The most difficult thing to clean is grease, especially grease that has been absorbed into the paper. The task of removing oil stains becomes even harder when the oil that penetrated is of thicker consistency.
But don’t fret as all is not lost. You can still remove oil as long as you know and follow the steps below on how to get grease out of paper.
What to Prepare
There are several items you will need to get the grease from the paper. Fortunately, these things are easy to find at home. If you don’t have them, you can easily obtain them from a neighbor or a store,
Heavy Book
Grab the heaviest book you can find. You don’t need something large, especially if the stain is small, but you will need something heavy. A hardbound book is also preferable to those with soft covers.
Tissues
You will need tissues to soak up the grease from the paper. The heavy-duty or thicker ones are better as they can absorb oil more effectively.
Paper or kitchen towels are great alternatives to tissues as well. To prevent transferring colors from printed papers or kitchen towels to your paper, choose plain ones.
Baby Powder
Baby powder is a necessary tool to take out the grease from the paper. The amount you need won’t be kilos, but just enough to cover the stain several times.
Alternatively, you can also use baking soda or even chalk if you don’t have baking soda at home. These two can be just as absorbent as the baby powder.
Old Toothbrush
You can recycle an old toothbrush, which you will use to remove the baby powder. Ensure that the old toothbrush is clean and dry and that the bristles are sturdy. Never use a toothbrush with stains or you will end up doing more harm than good.
How To Get Grease Stains Out of Paper Documents
Below are the steps in getting grease stains out of paper documents.
Step 1: Remove the excess grease
Take a tissue and wipe the excess oil off the paper. Gently dab the oil-stained part until you have taken as much excess grease as possible.
Step 2: Place tissues flat on the surface
Get the tissues or paper towels and lay them flat on the counter or table. The surface should be dry before you place the tissues.
Make the tissues as flat as possible on the surface, smoothing out any folds or creases.
Step 3: Put the paper and the book
Place the paper on top of the tissues. Then cover the paper again with the tissues, ensuring that the tissues are again without creases and folds.
Step 4: Leave to dry with the book
Place the book on top of the paper after it has been sandwiched between layers of tissues.
Leave it for 12 to 24 hours to dry. Check the paper after 24 hours. You will need to leave it for a couple more hours if it is still wet.
Replace the tissue with fresh ones if they are already soaked in oil.
Depending on the situation, you might need to leave it longer to dry the grease-stained paper completely. Keep checking until the greased paper is dry.
For paper that’s badly soaked in oil, you may have to wait 72 to 96 hours for it to dry.
Step 5: Sprinkle baby powder on the paper
Once dried, sprinkle the baby power on the oil-stained part of the paper. Make sure to cover the stain thoroughly as you want the baby powder to soak up as much oil as possible.
Leave the paper with baby powder for at least a day or two.
Step 6: Brush off baby powder
Remove the baby powder with an old toothbrush. When using the brush to remove the baby powder, be gentle.
In case the paper remains soaked with grease, apply baby powder to the oil-stained area and repeat this step. This is especially true if the paper was soaked with animal fat, vegetable oil, or butter as these oils are thicker than others, and will take more time to dry.
Additional Tips for Removing Grease Out of Paper
It is important to be gentle when trying to remove grease from paper. Using too much force when scrubbing oil stains or applying too much pressure when brushing may cause further damage. If you damage the paper or make a small hole in it, you might ruin it.
You need to be patient as well. Do not brush the oil if it is still wet after several days. Wait until the baby powder and tissues, as well as the pressure from the book, have done their work. There is no point in hurrying through this process.
Conclusion
It’s quite easy to get grease stains on paper. After all, anyone can easily spill greasy food on your documents, touch paper with oily fingers, or leave documents in the kitchen.
There is, however, still hope. Knowing how to get grease out of paper by using baby powder, tissues, an old toothbrush, and a heavy book will go a long way in saving your important paperwork. Do not use excessive force when following the instructions above, or you could end up damaging your paper even more.