How To Remove Chocolate Stains From Clothes

traditional bar of chocolate, there’s a good chance you may enjoy savouring a totally different way. The countless things that can be made from chocolate is testament to how much it is loved, and how easily available we’ve made it to ourselves! 

Now, you are probably aware of the fact that handling chocolate can quickly turn into a sticky affair, especially on a hot day! Besides this, accidents happen whether you are prone to clumsiness or not! Well, that’s exactly why we are here; because you or your kids have had the misfortune of spilling chocolate on your clothes. 

Under such circumstances, the first question you need to ask yourself is what type of fabric the clothing item is made of; if you’ve dropped chocolate onto a dry-clean only piece of clothing, it’s best to stick to a dry-cleaning, as opposed to using any of the methods below. 

For other fabrics, however, you should be able to tackle a chocolate stain on clothes without too much effort. Before we dive into the process itself, there is some crucial information to know about what cleaning products are suitable and effective in getting chocolate out of clothes. Read below.

What You’ll Need + Things to Keep in Mind

• Depending on the fabric in question, either an enzyme detergent or a mild detergent is recommended for chocolate stains on clothing. Enzyme detergents are designed to tackle stains caused by anything biodegradable like food, drinks, grass, etc, while mild detergents are intended to be gentle on skin and fabrics. The latter is best suited for more delicate fabrics like silk and wool.
• While a good detergent is the best way to remove chocolate stains on fabric, an ingredient like baking soda can also be used to lift the stain from clothes.
• Hydrogen peroxide is another good option, however, you will need to combine it with liquid dish soap in order for it to be effective. 
• Besides this, we’ll be using oxygen bleach to help prevent any staining. Not being your standard chlorine bleach, oxygen bleach is generally safe on coloured fabrics, and is used in the final wash for this purpose.
• Finally, a spoon or a dull knife will be necessary to lift any excess chocolate off the fabric.

Along with the information above in mind, it’s important to note that you need to act fast with any stain, let alone a chocolate spill on fabric. With that, let’s dive into the cleaning methods used to get chocolate out of clothes.

How to Remove Chocolate Stains from Clothes

Irrespective of the type of fabric you have stained, the removal process must always begin with immediately taking off any excess chocolate on it. Using a dull knife or spoon, slide it against the fabric without rubbing the cloth too hard. The key is to not put too much pressure, and avoid spreading the chocolate while you scoop up, and lift off any and all extra chocolate from the affected area.

Once you have the excess chocolate lifted off, it’s time to begin treating the stain. At this point, you will need to flush the stain out with cold water. Simply hold the clothing under a faucet, and allow cold water to run through the stain (from behind the stain). This helps loosen up the chocolate in the fabric, making it easier to wash it out completely.

Next, depending on the material you are working with, you can use one of the methods listed below to effectively remove chocolate stains on clothes.

1. Using Detergent to Remove Chocolate From Cotton, Cotton Blends, Polyester, Spandex, or Nylon

Once flushed well, soak the garment in enzyme detergent by following the instructions that are provided on the label of the product. Be sure to use cold water when making the detergent solution, and soak the garment in it for at least an hour. If the stain has been in the fabric for a while, it may be worth soaking overnight to really help get it out.

At the end of the soak, the clothing item must be washed regularly. A good tip is to apply more enzyme detergent to the stained area (if still visible), as well as to add a recommended amount of oxygen bleach to a regular wash cycle. At this stage, you want to use the hottest water that the fabric can handle. Allow the cycle to finish, and the chocolate stain should be removed in its entirety.

2. Using Detergent to Remove Chocolate From Wool, Silk, Linen, Rayon, or Acrylic

Following the same procedure of lifting the chocolate with a dull knife, and then flushing with cold water, you should now be ready to wash the stain out of your garment.

Choose a mild detergent, and mix it into a bucket or basin of water. Check the label for the mixing ratio to ensure that you are not adding too little, or too much to the water. Once you’ve made the solution, submerge the clothing in it, ensuring that the entire stained area gets soaked in the soapy water.

While in the detergent solution, squeeze the water through the stained area to really work the chocolate stain out of the fabric. You may need to do this repeatedly depending on how bad the stain is. However, once you notice that the mark is almost gone, or has been lifted completely, you can move on to a full wash.

Finally, just before you start the wash, it’s a good idea to rub a little detergent into the affected area for a more effective end result. Besides this, add oxygen bleach to the wash to help get rid of the chocolate stain entirely. 

3. Using Baking Soda to Remove Chocolate Stains

When using baking soda to get chocolate out of clothes, the only difference here is that instead of using a detergent to draw the stain out, you will be applying the powder to the wet stain to absorb the discolouration. Thereafter, soak the garment in a baking soda and water solution overnight (1 cup in 1 gallon of cold water). Bear in mind that this must all be done after scooping off the chocolate and flushing the stained area with cold water. The next morning, wash the garment as usual, and you should have no stain left behind.

4. Using Hydrogen Peroxide to Remove Chocolate Stains

Again, after the initial stain removal steps have been taken, make a solution of one part liquid dish soap, and two parts hydrogen peroxide. This solution must be applied to the affected area, and gently worked in before leaving the clothing item to soak in the solution for about 10 minutes. Follow this up with a regular wash as per the garment’s wash label, and you should be good to go! 

With that, you should be easily prepared to handle chocolate stains on any type of fabric. Remember, a little patience goes a long way when dealing with stains on clothes (like tomato sauce stains), so you will definitely want to follow these instructions carefully to safely and effectively get chocolate out of your clothes! If you have chocolate stains on other home fabric areas, like carpets, upholstered couches or mattresses. You can hire our carpet steam cleaning service to have your fabrics looking brand new.