Laundry question

cgtheisen · 2015-09-13T07:04:55+02:00

Discover effective methods to remove sunscreen stains from white linen shirts in Vietnam. Share solutions and product recommendations!

cgtheisen Member

Member since 10 August 2015

cgtheisenMember13 September 2015 05:04:55

Ok, so I'm hoping someone has figured this out already. My nice new tailored white linen shirts are getting yellowish brown stains (horrible looking) all around the collars and cuffs due to sunscreen stains. I looked online and western nation forums recommend things like "Barkeeper's Friend" or "CLR", both of which have a strong acid that breaks down hard water deposits on your sink/toilet, but also works to disintegrate sunscreen in your clothes quickly. Since Vietnam doesn't seem to have an equivalent I used a strong vinegar solution on one shirt and dish soap on another (both also recommended in the forums), neither of which seem to work.

Has anyone found a product to get the sunscreen stains out of white shirts here in Vietnam? Bleach seems to do nothing, nor does hanging the shirt in the sun for days. I'd hate to throw these shirts out and new shirts will only have the same problem since I'm not going to stop wearing sunscreen.聽 I also had a brown linen shirt made, but my wife thinks I look like a cross between a monk and a UPS man in it so I can't go that route.

cgtheisen Member

Member since 10 August 2015

cgtheisenMember13 September 2015 09:58:21

Update:
After 24 hours of soaking one shirt in a 3/2 vinegar/water mix and 12 hours of soaking another in dish soap/water:
(Out of 10, with 0 being no difference and 10 being completely clean)
Vinegar - 4 (stains diminished somewhat)
Dish soap - 7 (stains not well-defined any more and just a dingy kind of white left behind)

Looks like dish soap wins so far.