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Non-Staining Sunscreen and How to Get Sun Cream Stains Out of Clothes
Why do some sunscreens stain clothes?
To give our skin the protection it needs in the sun, sunscreens contain UV filters. These filters are normally organic chemical filters which, by the nature of the job they have to do of absorbing UV rays, have a slight yellowish colour. It is this colour which leads to the initial yellow sunscreen stains.
Also, some sun products cause stains if they're oil-based. This results in a stubborn mark that reacts with sun and water, and you might not notice it until you get home.The higher the SPF we use, the more filters a product contains and so, generally, the stronger the stain. As we understand more about the impact of the sun on our skin, we are, sensibly, moving towards using higher sun protection factors than in the past. This means that sunscreen stains are becoming more noticeable, and more of a problem.
Light-coloured clothing, and clothing made from natural fibres like cotton, are most vulnerable to sunscreen stains. Darker-coloured fabrics are least likely to become noticeably stained.
What factors intensify sunscreen stains?
The initial sunscreen stain is only part of the story. The way we then go about trying to remove these stains can actually intensify them rather than lighten or remove them:
- The water we wash our clothes in contains metal ions such as iron and copper. These react with the filter stains on our clothes and can intensify those stains. There are more of these metal ions in hard water and so those washing clothes in hard water areas are more likely to experience sunscreen stains.
- Hot water can actually seal in the yellow stains rather than remove them: the 40C (104F) setting recommended by most washing machine and laundry detergent manufacturers is hot enough to intensify sunscreen stains.
- Powder detergents and bleaching agents can also react with the filters and increase rather than decrease the sunscreen stains.
How to remove yellow sunscreen stains from clothes
If you've noticed a greasy stain on your favourite summer outfit, don't panic. Try these methods to remove a yellow sunscreen stain:
- Do a pre-treatment before washing. Rub a specific laundry detergent designed for stains into the mark and leave for 10 minutes before rinsing and washing.
- After washing, hang your white clothing out in the sun to dry. The sun naturally bleaches stained white clothing in a safe way. For stubborn stains, use lemon juice to intensify the bleaching results.
- Soak the stain in white vinegar. Follow this by washing on a hot temperature.
- Use eucalyptus oil. Cover the stain and leave for five minutes before washing as normal.
If your sunscreen stain is on a delicate or fancy fabric, such as silk or linen, then take it to the dry cleaners.
Sun cream that doesn't stain clothes
If youre looking for a sunscreen that doesn't stain clothes, our Anti-Stain After Wash technology has been added to the following adult sun protection products:
It is available for children in: