Sunscreen Stains on Clothing

RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing Post By Carell (Guest Post) (09/25/2008) I have used La Roche-Posay, Anthelios XL to UVA/UVB sun block and emailed the company regarding the stain issue with no positive results. I have soft water, used the oxy pre-wash product do not use the dryer and have decided to wear dark clothing only, having thrown away about 15 light colored shirts/blouses. Great..........my face is covered; however, my clothes are a loss! Thank you everyone for your suggestions, I shall keep trying. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing Post By Tia (Guest Post) (08/24/2008) I have had the same problem with staining when using Neutrogena Ultra Sheer. I have found that is you spray KABOOM for laundry on it it removes the stain. It is hard to find ( I got mine off of the Shopping channel I think it is made by the same company as Oxyclean). Report Spam or Abuse RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing Post By Noreen (Guest Post) (08/20/2008) Can any one tell me where I can find The Works in Winnipeg? I went to WalMart and all they have is Green Works. My son sat on his sunscreen (lol). Report Spam or Abuse Request: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing Post by Laurel_admin (495) | (08/15/2008) Contact I'm a golfer and I have ruined many shirts and shorts due to the sunscreen. How do I get rid of these stains? Alicia from Tampa, FL Answers: RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing Thank you for the information. I am going to try the Blue Lizard Sensitive, as I have read the ingredients and it doesn't have the Avobenzone. It does contain Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide. The regular Blue Lizard does contain Oxybenzone, which is a related product to Avobenzone. I've spent lots of time researching this topic, as my kids have been told by the school and the daycare they need to wear sunscreen - try to convince them otherwise! I have my fingers crossed for the Blue Lizard Sensitive brand. (06/06/2008) By Shannon RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing I am so glad to hear others have this problem. I am just now researching this after having the problem for over a year now! I do think hard water is part of the problem. I did an experiment at my mother-in-laws house. Her shirt did NOT stain (uses municipal water) and mine did (well water). It even temporarily stains my finger nails! Good luck to everyone, JDmom (06/13/2008) By JDmom RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing After fighting stains for 2 years and trying multiple sunscreens Shannon appears to have hit paydirt! I've used the Blue Lizard Sensitive and NO STAINS! For those of you that believe it is the water, I thought so at first, also. But we have municipal water AND a water filtration system. After putting in the filtration system, we still had the stains. The Blue Lizard SENSITIVE is harder to smooth into the skin than other sunscreens but it does not have the smell which is a bonus. We used it yesterday after being on the motorcycle all day and washed the clothes - miracle, NO STAINS. After using it all week I'm so glad! Thanks Shannon for your research! (06/15/2008) By N in IL RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing After reading all the comments about chemical reactions I decided to do a little experimenting myself. I found that The Works tub & shower cleaner takes out the stain. I spray it on wet or dry clothes, rub it gently and walk away for 5 minutes. When I returned the stain was gone. It's very inexpensive (under $2) and can be purchased at Walmart or Kmart. It works great on rust stains in toilets & tubs too! Their website is theworkscleans.com and you can enter your zip to find a store near you. (06/16/2008) By Barb G. RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing I just tried the Works Bathroom cleaner hint on a sunscreen ruined, favorite white blouse. Guess what! It "Works". Thank you Barb, for the great tip. (06/16/2008) By B in MI RE: Sunscreen Stains on Clothing I just tried The Works and it does work! It even got deep rust colored stains out of pricey light colored print cotton pillow cases that I had almost given up on! I then ran them through a wash cycle without detergent. They came out like new with no adverse effect on the color. I have lots of other stained items to work on now. I believe the combo of sunscreen, body oils and hard well water has caused the stains. I will also try the various sunscreens mentioned here to see if they lessen the staining. Thanks for the great advice! (07/21/2008) By Mickey Report Spam or Abuse Request: Sunscreen Stains Post by Laurel_admin (495) | (12/07/2007) Contact I have a number of white cotton t-shirts that have orange and red stains around the sleeves and neck from what I could only imagine is sunscreen. These stains magically "appear" when I wash them. I use ALL Free detergent, borax and vinegar in each wash. Anyone have any ideas on how to get these stains out? Thanks in Advance! Rebekah Answers: RE: Sunscreen Stains Rebekah, We are having the same problem, exactly. I'm seeing this on my tennis shirts (Patagonia Capilene synthetic). Also mainly neck and sleeves, "develops" with washing. Bleaching the whites will take the color down, but this is clearly not a long term solution. What part of the country are you in? We are on well water, are you? Is your water particularly hard? Ours is for sure, we're just trying to figure out what are the important factors in this weird phenomenon! (08/17/2005) By Walt RE: Sunscreen Stains I have the same problem. I use Bar Keepers Friend and have good results. It's a cleanser similar to Comet or Bon Ami. I usually wet the stained shirt, sprinkle with Bar Keepers Friend, work it in (sometimes scrubbing with a brush) and let it sit a few minutes, then wash it out in the sink. It works like magic! Warning: Be sure not to mix it with detergents or bleach. I live in Oregon and use well water. Our water has a lot of iron/rust in it. I haven't noticed this before and wonder if it's due to some ingredient in the new sunscreen I've been using. It's Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch 45 SPF. (08/17/2005) By Kelly RE: Sunscreen Stains Walt, I hate to say it but I'm glad someone else has the same problem, I thought I was going crazy! We too have very hard well water in Northern Michigan. I think it has to do with the specific sunscreen used. My husband uses the sport-type, sweat proof and waterproof sunscreens and his shirts are the stained ones. while my daugher and I both use kids' sunscreens and we have no problem with it staining our clothes. The good news is that by rinsing the neck and sleeves of the shirts with vinegar BEFORE washing the stains don't seem to set and after the first wash I can use Shout on the stains and they come out in the next wash. Hope that helps you .. Rebekah (08/17/2005) By Madelynnsmama RE: Sunscreen Stains I have just recently got back from vacation and my sunscreen exploded in my suitcase. It is all over everything, staining my new khaki pants. Any suggestions? (02/18/2006) By Emily RE: Sunscreen Stains I have had the same problem for a couple of years and tried a number of products with no luck until L'Oreal recommended Ease Out. The only place I found this cleaner was at the fabric store FabricLand here in Canada. It worked fantastic - took a little scrubbing but the white tennis tops are now white again. (03/29/2006) By Carolyn RE: Sunscreen Stains We have the same problem. Use "Whink" in the brown bottle and the stains will come right out with no scrubbing! (07/12/2006) By Elizabeth. RE: Sunscreen Stains I just wanted everyone to know that I spoke to a lady at Coppertone, and she advised me that there can be a chemical type reaction between the sunscreen ingredient avobenzone (also known as Parsol 1789) and the minerals in well water. I'm now trying a chemical free brand called Blue Lizard, and so far the "sensitive" formula has NOT caused any stains! Since it's chemical free, it is more expensive and harder to find but may be a solution for others! (06/21/2007) By Kara RE: Sunscreen Stains Does the brown Whink bottle have the words "Rust Remover" on it? (06/22/2007) By sierra RE: Sunscreen Stains I have been trying for years to find a waterproof sun screen that does not cause staining. While it may be the hard/well water too, it's actually the sweat/heat reacting with various (several ) sunscreen chemicals that cause this reaction. You can test the fabric and the stain will appear sometimes even prior to wearing or washing. After wearing and washing the stain worsens. I've been mostly successful (not with all fabrics) with Carbona stain remover for "fat grease and oil", as long as the areas that came in contact with the sunscreen are treated prior to washing. This product is however expensive. This is the one irraiation I have every summer as I continue to seek sunscreens that do not stain. The Titanium Dioxide ones don't stain. Blue Lizard has stained our clothing. Good lluck (06/25/2007) By D in CT RE: Sunscreen Stains Hi ladies we have the same problem here in Australia with hard water and I have found that the sunscreens that only contain the following four ingredients generally do not cause staining. They are - [Active ingredients] Titanium Dioxide and Octyl Methoxycinnamate plus it [Contains] Total Hydroxybenzoates and Diazolidinylurea. Wash using hot or cold water. The one I use full time also contains Vitamin E (07/26/2007) By Myra RE: Sunscreen Stains I don't have well water (our water is soft) and had the same problem this summer, especially on the t-shirts my son wore when he played tennis. He used Neutrogena Ultra Sheer dry-touch sunblock SPF 55 with helioplex. For years I have used Biz stain activated booster powder (about 1/2 cup mixed in with half a dish container of water)to soak stained clothing overnight and it seemed to work pretty well on these stains as well. I always scrub the affected areas and try to make sure the stain is out before washing. (08/29/2007) By Diane Report Spam or Abuse