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How to Clean Nicotine Stained Curtains

Chelsea Hoffman

Smoking in your home creates problems other than secondhand smoking and a stale stench. It also creates nicotine staining on your curtains and other cloth areas in the home.

Removing nicotine stains brightens the whites of your curtains and other linens.

Nicotine stains appear as brownish yellow on white, but vary depending on the color of your drapes and can be quite unsightly to your guests who don't live in smoking environments. Knowing how to remove the nicotine stains from your curtains gives you the ability to keep your home fresh from tobacco smoke.

  1. Add 1 cup baking soda, 1/2 cup borax and 1/2 cup salt to a 5-gallon wash basin.

  2. Pour 3 gallons of hot water into the basin.

  3. Soak the nicotine-stained parts of the curtains in this solution overnight, or eight hours. The combination of ingredients in this solution help break apart the stain and dissolve it.

  4. Wash the drapes in your laundry as you normally would and then dry. The stains should be either lightened considerably, or completely gone, depending on how old and severe the stains are.

The Drip Cap

  • Smoking in your home creates problems other than secondhand smoking and a stale stench.
  • Nicotine stains appear as brownish yellow on white, but vary depending on the color of your drapes and can be quite unsightly to your guests who don't live in smoking environments.
  • Add 1 cup baking soda, 1/2 cup borax and 1/2 cup salt to a 5-gallon wash basin.