Heather says:
It sounds as though the acids and salts from your husband’s sweat are reacting with the dyes of your sheets. Rest assured the stains you see aren’t lingering dirt, it’s a chemical change. Since cranking down the AC is an expensive and wasteful solution I highly recommend switching to white sheets and spraying his side of the bedding with a vinegar / water solution before laundering. Do not use chlorine bleach, but an oxygen bleach such as Oxyclean may be a product worth trying to keep your new white sheets from yellowing.
If you aren’t ready to shell out for new sheets simply make the bed and use pillow shams. If your husband tends to be a heavy sweater, make sure you use a high quality mattress pad to protect your mattress. Good luck.
Send your household questions to helpme@home-ec101.com.
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{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
We’ve had this same problem on pillowcases…I finally figured out that a drooling husband + whitening toothpaste = bleached out/discolored pillowcases.
Next time we’re due for new sheets…I’m going to go the white route.
My spouse also discolors the sheets, but I think it is oily skin more than anything. He does not wear shirts to bed, and to me, it looks like I have oil cloth sheets after a while. I still have no solution to it. The mattress cover also gets stained badly as well. Any recommended solution for oily sheets?
*Grin* same here. I just shrig my shoulders, know that the sheets are clean when washed, they are under the covers, and I make sure the stained side stays on his side of the bed. >: )
I find that baking soda in the wash helps with the oilyness.
thanks for the informative responses from all of you,great info just in these comments.
We have the same problem, only we have white sheets, so I’m not sure what kind of chemical reaction would be occurring. I’ve tried soaking them in vinegar, washing with baking soda, washing with bleach, etc. and nothing makes a difference. Is Oxy clean my only option now? Is it too late (have I permanently set the stain?)
Please help. These sheets were wedding presents and we’ve only been married 6 months and they are ruined!!
Although bleach is supposed to whiten, chlorine bleach is one of the worst things you can use to treat stains, even on white cotton fabric. The chlorine in household bleach will react with the proteins in perspiration and cause the remaining stain to darken even further. Start with oxy added laundry detergent or add hydrogen peroxide to your regular liquid detergent. If you are not successful there are a number of other things to try such as sunlight, vinegar and water, cream of tartar & asprin. See exact guidelines at: http://www.mrscleanusa.com/en/cleaning-tips/stain...
We’ve got blue sheets and they kept bleaching out, both on the pillow case and on the fitted sheet. Then a friend who used Proactiv said that she has a hard time finding sheets that won’t bleach out (she wears it at night), and I’ve figured that my husband using a similar product may be doing it. We’ll be going with white next time too.
By boyfriend is such a drooler!!! I have white pillows though… and he still leaves yellow spots. So I don't want to get white sheets… I'm thinking yellow sheets. So the yellow stains will blend in better. Ill let you know how it works out.
I have the same issue with my husband. White sheets turn yellow, too, and I’ve tried everything. An experiment with hydrogen peroxide – a powerful oxidant (as is OxyClean) – made the yellowing worse, revealing that this is a true oxidation reaction, the sheets are “rusting” – only with cotton it manifests as yellowing, like papers can yellow over time. Acids from the skin are at issue. Here’s an approach that will help:
1. Ask hubby to shower before coming to bed. Buy him an alkaline detergent bath bar to use, like Zest. Soap, moisturizing bars or washes make the problem worse.
2. Dust the sheets daily with cornstarch-based powder – these are sold as deodorants/sweat absorbers. Don’t use talcum powder near where you’re going to breathe – talc and lungs are a bad combination. Read the label. Many of these powders also contain baking soda – that’s even better.
3. Definitely use a quilted mattress cover, one that will breathe so moisture won’t build up, but also thick enough to soak up any sweat before it reaches the mattress.
I was able to slow down the process this way but not stop it entirely. White and green sheet seem to be the most affected by this condition, browns/oranges/reds seem to be the least affected. Of course, yellowing will show up least on really dark colors.
If sheets are really, really oily, normal detergents won’t get it out after a certain point. If yours have passed that point and you want to try to salvage them, try soaking the sheets in a solution of trisodium phosphate (TSP) and water. Use a “degreasing” dilution – read the box it comes in. TSP is a serious chemical and can cause burns – be sure to wear gloves (and an apron or old clothes) and keep kids and pets away. It probably won’t strip the dye in your sheets, but it could – be aware of that before you start. Pretesting may not reveal this, because you are dealing with a piece of damaged fabric, and not all parts of it may react the same way. After soaking (20 mins – 1 hr.), rinse thoroughly in a deep sink or bathtub (wear gloves) and then wash twice in the washer without detergent to remove any residue. (I learned this trick years ago, when dealing with a very elderly relative’s laundry.)
for stains I use calamansi and brush it with soap.
i found the Stop Sweating ebook with 60% discount at
http://hubpages.com/hub/stopsweatingandstartlivingeasily
My husband has a very oily complexion and I’ve never been able to get the stains out. I suspect my daughter has the same complexion. Maybe I’ll save this and print it out for when she sets up her own housekeeping. I simply gave in and bought separate sets of sheets. I have a pristine set for houseguests. And the clean but stained ones are for us.
We get this and it’s from spot treatments like Oxy10 or Clearasil Acne Cream. It’s like your body absorbs it and it’s excreted in your sweat and drool. I combat it with white white white and bleach!
It’s just something that comes with Hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating) territory. If your sweating is bad, chances are you’ve got some stubborn sweat stains on your light clothing.
I remember when my armpit sweat stains were so bad, I was buying white tee shirts like they were disposables.
It definitely took a toll on my wallet at the time.
Maybe you know where I’m coming from?
You get those gross yellow stains on your underarms and normal bleach or detergent just can phase them out during a normal laundry cycle.
It’s true, most pit stains are just way to tenacious to go away with regular washing methods.
Here, I’ll be outlining the most effective ways to get your shirts looking like new again and save you some cash on your undershirt shopping list.
So, let’s get started with the first method and get those pit stains out!
1. Using the Right Detergents
Use liquid laundry detergent containing either oxygenated ingredients or ones that remove most protein-based stains and apply it directly to the sweat stains. Then, with your fingers, gently rub the detergent deep into the shirt fibers to cover the entire stain. Let it soak into the material for about half an hour. Wash in the laundry afterwards as you normally would.
2. Hydrogen Peroxide
This one is for white articles of clothing only. Hydrogen peroxide breaks down the protein residue in sweat stains. The results? Applying hydrogent peroxide on white clothing keep your garments from turning dark or yellowish over the armpit area over time.
Here’s what you do…
Soak the stain in a half and half mixture of water and hydrogen peroxide for half an hour. After that, wash it out with cool water and let your shirt air dry. If the stain is still visible, repeat the treatment with higher concentrations of hydrogen peroxide.
I love this treatment because the hydrogent peroxide prevents that weird texture that sweat stains can give your clothing.
You know…
I’m talking about when sweat stains are so bad, the underarms of your tee shirts feel like construction paper – no good!
3. Baking Soda Paste
If you’ve been following my tips up to now, you’re probably sick of hearing me praise the power of baking soda! – hey what can I say? It’s the swiss army knife of sweat solutions!
Well, I have one more baking soda treatment for you – removing sweat stains. Yes, it works and yes, like most of this stuff, I’ve tested it out at home.
Here’s how to make baking soda eliminate your own sweat stains…
Mix a bit of baking soda with water until you have a thick paste. Then use a toothbrush to gently brush the paste into your clothing’s sweat stains.
Leave the paste saturating the stain for 20 minutes, then rinse it out with cold water and throw your garment into the laundry on a cold cycle with an oxygenating detergent.
Just a warning, sometimes the baking soda can leave a residue on clothing after the first cycle of washing so try to save this treatment for light clothing. It’s not that big a deal – sweat stains are usually more prevalent on light clothing anyway.
4. Sunshine and Spray
This one builds off of the original recommendation, choosing a detergent with oxygenated ingredients. Although, you can really add this extra step to whatever treatment you choose.
This solution does require a sunny day, so it’s not always an alternative.
However, if the sun is cooperative, here’s what you do…
After applying your approved detergent (or hydrogen peroxide) to the sweat stains, lay your article of clothing out in the sun. You can hang it up outside as well.
Keep the stain wet by spraying it with water. As the moisture evaporates, the stain will evaporate with it. After 3 or 4 hours of leaving the garment out and spraying intermittently (yes, this is a little bit of a chore), throw the article of clothing in the laundry on a cold water cycle. Wash it out and wear your perfectly unstained outfit.
5. White Vinegar
White vinegar works wonders on colored articles of clothing. Really, it’s the first treatment you should try if you’re trying to remove sweat stains from anything other than white or off-white garments.
You want to create a solution of two cups of water and four tablespoons of white vinegar. Start with that. It’s diluted enough to protect colors and contentrated enough to go to work.
Apply the diluted white vinegar solution directly to sweat stains before washing in the laundry to kill all offensive sweat odor, prevent changes in the texture of your clothing due to sweat AND keep colors vibrant. (is this starting to sound like a “Cheer” commercial or what? ha.)
Yes. A good oxidation agent will definately help rid yourself of yellowing from sweat. OxiClean and Clorox II are the most popular oxidizers.
how do i get sweat stains out of a pillow top mattress
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I have the same question — about removing perspiration stains from the mattress itself. Has anyone used a product and had success with it for this?
Whatever you do, be sure you use a pillow protector to keep the drool out of the filling.
My boyfriend had a set of pale blue cotton sheets that were really sweaty and then sat forgotten in a laundry basket for a few months… during this time the sweat oxidized into a gross dark beige-brown. I washed them twice and even soaked in 1/3 water, 2/3 vinegar for twelve hours with no results. Regular bleach didn't work either. The one thing that worked was concentrated chlorine pool shock! I dissolved 1 teaspoon in a bucket of warm water, and soaked for 3 hours (do this outside or keep a window open cause it's strong). The sheets are now completely white, but that's much better than the disgusting blue-brown-yellow they were before… use this technique at your own risk though since it's quite harsh and could ruin your material.
My boyfriend also ruins my bed sheets. The colored sheets look like someone threw clorox on them or have yellowed spots on them. Thanks for your comments, I thought he had a real bad disorder of some kind. I'm just glad he does not have a bad illness. I can put up with the sweating. I will buy only white sheets and save the nice color and decorative sheets fore company. Great – problem now solved…….
Why don't women contribute to this bedtime-sweat-stain phenomenon?