowest heat setting so you don’t melt the fabric. Iron temperatures vary, so you may be able to slightly raise the heat setting if necessary to melt the wax—just do this carefully so as not to damage/melt the clothing. It’s always good to avoid trading one problem for another.