Pomegranates are juicy and flavorful, but they can get messy. Lovers of pomegranates know that finishing your snack without getting stains all over your shirt is near impossible.
Fortunately, you can remove the stains with some household items or easily-gotten store-bought products.
It can take many tries to remove the stains because of the bright red color, but the items in this list or a combination can be successful.
How to Remove Pomegranate Stains
Attend to the stains the instant you get them. As difficult as it may be, drop your tasty fruit and start sorting the problem.
Turn the stained cloth inside out and rinse the stains with water to get some out, and keep it wet before you start treating. Dry stains are not an issue; they are still removable.
Before any stain treatment, perform a patch test on an innocuous part of the cloth to see how the fabric will react. Mainly, read the care label of the stained clothes and follow the specified wash instructions.
White Vinegar
White vinegar is the primary method of removing pomegranate juice stains for most people because it is a proven household cleaning agent, among other properties.
However, be careful when using vinegar to remove pomegranate juice stains from colored clothes. Vinegar is a brightening agent capable of replacing bleach in whitening clothes.
Perform a patch test on colored clothing before using vinegar to see if it causes discoloration.
Procedure:
- Turn the stained cloth inside out and rinse off excess pomegranate juice under cold running water.
- Lay the cloth on a flat surface to expose hidden stains.
- Pour equal parts white vinegar and water into a bowl and stir thoroughly.
- Saturate the stains with white vinegar and leave it to soak for ten minutes.
- Rinse the stains and place the cloth to wash in a washer with a suitable laundry detergent, following the clothes’ care label instructions.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.
Baking Soda
Baking soda is a necessary household item, not only for baking but for cleaning also. It is a powerful degreaser, deodorizer, and stain remover, capable of removing intense pomegranate stains.
Procedure:
- Remove any excess fruit or seeds from the stained clothes.
- Turn the cloth inside out and rinse the stains with cold water.
- Pour ½ a cup of hot water into a bowl and add two tablespoons of baking soda.
- Stir vigorously to form a homogenous paste.
- Place the stained cloth(es) on a flat surface.
- Pour the baking soda on the stains and work it into the fabric with your hand or a soft brush.
- Leave the paste to soak on the cloth.
- Rinse the area with cold water and place the clothes to wash in the washer with a suitable laundry detergent, following the clothes’ care label instructions.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.
Enzyme Detergent
Enzyme detergent is perfect for removing pomegranate juice because it targets certain stains, like protein stains, oil stains, carbohydrate stains, and many biological stains.
Many enzyme detergents are available, as enzyme laundry gains more prominence, with a formula that effortlessly removes stains while protecting and preserving the fabric of the clothes.
Procedure:
- Remove any excess fruit or seeds from the stained clothes.
- Turn the cloth inside out and rinse the stains with cold water.
- Place the stained clothes on a flat surface to expose hidden stains.
- Pour the enzyme detergent on the stains and soak for ten minutes.
- Rinse the detergent and place the clothes in the washer for a normal wash cycle, following the clothes’ care label.
- Pour the recommended amount of enzyme detergent into the washer.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.
Dish Soap
It is a wonder the variety of stains that dish soap deals with daily, yet the soap doesn’t affect us as we use plates and utensils.
Regular dish soap is capable of removing pomegranate juice stains without destroying the clothes’ fabric, and it’s convenient because it is close.
Although, you should still perform a patch test to be sure.
Procedure:
- Remove any excess fruit or seeds from the stained clothes.
- Turn the cloth inside out and rinse the stains with cold water.
- Place the stained clothes on a flat surface to expose hidden stains.
- Mix two tablespoons of dish soap with warm water and stir till they combine.
- Pour a generous amount on the stains and gently scrub with your fingers or a soft brush.
- Leave the soap to soak for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Rinse the soap and place the clothes to wash in the washer with a suitable laundry detergent, following the clothes’ care label instructions.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.
Salt
Salt is a mild, non-toxic abrasive capable of removing certain stains from clothing with durable fabric; delicate fabrics might not fare well with abrasives.
You can effectively remove pomegranate juice stains with salt.
Procedure:
- Remove any excess fruit or seeds from the stained clothes.
- Turn the cloth inside out and rinse the stains with cold water.
- Place the stained clothes on a flat surface to expose hidden stains.
- Pour a generous amount of salt on the wet stains and gently scrub with a soft brush. The juice stains will gradually remove as the salt dissolves into the fabric.
- Leave the salt to sit on the clothes for 15 minutes and then rinse it out with water.
- Wash the clothes on a normal wash cycle with a suitable laundry detergent, following the clothes’ care label instructions.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.
Lemon Juice and Vinegar
It may seem weird to use a fruit juice to clean another fruit juice stain, but lemon juice is an effective stain remover. Lemon juice is a bleaching agent, and it removes stains by bleaching the area, making it unsuitable for colored clothes.
Another disadvantage of lemon juice is that it might not remove dry stains; use it the instant the spill occurs.
Adding vinegar to lemon juice severely increases its cleaning properties.
Procedure:
- Remove any excess fruit or seeds from the stained clothes.
- Turn the cloth inside out and rinse the stains with cold water.
- Place the stained clothes on a flat surface to expose hidden stains.
- Mix the juice from two lemons or a ¼ cup of lemon juice with ¼ cup of white vinegar.
- Apply the mixture to the stains and soak for 15 minutes.
- Rinse the clothes and place them in the washer with a suitable laundry detergent, following the clothes’ care label instructions.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.
Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen Peroxide has many uses; it treats wounds, cleans clothes, sanitizes surfaces, etc. As a cleaning agent, hydrogen peroxide acts as a mild oxidizing bleach, a milder form of regular bleach.
Hydrogen peroxide is effective in removing plant-based stains like the ones gotten from pomegranate juice. Since hydrogen peroxide is a bleach, albeit a mild and more environmentally friendly one, you should investigate its effects on colored clothing before proceeding with this method.
Avoid mixing hydrogen peroxide with vinegar – to get a potent stain remover – the combination produces toxic fumes. Conversely, mixing hydrogen peroxide with any bleach is redundant because it will break down the hydrogen peroxide into water.
Procedure:
- Remove any excess fruit or seeds from the stained clothes.
- Turn the cloth inside out and rinse the stains with cold water.
- Place the stained clothes on a flat surface to expose hidden stains.
- Pour hydrogen peroxide on the stains and leave it to soak for three minutes and not a second more.
- After three minutes, rinse the clothes with cold running water.
- Place the clothes to wash in the washer with a suitable laundry detergent, following the clothes’ care label instructions.
- Repeat the process if there are remnant stains.