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How to Get Rid of Summer BBQ Stains

Have big backyard BBQ plans for the holiday? Although you may savor delicious food, removing smears and drips on your clothing from cookout eats afterward is no picnic. Here are some tips from GoodHousekeeping.com's Stain Buster tool for fighting some stains you may encounter during your holiday festivities.

Sticky Drippy Watermelon: Scrape off any excess melon and flush the fabric under cold running water. Wash in the warmest water specified on the garment's care label, using the type of bleach that's safe for the fabric.

Related: Summer Stain Removal Guide

Ketchup: Working from the back of the stain, rinse well with cold water. Pretreat with a liquid laundry detergent, tamp the stain, and let it stand for several minutes. Then rinse again, sponge with white vinegar, and rinse well. Repeat these steps until you've removed as much of the stain as possible. If any remains, use a prewash stain remover before laundering. If the ketchup is so stubborn it's still there after washing, rub it with a liquid laundry detergent and then soak in warm water for about 30 minutes. Then rewash, using bleach if you can.

Mustard: Scrape off excess mustard. With your fingertips, rub glycerine into the stain and let it sit for a few minutes. Rinse with cool water. Wash in the hottest water that's safe for the fabric, using a bleach product, preferably one with chlorine.

Related: Best Cookout Condiments

Perhaps it's baked beans or corn on the cob that landed on your clothes last weekend. We have help for those stains too in our ultimate summer stain busting guide.

If your laundry still isn't coming out clean, it may be your washing machine. Find out how to clean your washer and keep it in tip top shape.

Any other stain questions before the holiday? Let me know about your tough spots in the comments!

-by Christina Peterson

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