Meera said, “How to remove an oil stain from paper?”
Table of Contents:
While 
multitasking can be save time, spilling oily food onto some work papers you need is counterproductive. Though removing the oil isn’t usually a quick process, it can be accomplished. Follow the steps below to remove the stain.
Removing the Oil Stain
You Will Need:
- Paper towels
- A heavy book
- Baking soda
Steps to Remove the Oil Stain:
- Get two sheets of paper towels.
- Fold each sheet in half.
- Put one folded sheet under the oil stain and one on top of the oil stain.
- Set a heavy book or other flat, heavy item on top of the pile.
- Let the paper stay between the paper towels for two to three days.
- If any oil remains, cover it with a small mound of baking soda.
- Let the baking soda sit on the stain overnight.
- Brush off the baking soda.
- If any stain remains, repeat steps 6-8 with fresh baking soda as many times as needed for the stain to be removed.
Additional Tips and Advice
- A dry cleaning sponge, available in the wallpaper section at most hardware stores, can be effective for removing difficult stains from paper. If there is any color in the stain, a dry cleaning sponge may be effective.¹
- One site user wrote in (Thanks!) to say that the process took 3 days to work.
Sources
- The Queen of Clean’s Complete Cleaning Guide by Linda Cobb
Can I use 3-4 napkins instead of paper towel??
Anonymous,
Yes, but only use white napkins as the dye on any other color could stain the paper. Don’t use napkins that have printing on them either for the same reason. Good luck!
No… I tried with napkins and it didn’t work!!! Then I tried with paper towels and then it worked. ????
Is it really helpful? What is the effect of baking soda on the paper or it’s content?
Please reply. ????????
Keerthi,
Baking soda is an absorbent powder. By putting it on the paper (or most other things that have oil stains and can’t be washed, such as upholstery), the powder will wick up the oil out of the item. The same idea is being used when peple have engine oil stains on their driveway and cover them with kitty litter – the litter wicks up the oil. It’s similar to how an oil lamp works: you put a wick (string) in the oil, the oil soaks up to the top of the string, which can then be lit. If you don’t have baking soda, use cornstarch, cornmeal, or if necessary, flour can work. You may have to repeat extra times with the flour though as it’s not as absorbent. Good luck!
Thanks so much. I really loved it. It worked for me.