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If you don’t check your pockets when doing laundry, you might end up causing some unpleasant accidents. Forgotten pens or markers can create a mess in your dryer. It’s not simply a matter of staining your clothes. The more pressing issue is staining the inside of the dryer machine as well. This is an electrical appliance so it takes caution and strategic effort to get rid of the ink residues left behind by an exploding pen.
Regardless of how it happened, those unsightly ink stains in your dryer should be removed quickly if you wish to avoid transferring the mess to the next batch of clean clothes. Take a look at the best ways to remove ink out of the dryer with minimal effort. This guide has been organized to help you deal with both fresh and dried ink stains as they make use of different cleaning approaches. Make sure that your dryer machine is fully unplugged from any electrical power source to safely clean it.
How to Remove FRESH Ink Stains Out of the Dryer
1. Try Dish Soap
You might be surprised by the effectiveness of basic soapy water when it comes to removing ink stains. Basic liquid dish soap works wonders for this purpose, assuming you don’t have a particularly difficult mess to deal with. Everyone has this cleaning product in the house making it a convenient option before moving on to other cleaning methods. Although dish soap isn’t strong enough to handle stubborn dried ink stains, it’s very reliable against fresh messes.
Dish soap is able to clean ink from clothes as well as the inside of your dryer. Combine approximately two tablespoons of the soap with two cups of water to create a gentle mixture. Liquid dish soap is fairly concentrated. That’s why it’s recommended to dilute it with water first. Bring a cleaning rag and start scrubbing the stained areas of the dryer with the cleaning solution. Make sure you avoid using excessive force.
Switch to a different cleaning cloth when the one you’re using starts to look very stained with ink residues. Keep up the scrubbing work until all the leftover ink stains are properly absorbed by the cleaning rag and eliminated by the dish soap solution. Remember to rinse away the soapy water and wipe down the area when you’re finished.
2. Clean With Rubbing Alcohol
Rubbing alcohol is a very potent solution against ink stains. It breaks them down very effectively, whether they’re fresh or dry. Consider using rubbing alcohol against fresh stains found in the dryer drum. It’s recommended to combine rubbing alcohol with equal parts of water to create a suitable cleaning mixture.
Make sure you equip gloves when working with this substance. Similar to the dish soap cleaning method, scrub the dryer drum with a cloth dipped into the solution until all ink stains are gone. Keep in mind that you will need to use some elbow grease to fully get rid of all the ink out of the dryer. Due to being flammable, rubbing alcohol may not be the safest option to use on the dryer. It’s only recommended for the removal of small ink stains.
3. Go for Hydrogen Peroxide
When it comes to DIY cleaning agents, hydrogen peroxide can be considered a top choice for many difficult jobs. You can purchase this chemical from many stores. Here’s a great hydrogen peroxide cleaning solution on Amazon. Hydrogen peroxide could easily become your go-to cleaner for dryer stains. It can tackle more stubborn fresh ink residues that persist even after scrubbing with dish soap or rubbing alcohol solutions.
Hydrogen peroxide has some health uses as well. It’s likely that you already have one bottle in your medicine cabinet. Pure hydrogen peroxide needs to be mixed with equal parts of water. This is only necessary if your cleaner doesn’t come pre-mixed already. Take a clean cloth and dip it in hydrogen peroxide to work on the ink stain from the dryer. Be careful about spreading the stain around. Use only enough pressure necessary to swiftly clean it out from the dryer drum. Another benefit of hydrogen peroxide is the ability to get rid of any unpleasant odors coming from the dryer.
4. Use Nail Polish Remover
Acetone-based nail polish removers work very similarly to rubbing alcohol when it comes into contact with ink stains. The cleaner will break down the ink making it a breeze to wipe the stain away. Nail polish remover could be particularly effective to use for those fresh ink stains that appear to cling very stubbornly to the metal of the dryer drum. It prevents the ink from sticking to the surface.
Combine a quarter of a cup of nail polish remover with a single cup of water to come up with a solid cleaning solution. There’s no need to scrub too hard with this DIY cleaner. It works better if you attempt to blot at the ink stain until the dryer’s clean look is restored. In case there’s no nail polish remover available at hand, consider an alternative solution by using hairspray instead.
How to Remove DRY (OLD) Ink Stains Out of the Dryer
5. Dry a Bleach-Soaked Towel Inside the Dryer
If you’re dealing with forgotten ink stains that have set in, you’ll probably not get very reliable results using DIY cleaners and conventional scrubbing. Dried ink can be very difficult to tackle properly. In this case, we recommend using bleach which should leave the drum of the dryer absolutely spotless. For this cleaning method, you will need to run the dryer with a bleach-soaked towel.
Although bleach is an efficient cleaner by itself, you can take its power to the next level by bringing heat to it. Start by mixing eight ounces of non-chlorinated bleach in a gallon of cold water. Dip a towel into the cleaning solution. Allow it to soak for a bit. Take it out using rubber gloves and remove some of the liquid until the towel feels only slightly damp. Put the dryer on a high heat setting and send the bleach-soaked towel through it.
After the dryer has finished its cycle, you can remove the towel to inspect the cleaning progress. While the ink stains should be gone now, there’s still some work required to make sure you don’t leave behind any bleach residues. You can wipe the inside of the drum with fresh water and then run the dryer with a few loads of whites. It’s recommended to toss the towel after using it for this method to prevent accidental ink transfer.
6. Clean With a Magic Eraser
DIY cleaning methods can only take you so far. Sometimes it’s best to make use of a more robust solution. Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser is a great example of a reliable product that can be used to remove dried ink stains. This nifty tool seems to be able to deal with some of the hardest stains around the house. Grab a pair of gloves and start scrubbing the metal drum of the dryer until it’s spotless. A damp cloth could be required to wipe away the stain residues broken down by the Magic Eraser. We recommend the excellent mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
7. Treat the Stain With a Commercial Cleaner
A strong commercial cleaner could be another reliable way to remove dried ink stains from your dryer. Lots of products can handle this cleaning job well. Our favorite pick is Goo Gone, a versatile cleaner primarily designed for removing gum and glue. It also works flawlessly against ink stains while not being flammable. Apply Goo Gone to a cleaning cloth and make sure you follow the proper directions provided by the manufacturer. You can find Goo Gone on Amazon.
No matter the commercial cleaner you choose, it’s a good idea to test it on a small area before you go all the way with it against the ink stains. Follow the usage directions and take proper safety precautions.
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