In my house, even when we used to use commercial detergents, stains are a fact of life. I’ll likely never be able to give away hand me downs because by the time clothes have made it through my kids, they either have holes or stains that can’t be fixed.
Of all the stain removers out there, OxiClean is the most natural option that I’ve found… but it is also one of the most expensive.
Thanks to Pinterest, I found a recipe for homemade OxiClean stain remover, and from my scientific testing (aka: my kids stains for two weeks) it seems to be as effective as the store bought stuff.
It’s also really easy and inexpensive to make! Please note that this is best made fresh and not stored. I keep the ingredients in my laundry area and mix small batches to use as needed.
Homemade OxyClean Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 parts water
- 1 part hydrogen peroxide
- 1 part washing soda
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients as needed to use them. I don’t recomend storing this mixture as it loses effectiveness.
- Use as a pre-treat spray on stains or add the entire mixture to a load of laundry, add water and let soak for 30 minutes before washing.
Notes
I use 2 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoon hydrogen peroxide, and 1 tablespoon washing soda. This is a liquid recipe and also reminds me somewhat of Shout spray.
Also, check out this recipe for homemade laundry detergent if you want to go complete DIY with your laundry.
What’s the weirdest stain you’ve ever had to get out? Ever made your own laundry supplies before? Share below!
Has anyone ever tried this on carpet? I have cream carpet and have used peroxide on it before but it’s a long process. I’m wondering, if I use it on carpet, do I have to “rinse” it off with a wet washcloth or can I just let it dry?
I don’t have any carpet, so I haven’t tried it, but hopefully someone else can let us know if it works!
A few days ago my son puked up strawberries on my cream carpet. I tried the vinegar and dish soap method a few times and it did lighten the stain but not get it up completely. I just tried this homemade “Oxy Cleaner” on it and IT WORKED!! I dabbed it on pretty heavily and then let it sit until I remembered to look over at it and the stain was gone! It might have been 1/2 hour or 45 minutes. I then took some cool water and dabbed it again to try to remove the excess treatment. It dosen’t look to have “bleached” any of the carpet strands that have color variations so I don’t think just leaving the treatment will cause damage but if it does I will leave another comment. In full disclosure my carpet is a Stainmaster carpet that is only 5 months old so I don’t know if that helped to release the stain more easily than another carpet. Good Luck!!
How long is this solution effective for? If it sits on the shelf for a while, does the effectiveness wear off? Just wondering, since this is a liquid solution and not a powder solution. Also, have you tried this on delicate fabrics?
Thanks!
I’ve tried on some delicates and it seems just fine. As long as it is in a dark colored opaque container it seems to last a long time. I use mine within a month, but it stays effective at least until then.
I just made a batch and the baking soda clogged my spray bottle nozzle. Do you have a tip for getting the baking soda to completely dissolve into the water/peroxide?
Thanks, ~J
Hmmm…. I haven’t had trouble with this, but maybe try warm water with the baking soda first and then add the peroxide? If you can’t get it to spray, it also works to pour on or to add to the wash water.
Baking soda and washing soda (called for in this recipe) are not the same thing.
Great recipe. I have a dog so there’s always stains to deal with.
I haven’t tried those yet Carrie since I didn’t want to spend the money if I didn’t have to. I just did a load with Oxy Clean and a vinegar rise so we’ll see how that goes {not getting my hopes up}. Although it’s below freezing the sun is out so after church I’ll let them see the light for awhile and maybe that’ll help ::fingers crossed::
I appreciate your help! If you find anything else, please let me know 😀
Is that 2c water, 1c peroxide and 1 c soda? just making sure. We have some nasty well water and even with the so-called filter, our clothes never seem clean.
yep… you got it! Well water is at least much healthier (usually)
for sure! I defininately don’t want city water! thanks for the clarification!
I am really enjoying your site. Made some of the garden bug spray tonite. We have some very determined bugs here in south Florida!
I’m 56 and have serious sun damaged skin, so I’m trying your advice on the coconut oil. I’ll let ya know if it helps, as nothing else has, and I’ve tried lots of products!
Have you also tried taking gelatin internally? It really helps rebuild skin too…
Just read an article that said that well water is the most toxic and harmful water in the world. Just sayin…
It depends on the well – it is contaminated from agricultural chemicals? does it naturally contain certain minerals because of the rocks? or is it super-duper, tasty and free of bad stuff? There is a lot of variation.
On the plus side for “municipal” water, it is often tested frequently, and few people test their own wells on a regular basis.
But then there can be poorly maintained systems, and as we see in Michigan and elsewhere, old pipes can result in lead in drinking water even when the water source itself wasn’t contaminated.
And then there are all the medications in wastewater that don’t get broken down by conventional sewage treatment plants… that treated water ends up in rivers, the ocean or on agricultural fields.
Have you ever used an enzyme cleaner like BumGenius Odor remover spray or Bac-out? I here they’re great to spray on cloth diapers and dirty clothes until you’re able to throw them in the wash. Do you think this would work as effectively?
Either way, I’m going to try it. Just like several others have said, I’ve been making my own detergent for a while and I’d love to use this to boost it’s effectiveness. Thanks for sharing!
After looking around a litle online I haven’t yet found the answer, but I did learn that you could also use Washing Soda in place of the baking soda. I have that on hand, so I’m going to try it instead 🙂
Yes! An enzyme spray works excellently against biological stains like food and pee. I use the enzyme spray marketed for pet stains because it’s cheaper.
With both kids, I had ammonia smell caused by urine residue. Using enough detergent is important, but even with high amounts of detergent I got the ammonia smell. With my first, I ended up chlorine bleaching the diapers regularly. With my second I sprayed the diapers with enzymes as they went in the wet bag and I haven’t needed to use chlorine bleach at all.
FWIW, the homemade detergent I’ve found to be best for diapers is 2 tsp dish soap and 2 Tbsp washing soda for a small load (not HE). Recipes using real soap left a residue that compromised absorbency and recipes without any surfactant didn’t clean well enough.
I’m still working my way through our original homemade batch from like a year ago! I switched from the powder to the liquid since it lasts so much longer. Often I feel like that laundry needs a ‘boost’ since the cleaning power of the homemade stuff is sometimes questionable, so I add Oxy Clean {and you’re right, it’s wicked expensive if you use it on every load}. I’m actually really excited to try this out! Do you know how it works on cloth diapers? I’ll use a bit of Oxy Clean every month or so to keep my son’s pocket inserts from smelling like ammonia.
Try Sun brand oxy it is much cheaper. I make homemade laundry powder all the time and just add about half a cup of Sun to it.
As long as the peroxide you use in your diapers is fresh it should do well. For stuborn stains soak them for a while.
How often are you stripping the diapers? If you get too much soap build up in the diapers it will cause that smell.
Try adding white vinegar to the rinse. About a cup or so. It will remove all soap and that amonia smell. Hope it helps.
I have been making my own laundry detergent for over a year and love it. I am definitely going to try this stain remover, though. Thanks
I make our detergent, and we use Oxy Clean, I’m going to try this recipe out asap! Toddler man goes through a LOT of OC stain remover! 🙂 Thank you for sharing!
tried it…. doesn’t work…disappointing big time!!!!!!
That’s strange… did you pre-mix? If so, was it stored in an opaque container?
You have to use washing soda, not plain baking soda
While reading this I noticed Wellness Mama gives the recipe as “washing soda” but states she used baking soda….so washing soda should bring better results…? Have you tried it?
Washing Soda has a higher PH therefore it should clean better.
O2 will only last about 6 hours
I’ve used it over and over and it has always worked. I used baking soda and make sure the peroxide is not old.. once opened it loses it’s cleaning ability quickly.
I used it on old grease stains on my mechanic husbands jeans… I mean really old grease stains. This took over 75% of the stain out. Did you pre treat it?
It works on old grease stains?! Awesome…trying this now! Must learn to cook with apron on!! >_<
I completed the soak on four articles, three with old grease stains and one with fresh motor oil stains. I attempted to “re-activate” the old stains with Goo-Gone (saw this online elsewhere) and left the new stain alone. After four hours of soaking I put them through the wash per my usual (cold, delicate, eco-friendly storebought detergent and additional baking soda for our hard water). The old stains were definitely diminished but the new ones were still quite proud! I will probably try the soak again because I had to water it down a bit more than you suggested in order to get all four garments in the sink. Bonus!! My white enameled sink is the cleanest it has ever been!! XD Thanks for this scrub-free recipe!