How To Remove Poop Stains From Baby Clothes

It is not a secret; babies are messy!

While they can bring parents so much joy, it comes with a lot of messes and stains.

Whether it’s food stains, mud stains, or stains caused by bodily fluids, these can be tough to remove, and you don’t want to waste money replacing items in your home to combat these stains.

Particularly intimidating and unavoidable are poop stains.

No longer beware of baby blowouts.

I have been there and done some research to find an answer to poop stains in baby clothes.

Continue reading down below to learn how to remove poop stains from baby clothes.

What You’ll Need

The items above are all you will need to remove those poop stains from your little one’s clothing.

Continue reading below for step-by-step instructions on how to remove poop stains from baby clothes.

1. Spray Poop Stain With Stain Remover

First, use a stain remover on the poop stain.

Spray the stain on the baby clothes with whatever stain remover you have in your home.

If you don’t have a stain remover spray, I recommend trying Dreft Stain Remover that I found on Amazon.

I’ve had good results with Dreft, plus it gets excellent reviews on Amazon.

Be sure to spray the entire poop stain to get the most significant benefit of the stain remover. 

2. Place Clothes In Bin To Soak

After spraying the baby clothes with a stain remover:

  • Place the poop-stained clothes into a plastic bin or bowl in which you can soak them.
  • Place the plastic bin under a faucet.
  • Start running the faucet to being filling the plastic bin to soak the baby clothes.

3. Rinse And Rub The Stain

While the water is running to fill the plastic bin with the baby clothes, rinse and rub with your hand the stain as best as possible.

Be sure also to use the friction of rubbing the cloth of the baby clothes against each other.

Doing this will likely not remove all of the poop stains from the clothes but will help loosen the stain and aid in the overall stain removal process. 

4. Sprinkle With OxiClean 

Depending on the size of the poop stain and the number of baby clothes you are removing poop stains from, sprinkle OxiClean into the plastic bin.

Make sure that the OxiClean has dissolved into the water.

Stir the baby clothes around to help to agitate the water and disperse the OxiClean throughout the bin.

Stirring will ensure that OxiClean can do its job of attacking the poop stain in the baby clothes.

5. Soak Clothes In OxiClean Infused Water

Leave the poop-stained baby clothes in the plastic bin with the OxiClean infused water.

The extent of the poop stain and the number of clothes in the plastic bin will determine the amount of time you soak the stained clothing.

At the very least, leave the stained clothes in the OxiClean soak for a couple of hours, and you can increase it to four or five hours or even overnight if needed.

6. Wash Clothes In Washing Machine

Once the baby clothes have been soaked long enough for the majority, if not all of the poop stain has been removed, take the clothes out of the plastic bin.

Go ahead and wash the baby clothes in the washing machine using your usual settings and the average amount of laundry detergent.

Do not dry if the stain remains.

If the stain remains, be sure to repeat the steps above until the stain has been removed.

Video Instructions

  • Step 1 (1:05) — Spray with stain remover
  • Step 2 (1:45) — Place clothes in the bin 
  • Step 3 (2:43) — Rinse and rub the stain
  • Step 4 (3:44) — Sprinkle OxiClean in the bin
  • Step 5 (4:07) — Soak clothes
  • Step 6 (6:02) — Wash in the washing machine

FAQ

Why Should I Not Dry Baby Clothes With Remaining Poop Stains?

If you could not remove all the poop stains going through the steps above, it is important not to dry the clothes after they have gone through the dryer.

By placing clothes that have stains in the dryer, it will cause the stains to set.

Doing this will make it much more difficult to remove the stain the next time around.

Instead, be sure to check the clothes at the end of each step to see how soiled the baby clothes remain.

If at the end of Step 6 there remains evidence of poop stains, repeat the previous steps until the stain has been entirely removed. 

Will Vinegar Remove Poop Stain From Baby Clothes?

You can use white vinegar, dishwashing soap, and warm water.

Apply this mix to the poop stain, using a clean cloth to blot the stain.

Eventually, it will begin to lift away and remove the stain.

Doing this will help to remove not only the stain but also remove the odor.

White vinegar is a natural deodorizer and, although it has a pungent smell, it helps remove odor after it dries. 

Can You Remove Old Poop Stains From Baby Clothes?

It is best to rinse off a fresh poop stain from baby clothes to mediate the damage that stains do to clothing.

However, that is not always possible, or you may not even know there is a stain until later.

It is certainly possible to remove old poop stains from baby clothes.

The key to eliminating any old stain is first to saturate the stain.

By saturating the stain, it allows for the cleaning products to penetrate the stains better.

So when you encounter an old poop stain, it is essential to saturate and soak the poop-stained baby clothes to make them easier to clean. 

Is It Safe To Use OxiClean On Baby Clothes?

There is a specific OxiClean for baby stains and clothes, and these help work on those tough stains that come with babies while also being safe for babies’ clothes.

Regular OxiClean is also good to use for baby clothes, as well as it is gentle and won’t cause allergic reactions once the cleaned clothes come into contact with your baby’s skin.

The reason is that OxiClean does not have harsh chemicals as some other stain removers might have.

How Do You Get Poop Stains Out Of Clothes That Have Been Washed? 

A proven method of removing poop stains from clothing that’s already been washed is to mix a tablespoon of liquid dishwashing detergent with two cups of cool water.

Next, use a cloth to dab at the stain with the cleaning mixture.

If the stain remains, use an eyedropper and add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide followed by another couple of drops of ammonia.

Dab the area with a new clean cloth, then blot the area dry.