How can I get rid of dark, set-in stains in tee-shirts?

Try putting Whisk on them fairly thickly and letting it sit for a while before washing. I haven’t used it in a while but my Mom always did for “ring around the collar.”

For white clothes: Mix together one part water, one part baking soda, and one part hydrogen peroxide to form a paste. Rub it onto the stain, let sit for about half an hour, and wash as usual with other white laundry.

For colored clothes: Rub Cascade (the dish detergent) granules into the stain and let it sit for half an hour. Wash as usual. I wouldn’t try this on anything delicate, but on cottons or other durable clothing it works.

Good luck!

Thanks ladies! I’ll try both of those immediately. :)

Some white perspiration stains will never come out. best to just replace them.

@john65pennington: As I stated in the question, many of these shirts are irreplaceable. Some were gifts, some I got at concerts, some are no longer being made. If I can save them, I’d prefer that.

Okay. i will admit i did not read all of your question, just the headline. my wife just suggested using white vinegar.

@MissAusten – Wow, I’m going to try that!

@john65pennington, I’ve also heard the white vinegar tip. You’re supposed to apply the vinegar and let it soak for a few minutes before washing.

@john65pennington: Tell your wife thanks from me. :)

@MissAusten: I don’t separate my whites and colors. If I use the water/baking soda/peroxide solution, will that hurt my color clothes?

@KatawaGrey: For future prevention, try using a paste of baking soda and water as an antiperspirant.

Peroxide is used, for example, to remove blood from clothes, sheets, and other textiles. I would test a small portion of your dark clothes in that ^^solution before laundering everything.

@KatawaGrey Try a glycerin soap. I came across one called moose wash (yes it was in the Adirondacks hence the name) that makes an amazing stain remover. It’s a bar soap.

@KatawaGrey I don’t normally separate whites from colors either, but when using something that might discolor the non-white clothes, I do it just to be on the safe side. I guess you could rinse the paste off the white clothes really well first, and then throw everything in the wash together.

I would recommend Nature’s Miracle, or a similar enzyme cleaner, if the above doesn’t work.

Another option if the shirts can’t be saved- get a shadow box and frame them. Good decoration for the dressing area- plus you get to look at them all the time and still enjoy them.

@gemiwing: I like the shadowbox idea for the shirts I can’t save!

You all have given me good advice. I will get back to everyone with how the various methods work.

When I have a shirt with stains that I cant remove anymore.

It gets tossed.

@ChazMaz: An all-cotton tee shirt makes the perfect rag for cleaning windows, glasses, dusting furniture and wiping stuff off car. I still have a few cloth diapers that are probably 41 years old. (You can’t substitute a Pampers.)

@ChazMaz: No need to repeat yourself. I didn’t say I couldn’t remove the stains and if you read the details of the question you’d note that I said that many of these shirts are irreplaceable which is why I am reluctant to throw them away.

There’s a fabulous stain remover called prosolve/resolve- I’ve never used it for sweat stains but it gets out red wine and old mustard!

Any of the non-bleach enzyme whiteners like OxyClean. They are specifically designed for that type of stain. Just soak the shirt overnight in a solution of water and powder mix, and then wash as usual.

A trick I use for grease stains is to get some of that grease-remover that mechanics use for their hands and work that into the stain, then wash as normal. There are various brands of it, but it usually comes in a small tub for less than $5 in the mechanic section of a general kind of store, or at a hardware store. It’s never harmed colors for me. It doesn’t work 100% of the time, but it works often enough that I use it regularly. If other things don’t work, this might. Mechanics know about grease!

I’m presuming here that pit stains are from skin oil combined with sweat. If not, maybe just file the idea away until you drop a french fry down your front, or something.

@laureth – Also aluminium chloride from anti-perspirants, which have a tendency to set in the fabric if they aren’t dealt with immediately after a wearing.

@aprilsimnel – Oh, okay, thanks. I haven’t used that stuff in so long, I forgot what it does.