Grease all over Pearl Izumi windbreaker - any hope?

[TrekJeni]

Two weekends ago, my rear derailer and my windbreaker got in a fight. I'd say it was a draw. Derailer hanger snapped off and windbreaker is "bloody" with an enormous amount of chain grease. I've soaked in in Dawn, nothing, I've scrubbed it with a sponge, nothing. The tag says 100% Polyester. It's wind and rain proof. Any ideas? She cost me a lot of dough and I'd hate to give up on her!

Jeni

[Bikingmomof3]

Jeni,
I would call your LBS, talk with a mechanic and see what they use to get grease out. I hope you can save the jacket.

[GLC1968]

When all else fails...have you tried rubbing it with a Magic Eraser? I swear those things get out the weirdest stuff. It actually got dog snot off my leather seats! They clean up the grease off my white bike super easy...maybe they'll work on the jacket as well?

[light_sabe_r]

Orange Oil.

Works wonders!

You can usually pick it up from your local auto accessory shop. It's cheap and you can use it to scrub or soak.

I even throw it in with loads of bike gear laundry of mine and BF's

[TrekJeni]

Jeni,
I would call your LBS, talk with a mechanic and see what they use to get grease out. I hope you can save the jacket.

My mechanic is at InterBike in Vegas. Won't be home until tomorrow. :( I miss him but he's useless when it comes to laundry! :D He didn't know what to do but robbed the derailer hanger from a new bike on the floor so we could ride togther the next day.

Was hoping some "chicks" might be able to help me out. Funny thing is, i work in a scientific laundry lab and none of us could figure anything out!

[mimitabby]

when all else fails, wear the windbreaker with pride... and stains! :D :D

[xeney]

Try Simple Green. It's safe for most fabrics and it does a great job cutting grease.

[divingbiker]

The only thing that would get grease out of one of my polyester jerseys was Goof Off, the nasty petroleum-based kind, not the environmentally friendly kind. I hated using it, but I hated tossing the jersey more.

[KnottedYet]

I have grease on my PI, which I haven't tried to clean off yet. Might have to one of these days.

[mimitabby]

So, tell us, HOW did your derailleur and your windbreaker get into a fight?
Sounds like there is a good story in there somewhere!

[funkymonkey]

I know this will sound really weird, but put some WD-40 on the grease. It really works! I think it works best if you get the fabric wet first, put the WD-40 on, and then rinse it out. I did this with some pants I have and it came out great and didn't hurt the fabric.

[chickwhorips]

hair spray. i swear by this. i use it for all stains!

a little trick we learned in beauty school to get permanent hair color out of clothes. just spray a bit on, let it sit for a little bit, throw it in the washer and BAM!

[love2bike]

According to the "Queen of Clean" in her book "Talking Dirty Laundry" - she recommends Spot Shot Carpet Stain Remover sprayed on, and launder in the hotest water you can use for the fabric, using a long wash cycle and adding1/2 of "washing soda" (whatever that is???) to the detergent.

Funkymonkey was right...Another solution The Queen gives is spray the area with WD-40 and wait 10 minutes, then work in undiluted dishwashing liquid and then launder as usual.

Good luck, let us know how it turns out!

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I would use the same stuff you would use to dissolve grease off your bike chain.

[DebW]

My mom used to use Spray'n'Wash on my clothes when I was a mechanic. She even made me pay for it. I don't know why she cared so much about my cutoffs and T-shirts. I use it sometimes now and it doesn't always get everything out.

[Fitmiss]

It seems to me that I also had grease on my PI windbreaker. I googled a search for getting out grease. I think I remember using aloe to get the grease out. You can buy it at most stores like cvs. It is a clear gel that comes in a small bottle. Keep it around as it is great for burns.

[SouthernBelle]

Check an auto parts place for a good degreaser.

[Jo-n-NY]

I have the Screaming Yellow PI Wind Whisper jacket. I got grease on it last year and "Shout" got it out. I sprayed it, let it sit a while, then washed in the machine. I was considerably lighter. Do not put it in the dryer!!! I sprayed more shout, let it sit, then tried to rub it out. After the process repeat a few times, I have no more grease on my jacket.

My Mom has been using Shout for years, and I do not think it has ever failed us. Sometimes you might have to add a little elbow grease but eventually stains will come out :)

~ JoAnn

[SouthernBelle]

As I was just throwing towels in the washer, I looked up at the shelf and realized I knew the answer to your Q. I had just forgotten it.

Go to a Joann's or Hancocks Fabric store and ask for the Carbona products. They have these little bottles that are specialized for a particular type of stain.

[Triskeliongirl]

I second SHOUT. That is what I use. It works so well sometimes I'll work on my bike in white and pink blouses, and the stains come right out.

[abejita]

I know this is an old thread...but I just wanted to tell you that the wd-40 and dawn work wonders. I got home from my ride today and noticed that I had chain marks on my new jersey and immediately came to the forum because I knew the ladies here would know how to get it out!

Mary

[WindingRoad]

I've discovered that the orange smelling tennis shoe cleaner that comes in a foaming can takes bike grease off of car seats so you might try that? I bought mine at Footlocker a while back. It's called Oxy-Sport cleaner. Hope that helps.

[Kathi]

Dawn is not formulated for fabrics, use liquid Tide which is formulated to remove grease from fabric.

[MommyBird]

Avon Skin-So-Soft works wonders on oily stains. Sometimes it leaves a ring but that will wash out after a couple of runs. Removes adhesives like a charm.
WD-40 is always my second choice as it is not as friendly as the Skin-So-Soft. It is easier to get. Avon ladies will not leave you alone once they find you. Ebay is the way to go.
I am a big fan of rubbing alcohol as well. It dissolves a surprising number of pesky things.
I recently damaged a jacket with Simple Green trying to remove ink.

[zoom-zoom]

I've always had good luck with Goop or Gojo hand cleaners...very gentle, but very good at getting oil/grease stains out of fabrics.

[alimey]

I would write to PI - maybe even enclosing the item. Tell them how much you love it - I bet they replace it (although if it's not current season it might be more tricky). Either way - might be worth emailing them. Then if they are helpful & reply you can post here what a great company they are. If they dont - then goodness help them . . . .

[Librarygirl]

I regularly get grease on my jerseys when I put my bike in the car and take it out (I have no bike rack - have to wrestle it in and out of the boot). Tried everything - sugar soap, dish detergent etc. to no avail. Then found this stuff at LBS. It truly is a miracle at getting grease out, and works well on hands also, and no chemicals or petroleum based products. Excellent! :)

http://www.rocklube.com/products_detail_miraclered.html

[taranoel]

I have been very successful removing oil from clothes with Murphy's Oil Soap. Spray it on the jacket and then chuck it in the washing machine.

[Loraura]

Have you tried chain degreaser?

I think Citrus Brite might be the name of what I use. It gleans grease off my cassette and chain super well. I'd try it on a test spot of the material and see if it is safe, and if so, I'd give it a try.

[Xrayted]

Goop or Go-Jo hand cleaner. Not the kind with pumice in it, the smooth kind. Works easily. Then just throw in the laundry with everything else like normal.
Spot Shot would probably work well too. It is the bees knees on carpet stains. Just spray on, let it sit for 1/2 hr, dab it out. Done. :)

[Kubla]

...I've had great luck with 'Grandma's Secret Spot Remover'. This product has amazed me (more than a few times) in its ability to get rid of stains that seemed hopeless. Even long standing, set-in stains.

Unfortunately, I cannot seem to find anything larger than a 2 oz size bottle-which doesn't make it easy to cover a large stained area. However, on something as expensive as your jacket, I think it would be worth the investment.

[ridebikeme]

I would definitely second either Gojo or Shout. Recently I had a long sleeve yellow jersey get covered with grease, and I do mean covered. AS others have mentioned, the Shout worked fine. I would NOT recommend WD40, although it may work to help get the grease out, you also have to think about the breathable properties of your jacket. WD40 will start to clog the pores of the fabric, and it will not breath as well.

[malkin]

Brewer tells me that one time his mom put gasoline in the washing machine. :eek:

Since the greasy clothes did not survive the fire, I guesss we can't say whether they got clean or not.

[TrekTheKaty]

My neon yellow PI with zip-off sleeves was the best purchase I ever made. She still has black marks on one sleeves from my worst wipeout yet. I wear it with pride. If I cared what I looked like, well, I wouldn't be riding my bike :D (wild jersey, helmet hair, bike shorts, buff and farmers tan)

[Norse]

DP got grease on her neon yellow PI this weekend - took some Dawn and a toothbrush to it, threw it in the wash (cold water) and voila - stains be gone!

[marni]

personally I swear by simple green sprayed on the spot and scrubbed in with a toothbrush. If that doesn't work I just wear the satin with pride, as it shows that I am a riding biker not a fashion biker, but then I have never been color coordinated or fashionable, prefering comfort and practicality over style. Henze the marine buzz, farmers tan and black shorts I can wipe my greasy hands on.

marni

[GLC1968]

Pure olive oil soap - the kind you can buy from Greek merchants. This soap is super mild and yet it take out grease with the best items.

I had years old grease stains on khakis and a t-shirt (clothing had been relegated to 'painting' clothing). I just wet the stain with water, rubbed some olive oil soap on it (its a bar soap), scrubbed the fabric together and then tossed it in with the wash. The stains were gone!!! I repeated the same process with a Cannondale jacket that had old bike grease stains on it (that we'd tried everything on) and it came 100% clean.

We also successfully used it to get bike grease out of ivory wool berber carpet when nothing else would work.

I'm telling you - this stuff is the BOMB.

http://www.elikioliveoil.com/puroloilsoap.html

[Catrin]

Avon Skin-So-Soft works wonders on oily stains. Sometimes it leaves a ring but that will wash out after a couple of runs. Removes adhesives like a charm.
WD-40 is always my second choice as it is not as friendly as the Skin-So-Soft. It is easier to get. Avon ladies will not leave you alone once they find you. Ebay is the way to go.
I am a big fan of rubbing alcohol as well. It dissolves a surprising number of pesky things.
I recently damaged a jacket with Simple Green trying to remove ink.

I've a lovely pink Terry jersey that seems to be a magnet for chain grease - so tonight when it happened again I tried the WD-40 approach and it worked like a charm - thanks!