A consumer advocacy group has come clean on the best stain removers in Australian supermarkets, with the top-performing spray six times more expensive than the second-best performer, yet only marginally more effective.
A lab test of 30 stain remover powders and 23 pre-treater sprays by Choice pitted the products against 10 of the most common and pesky stains, including chocolate ice-cream, baby food, sweat, grass, oil, blood and makeup.
Sard Super Power Stain Remover Toughest Stains was crowned the most effective pre-treater spray overall with an expert rating of 74%, while runner-up Aldi Di-San Pro Ultra Degreaser with Enzymes scored 73%.
While the Sard product cost $1.90 per 100ml, the Aldi spray was just 28 cents per 100ml, proving, said the Choice household expert Chris Barnes, “that price doesn’t always equal performance”.
“[The Aldi spray] also outperformed or equalled the performance of the Sard product in some tests on stains such as grass and mud, tomato and mineral oil,” Barnes said.
“If you’re looking for a stain remover that is gentle on your wallet but effective on your stains, we recommend Aldi Di-San stain removers. They were among the cheapest products we tested, and scored the same or more than a lot of the expensive products.”
At just 43 cents per 100ml, Coles Ultra Pre-Wash Stain Remover received the third-highest score, with a 72% rating, and was praised by Choice for its performance against tomato, baby food and grass and mud stains.
The next three best pre-treater sprays were also own-brand options from Aldi, Coles and Woolworths.
Sprays are a useful way to pre-treat small stains before putting the clothes in the washing machine. Stains in the Choice test were left to sit for five minutes after being sprayed, before all were washed using the same brand of laundry detergent.
Choice’s home recipe pre-treater made from 200ml of hydrogen peroxide and 100ml of dishwashing liquid in a spray bottle earned an overall score of 64%, while laundry detergent alone in a spray bottle received 56%.
Powder stain removers are designed to whiten and brighten soiled clothing that has more set-in stains. They can either be used as a pre-machine wash soaker or added to the laundry as an in-wash booster.
Of the 30 powder products tested by Choice, big-name brands Sard and Vanish swept the floor, with Sard Whiter & Brighter Stain Remover Major Stain Types AntiBacterial Soaker ($1.10 per 100g) and Vanish NapiSan Oxi Action Gold Pro Advanced Crystal White Stain Remover ($1.90 per 100g) both scoring 74%.
Both products banished stains from grass, mud, tomato, chocolate ice-cream and baby food, but proved less effective on blood, oil and sweat.
Aldi’s Di-San Pro Oxy Laundry Soaker & In Wash Booster was the best value powder recommended by Choice experts. At less than a third of the price of its rivals, it scored an overall rating of 71%.
Choice also recommended the powders “to cross off your shopping list”, naming Bloody Awesome Laundry Stain and Odour Remover (rated 56%), Community Co Loads Cleaner Oxy Action Multi-Action In-Wash Booster & Soaker (59%), Woolworths Clean Laundry Soaker and In-Wash Booster (60%) and Black & Gold Laundry Sanitiser Soaker and In-Wash Booster (60%) as the worst performers.
For sweat stains, Choice found Sard Super Power Stain Remover Toughest Stains, Woolworths Clean Ultimate Oil and Grime with Enzymes Pre-Wash Stain Remover and Sard Oils and Grime Stain Remover Expert Action to be the best-performing sprays, while the toughest powder on perspiration was Vanish NapiSan Oxi Action Gold Pro Advanced Crystal White Stain Remover.
Products that claim eco-friendly credentials were among the less impressive performers. Earth Choice Ultra Power Stain Remover, a pre-treater spray stain remover, scored 57%, just 1% higher than laundry detergent alone.
In the powder category, Eco Store Ultra Sensitive Fragrance Free Laundry Soaker and Stain Remover scored 62%, while Simply Clean Laundry Stain Remover and Sanitiser scored 66% overall but that score rose to 78% on grass and mud stains, which was “on par with some of the other chemical-based products”, said Choice’s audience and engagement editor, Pru Engel.
“Unfortunately in these kinds of tests, and something we find across other laundry products, is that products that have various eco-friendly claims are rarely among our top performers,” she said.
“This isn’t surprising. Products that use way more chemicals generally clean better.
“But being kind to the environment is obviously really important [and] if that product works for you and choosing a plant-based or more eco-friendly product is more important to you … We aren’t here to shame anyone.”
