How to Clean Fake Tanner from White Sheets

Co-authored by Amy Mikhaiel

Last Updated: January 18, 2023

Tanning outside in the sun can be time consuming and damaging to the skin. Not to mention the pain of having to deal with a sunburn! Fake tanner is an easy solution for the skin but sadly is not so great for your once pearly white sheets, which can tend to stain and turn yellow within a few months or even hours of coming into contact with your tanned skin. Those white sheets can get back to their full glory and by acting fast and using a variety of whitening methods, your white sheets will be looking as good as new!

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Soaking the Sheets in a Cleaning Mixture

1
Create a mixture of hot water and biological laundry detergent. It is best to use a bathtub for this as it is large enough to hold the sheets in and won’t overflow. Once the bathtub is filled with hot water, add a small cup of biological washing powder and stir well with a large spoon or stirrer to create the cleaning mixture.
- Biological detergent has enzymes in the powder that help clean stains that non-biological detergent does not contain.^{[1]
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Amy Mikhaiel
House Cleaning Professional
Amy Mikhaiel is a cleaning guru and the CEO of Amy's Angels Cleaning Inc., a residential and commercial cleaning company in Los Angeles, California. Amy's Angels was voted Best Cleaning Service by Angie’s Lists in 2018 and was the most requested cleaning company by Yelp in 2019. Amy's mission is to help women achieve their financial goals by establishing empowerment through cleaning.

Amy Mikhaiel
House Cleaning Professional

The key to removing stains is to clean the sheets immediately. Don't let the sheets sit for too long. Soak the sheets in water and a cleaner like Oxyclean. Oxyclean won't clean it one-hundred percent, so next lay the sheets flat and sprinkle them with salt and lemon juice. Let it soak and then rinse and wash them with a white load on high temperature.
2
Place the sheets into the cleaning mixture. Push the sheets down with the stirring tool to make sure that all of the fabric is submerged. Make sure to leave the sheets soaking in the bathtub overnight to let the washing powder clean effectively.

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3
Put the sheets in a washer and dryer. The morning after the soaking take the sheets (use a plastic laundry basket to not get the floors wet) and run the washer on a warm cycle. When the washer is finished, dry the sheets on a clothes line or in the dryer. Once dry the sheets should be completely clean and white.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Rubbing the Tanner Off the Sheets

1
Rinse the sheets under cold water. Try to put the sheet in the cold water as soon as you notice the stain to ensure that the tanner does not soak too deeply. Let the cold water run on the side of the sheet that did not get the tanner on it until the water runs clear.^{[2]
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2
Rub the affected area. Use a clean cloth with dishwashing soap on it to gently rub and clean the area of the stain.^{[3]
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Research source} To keep the tanner from spreading be sure to rub just over the stain without pushing too hard on the sheet.
3
Take the sheets to a washer and dryer. Wash the sheets in the washer on a warm cycle with an addition of white specific stain remover.^{[4]
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Research source} The stain remover will ensure that any remaining tanner that the cloth did not clean will come off easily while in the wash. Once washed, dry the sheets either on a clothes line or in the dryer.
4
Soak in oxygen-based bleach. If there is any tanner still present on the sheets, a last resort may be to soak it overnight in a mixture of cold water and oxygen-based bleach and repeat the washing and drying process. The white sheet should now be completely clean.
- Test the bleach on a small area of the sheet before you soak it all to make sure the material won’t be damaged by the bleach.
- Take caution when handling bleach as it can be dangerous to humans and animals. Use it in a well ventilated area and do not breathe it in. Also, make as minimal contact as possible between your skin and the bleach.