Notice there are no lousy spotters on that list. That’s because nobody wants to admit they are lousy. It wasn’t their fault the garment was ruined – it was labeled wrong!

Perhaps we are overlooking something. Could the label actually be correct and the reason the garment was ruined was our technique? Not the dye, the label, the machine, etc…. but the method by which we spot?

Yes, it could! So let’s take a few moments to review some incorrect and correct spotting techniques. Before we can even think about being a good spotter, we must have the proper tools and equipment.

Checklist:

Here is a quick checklist:

Is your steam gun working correctly?

Is the vacuum working?

Do you have plenty of cheese cloth?

Do you have a wet (whit) and dry (black) spotting brush?

Do you have wet and dry delicate brushes?

Do you have a bone scraper?

Is the lighting correct?

Is the board clean?

Do you have the right amount of dryside, wetside and specialty chemicals available? Are they properly labeled?

Is the air gun working?

If you’ve checked off all the above, you’re ready to become a good spotter. One tool that I didn’t include on the list, because it is not something you have to have to be a good spotter, and that is the Spectralight. Although not necessary it’s a great addition to any spotting board.

First the "don’ts"

Don’t assume anything. Anyone who’s taken my class knows how I feel about assuming. If you haven’t and want to know, email me at machin@laidlawcorp.com

Painters out

Don’t be a painter. I have nothing against painters, but they are not needed when working a stain out of fabric. Too many spotters move the brush from side to side on the fabric and ultimately end up chafing the fabric or pulling the dye due to excessive mechanical action.

Don’t be a carpenter. A lot of spotters apply the correct chemical to the stain and then literally beat the hell out of the fabric. While the stain is still "wet" with chemical it looks OK. But when it comes out of the machine, more often than not you’ve pounded out the color - and sometimes the stain is still there.

Enough of the negatives, let’s look at what a good spotter should be doing.

Read the care label before you do anything.

Identify the fabric.

Identify the stain.

Now that you have done 1,2 and 3, it’s time to choose a chemical and attack.

If you know exactly what the stain is, you can go after it with the proper chemical. But what about the unknown stain?

Step 1. Always start on the dry side. Dryside chemicals, without the presence of heat and moisture, will never set stains.

Step 2. This has nothing to do with chemicals at all. Take your steam gun and see if the stain will come out. If the dryside chemicals don’t work, it’s either a blow-off stain, which generally works with steam gun (sugars, starch or salts) or a tannin or protein stain, which will need some chemical action. Laidlaw's dryside chemicals include POG and Wetspo.

There’s a good chance the steam gun will do it. Remember to use the steam gun at a safe distance, usually around 6" from the fabric.

Now a couple of pointers here… First, remember to FLUSH out all dryside chemicals in Step 1 with VDS before starting on the wet side. If you flush out OTPR/POG with steam, you run the immediate risk of pulling color as you heat up the various components of the OTPR/POG, you increase their strength. Our Wetspo product can be flushed dry or wet. Second, if the garment has already been wetcleaned, you can probably skip Step 2 above which applies primarily to garments coming out of the wheel. By the same token if you find a garment covered in a spot that comes right out with just steam and the garment is to be wetcleaned (pre-spotting), then you might opt simply to wetclean it and check it before drying. Lastly, don’t get the steam gun too close. A lot of folks think the only reason that you keep the spotting gun up high is to avoid distortion of the fabric. While that is true, you have to realize that if you put the gun too close and get a stain too hot, you could set the stain, just like the heat of drying would do.

Neutral stance:

Step 3. Try your neutral lubricant. Laidlaw's is Tergit. Hopefully everyone has one, if not you’re missing one of the great chemicals of a good spotting board. A neutral lubricant is neither acid nor alkali, so it’s as safe as plain old water. Can it pull color? Can water?

Step 4. This is very important. If the stain hasn’t responded to anything, dryside, steam/moisture or neutral lubricants then you’ve now narrowed it down to a tannin or protein stain. Does it matter which way you go after the stain? Yes. Here’s the general rule to bear in mind: Use tannin before protein and acid before alkali. Tannin spotters (with the exception of general formulas) will never set protein stains. Protein Spotters will set tannin stains. Laidlaw's tannin formula is BanTan and protein formula is Protein Spotter.

Remember, a tannin stain is anything that grows from the ground, a protein stain comes from a body.

By the numbers:

I call this form of spotting the 1-2-3-4-5 (4 being acids and 5 being alkalis) form of spotting. There are exceptions to every rule and this method is no different. Unknowns stains that are yellow/orange or red are better attacked with alkali before acid, or 1-2-3-4.

I picked an unknown stain to talk about because I’ve seen too many people attack them incorrectly. With the method I’ve just given you, you can be 80% effective. The next 10% requires the use of digestive baths (see our RSR product for more information) and the last 10% may require bleaches and strippers, but that’s another tip…

A few things to remember. Tamp the fabric, don’t pound it. The purpose of the brush is to break the surface of the stain and let the chemical work, not to beat the stain off. If brute force worked, I’d send you to the gym instead of talking about my 1-2-3-4-5 method of spotting.

Soft Touch:

-The bone scraper was designed to lightly scratch the surface of the stain to allow the chemicals to penetrate easier is not a stain remover.

-Use cheese cloths.

-If you must brush or rub do so in the direction of the fabric. Check the weave.

-Use your steam gun correctly. If the gun gets too close to the stain, it will begin to set it.

-TEST! I can’t say that enough. When in doubt -Test, Test, Test. Bill Seitz tests! Dan Eisen tests! Norm Oelke test! Shouldn’t you? Those people mentioned are some of the best spotters in the industry. If they test, so should everyone else. Never assume.

Mike Achin
Director of Chemical Products for Laidlaw Corp.