Motor oil & greaseon washable cotton
Do NOT put water on it first — water spreads grease and drives it deeper. Absorb first, then degrease.
Phase 1: Immediate first aid
Use what you have right now. Nothing to buy.
Blot & isolate
Scrape off any excess with the edge of a spoon. Cover the mark thickly with cornstarch or baking soda and leave 15–30 minutes to soak up the oil, then brush off.
Pantry pre-treatment
You need
15 ml Liquid Dish Soap (e.g. Dawn)
Called something else where you are?
- Liquid Dish Soap (e.g. Dawn)
- 🇺🇸 🇨🇦Liquid Dish Soap (e.g. Dawn)🇬🇧 🇦🇺 🇳🇿Washing-up Liquid (e.g. Fairy)🇩🇪Spülmittel🇫🇷Liquide vaisselle🇪🇸Lavavajillas líquido
Method
Work the neat dish soap into the mark with a fingertip or soft toothbrush. Leave 15 minutes so it can break down the grease.
Final flush & wash
Rinse the treatment out from the back with warm water. Wash on the care-label setting, then air-dry and check in daylight before any tumble-drying — heat sets whatever is left.
Why this one's tricky
Engine oil doesn't mix with water, so rinsing it first just spreads the stain wider. Soak up as much as you can with cornstarch or baking soda, then break down what's left with neat dish soap, which is designed to dissolve grease. Cotton can take a warm-to-hot wash for oil, which helps. Check before drying: oil that survives the wash often looks gone while wet and reappears as a dark patch once dry.
Phase 2: Deep restoration
If a faint shadow remains after the initial rinse, or for fabrics that cannot tolerate water agitation:
Residual ghost-ring or dry-clean-only fiber?
Normal washing often won't shift the last trace of a set-in stain. Treat it with a targeted spotter before it goes anywhere near dryer heat — heat locks in whatever is left.
AlbaChem Dry Spotter
Solvent-based spotter for grease, oil, wax, makeup and ink. Works without water, so it suits fabrics that can’t be wet-cleaned.
Apply a few drops with a cotton bud, tamp gently, then flush as the label directs. Patch-test first.
- Carbona Stain Devils
Pick the formula labelled for this stain type — the range is split by stain.
Build your laundry first-aid kit
Top 3 essential spotters for next time — one for each stain family.
- AlbaChem Dry SpotterGrease, oil, wax, makeup, ink
- Alba-ProBlood, urine, grass, chocolate
- Alba-TanWine, coffee, tea, tomato, curry
Always patch-test on a hidden area first. Never mix bleach, ammonia, vinegar or peroxide together. For valuables, see a professional cleaner.