How to Remove Black Walnut Stains From Clothes

Walnuts are simply delicious and are widely used in most homes. However, they have one downside; they produce pesky stains. Whether on your clothes, hands, or carpet, walnut stains can easily ruin your item.

This article will teach you how to clean walnut stains, frequently asked questions, and more.

To remove black walnut stains in clothes, use one of the several cleaning agents readily available in convenience stores and around your home. The easiest way is to soak the stain in a solution of 1 gallon of water and ¼ cup of dishwashing detergent and wait 30 minutes before washing normally.

Steps to Cleaning Black Walnut Stains From Clothes

One of the most popular methods of removing walnut stains from clothes is dishwashing solution and normal detergent.

Before washing, you need to understand the fresher the stain, the easier it is to remove. This is because older stains are set on the garment fiber. It is always recommended to always act on the stain at the earliest opportunity.

Start by running cold water on the stain to soften, and scrape off the excess stain materials from the fabric. Add a few drops of dishwashing detergent to the stain and rub the stain against the fabric to loosen it.

Next, add ¼ of dishwashing detergent to four liters of cold water before soaking your pretreated garment for 30 minutes. Afterward, wash with a dose of heavy-duty detergent, rinse, and dry normally. But be sure to check if the stain has been removed before drying to stop it from getting tougher. Especially be careful with tumble drier, as it toughens stains.

Other Alternative Cleaning Agents for Black Walnut Stains

Besides dishwashing detergents, below are a few other cleaning agents to remove black walnut stains. 

Lemon Juice

Lemon is a multipurpose fruit that is readily available from your local grocery store. Though mainly known for its nutritious value, lemon is a great cleaning agent, too, because of the citric acid. 

You can use it to easily remove black walnut stains from any of your clothes. First, soften the stain with cold water before putting a few drops of commercial lemon juice or fruit juice on the stain. Both are great options for removing stains. 

If you opt for the fruit, cut the lemon fruit into two halves, and squeeze a few drops of the juice over the stain. You can slightly rub part of the fabric against itself before rinsing it under cold water and loading normal wash cycles.

I wrote a guide on how to remove gravy stains that may interest you to read as well.

Baking Soda

Most people only know baking soda for its use in baking delicious cakes, but baking soda is another tough stain remover. To clean the brown walnut stain, add one teaspoonful of baking soda to ½ a cup of water to make a thick solution. 

Using a toothbrush, rub this paste on the stain gently in a circular motion ensuring the solution penetrates the garment fabric. Next, allow for a 30 minutes duration, and run it under cold running water before washing your usual detergent.

Cooking Oil

If you thought cooking oil is only for frying, baking, and other uses in cooking, then think again. Cooking oil is wonderful for removing black walnut stains on clothes. Place your clothing on a flat surface, preferably on a tabletop, to allow for a stable working surface. 

Thereafter, add a few drops of cooking oil to the stain and rub the stained part of the fabric against itself. You can then wait for 30 minutes before washing with a strong detergent in normal wash cycles. If the stain has not been removed, repeat the process two to three times before it’s done.

Commercial Stain Remover

If you do not wish to use the locally available materials, you can opt for commercial stain removers. Any heavy-duty stain remover, for example, K2r stain remover (paid link) will clear the stain fast. Before starting the process, check out the washing instructions on the garment label to know if your garment is bleachable or not. 

Next, spray K2r on the black walnut stain, and let it sit for a few minutes to dry before brushing off the white patch that forms. If the stain has cleared, you can wash it with cold water and dry it as usual. If not, repeat the process several times until it is removed.

Vinegar

Vinegar is a multipurpose agent in cooking, including marinating meat and vegetables. But that aside, vinegar is a great stain remover. For black walnut stains, make a solution of ½ cup of white vinegar with 1 gallon of water and soak your clothing for one hour, and launder as usual.

Borax

Also known as sodium borate, borax is widely used in laundry to remove stains and boost washing detergents’ cleaning power. First, soften the stain with cold water before soaking it in a borax and water solution. Then, in a gallon of water, add ½ a cup of borax and stir gently, submerge the stained garment and allow for a 30 minutes duration before washing with cold water.

Next, you can check out my guide on how to remove blood stains from clothes effectively.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Black Walnut Stains Stubborn?

Black walnut stains are stubborn stains. However, they can be removed with commercially produced stain removers, as well as homemade solutions. But this also depends on the fabric type and the freshness of the stain. So washing the stains early stops them from setting into the garment fiber.

How Can I Clean Walnut Stains on My Hands?

To remove the black walnut stains, first, wash your hands with soap under running water. This is to clear other types of dirt first and make visible the walnut stains. Then, apply lemon juice and rub it between your hands. After that, with a toothbrush, scrub to remove the stain before washing it off with running water.

Can I Use Detergents to Remove Walnut Stains in Clothes?

Ordinary detergents do not remove black walnut stains unless boosted by stain-removing agents. For best results, first, pretreat the stain with the commercially available stain removers, or homemade types before washing with normal detergents. The common pretreating agents include borax, dishwashing detergents, and white vinegar, among others.