Stain Remover Experiment

For the whole experiment I've labelled each shirt with a letter and each letter has its own stain remover.

                A- SARD WONDER

B- DI-SAN

C- SHOUT

PROPOSAL

Rationale for the project- The purpose of this experiment was to see which commercial stain remover would remove stains on cotton fabric the best.

The results from this experiment will be helpful for people to choose the stain remover that is the best at getting the stains off their clothing.

The worst thing that can happen to someone is when they buy a new article of clothing & they accidentally drop food on it for e.g. sauce or beetroot, that it will stain & ruin their clothes. This can be costly so finding a solution to the problem will be cheaper than throwing out the clothing & buying something in its place.

Aim/ Hypothesis- The aim of this experiment is to find out whether all stain removers will “remove after one wash” and how good the outcome of their product on the shirt would be. I believe that shout will be the most effective out of the 3 stain removers as it has in the past had accurate results for my clothes which have been stained before.

 

BACKGROUND RESEARCH

WHAT IS NEEDED?:

·         WASHING MACHINE

·         WASHING MACHINE POWDER (COLES)

·         BEETROOT AND TOMATO SAUCE (COLES)

·         PLAIN WHITE T-SHIRTS (TARGET)

·         STAIN REMOVERS

SARD WONDER	WOOLWORTHS
DI- SAN	ALDI
SHOUT	TARGET

 

INITIAL PLANNING-

At the beginning of this experiment I need to purchase the stain removers, t-shirts and the washing machine powder. Once everything is purchased which is needed for this experiment, I will begin to pour the beetroot juice onto the t-shirts and at a different section I will put the tomato sauce and smudge it into the t-shirts. Then I will begin to use each different stain remover onto the t-shirt e.g. Put shout stain remover onto t-shirt 1 and rub onto each stained section well. Once I’ve stained the t-shirts I will put them into the washing machine also there will be a white shirt with no stain removers on it (control) and then examine the results and place the results into a table.

The dependent variables in this experiment were:
the same kind of cotton
the amount of stain put on the cotton
the amount of stain remover
the amount of time the stain was washed
the temperature of water the cloth was washed in

The independent variable was the different types of stain remover used. 

INTERNET RESEARCH:

Definition of a stain

·         A stain is a discoloration that can be clearly distinguished from the surface, material, or medium it is found upon. They are caused by the chemical or physical interaction of two dissimilar materials. Staining is used for biochemical research, metal staining, and art. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stain (20/02/2016) (Wikipedia)

Definition of stain removal

·         Stain removal is the process of removing a mark or spot left by one substance on a specific surface like a fabric. A solvent or detergent is generally used to conduct stain removal and many of these are available over the counter. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stain_removal  (20/02/16) (Wikipedia)

EXTRA RESEARCH

Soak and scrub

·         One of the things that people seem to have forgotten over the years is that scrubbing clothes by hand is often a better treatment of clothes stains than simply throwing the clothes into the washing machine. Put some cleaning solution on the beetroot stain, whether it be simple soapy water or washing powder. After letting it soak in for a minute, scrub the stain with either a dry towel or some kind of scrubbing brush. More often than not the stain will come out.

Instant stain removers

·         Instant stain removers are a good way to prevent new beetroot stains. By quickly administering the stain remover to the affected area, these removers actually help to prevent the stain from forming on the fabric. For these to work, however, you have to administer the cleaning solution within a few hours after the beetroot splashed on your clothing. http://www.ehow.co.uk/way_5406731_beetroot-stain-removal.html (20/02/16) (James B. Jones)

                                              

Removing tomato sauce stains from clothes or fabrics

·         Tomato sauce has an uncanny ability to avoid the mouth, bib or napkin and settle cosily into clothing. But it’s actually quite easily removed – with the sun. UV rays break down tomato stains so simply launder clothes as usual and hang out in the sun – stain side facing out. By the time it’s dry, the stain should have faded away like magic — unless of course whatever else was mixed with the tomato decided it didn’t want to come out. If that happens, try soaking overnight and repeating the laundry process. http://www.kidspot.com.au/lifestyle/home/home-solutions/how-to-remove-tomato-sauce-stains (20/02/16) (kidspot)

Aim/ Hypothesis-

The aim of this experiment is to find out whether all stain removers will “remove after one wash” and how good the outcome of their product on the shirt would be. I believe that shout will be the most effective out of the 3 stain removers as it has in the past had accurate results for my clothes which have been stained before.

Method-

Firstly, I will begin to pour the beetroot juice onto the t-shirts and at a different section I will put the tomato sauce and smudge it into the t-shirts.

Then I will begin to use each different stain remover onto the t-shirt e.g. Put shout stain remover onto t-shirt 1 and rub onto each stained section well.

Thirdly, once I’ve stained the t-shirts I will put them into the washing machine also there will be a control on each shirt with no stain removers on it (control)

Then examine the results and place the results into a table.

Variables-

The dependent variables in this experiment were:
the same kind of cotton t-shirts
the amount of stain put on the cotton t-shirts
the amount of stain remover
the amount of time the stain was washed
the temperature of water the cloth was washed in

The independent variable was the different types of stain remover used. 

Results-

My results show that after all 3 experiments it proves that  my hypothesis was correct, Shout advanced stain remover is what it says it is and it is the best for your everyday stains .It will have the best effect on removing tough stains  every time. Shout excelled while the others failed and that is why I recommend buying and using shout for your everyday and even heavy duty stains.

Discussion-

In the experiment the aim was to find out what the most effective stain remover was on everyday stains.

The experiment period lasted 3 days,  I needed to make the stains, put the stain removers on, wash and then hang the shirts up to dry. Each step in the experiment took one day.

After each wash I recorded which was the most effective stain remover and took photos.

Through the whole experiment I had no problems at all, I was organised but I could have managed my time a little better.  I needed to take into consideration  that I had soccer training & other homework to do after school and to allow enough time to complete my experiment. Time management is critical when conducting experiments.

The whole experiment proved that I had a right hypothesis and that Shout  was going to be the most effective stain remover.

Safety-

In my experiment there were some safety pre-cautions I needed to consider. These were, things like  not to spray the stain removers close to my eyes or it could burn. Not to spray close to the ground cause it could make the floor slippery so you would need to clean this up immediately. Also if I spilt beetroot juice or tomato sauce on the floor just too clean up immediately as both could cause a slipping hazard.  

Conclusion-

In conclusion I believe that my experiment was a success and that the whole experiment proved my hypothesis to be correct. I also  learnt that whilst conducting this experiment the best stain remover was Shout.This experiment taught me  that it is very important to be organised and ready for  any problems as problems will always occur in every experiment but just to find other ways around the problem. A great example of this was when I bought one less shirt for the experiment so it was missing the control, I divided each shirt up in 2 and then I had a control and every shirt. But overall the experiment was a success.

Weekly Blogs-

8/FEB/2016 This week I considered possible options for the topic of my whole assessment and chose to investigate which stain remover is the most effective and to see how good each stain remover actually works. I will use 3 different stain removers and each shirt has its own control. All my products will be purchased and I’ve located each shop and the price for all of them. These details will all be in my proposal and my research which I plan to complete by the end of this week. I feel like I am very organised and this will be good for me as I will have enough time to complete the whole experiment without any problems.

15/FEB/2016 Since last week I’m still on track for early completion of this project. I have now  purchased everything I need for the experiment, all the stain removers and the t-shirts and I’m planning to start my experiment tomorrow night because I have training tonight. I completed my proposal and research on the weekend that just past and I’m starting to prepare and organise myself for the experiment. To stain the shirts I’m using beetroot juice and tomato sauce.

22/FEB/2016 Today, I handed my proposal and background research in to my teacher. I started my first experiment.  I stained the shirts, then waited an hour. I then sprayed the stain removers onto the stains and let them set for whatever times the instructions on the bottles stated. Then I placed the T-shirts into the washing machine. Once the cycle is complete I will hang them up and will have the results tomorrow once the T-shirts are dry.

23/FEB/2016 I got home from school and checked the t- shirts. T-Shirts A and B still had visible stains still left on them but T-Shirt C had the best results – the stains had been removed by the stain remover Shout. I therefore recommend using Shout stain remover as it is best at getting the stains out of your clothes.

4/MARCH/2016 Now I’ve repeated the same experiment and have had all the same results so it turns out that t-shirt 3 has had the best effective result.

19/MARCH/2016 In the end there were some parts where I was too lazy and I didn’t get on with the assignment and left it till the last few weeks and also I forgot to buy 1 extra shirt for the control so I divided each shirt in half and each had its own control. On the more positive side I received my marks for the Proposal and Research, I was very happy and proud to get 8/8. Hoping all goes well with this assignment and I make more progress, even though this week will be very busy for me!

5/APRIL/2016 This is the last week for me and I’m completing my weekly blogs and working on my presentation but in the end I’m pretty proud of what I’ve produced  and the effort that went into this assignment and I feel like I’ve succeeded.