How to Remove Gum from Fabric
Sitting in gum is no fun, but trying to get it off your pants—or shirt or sheets—is the real sticky situation. Nothing a little icy determination can't handle.
Up next in Stains & Laundry (80 videos)
No matter what you spilled on your clothes or furnishings, we can tell you how to get it out.
You Will Need
- A plastic bag
- Some ice
- A towel
- A butter knife
- And some liquid detergent or stain remover
- A freezer (optional)
Steps
-
Step 1
Fill the plastic bag with ice and seal it.
-
Step 2
Pick up the bag of ice using the towel to keep your hands from freezing.
-
Step 3
Hold the ice against the gum until it freezes—about 15 minutes.
-
If you can, put the entire gummed-up article in the freezer for a while.
-
Step 4
Crack and scrape off the now-frozen gum with a butter knife.
-
Step 5
Once the gum is gone, pre-treat any remaining residue with liquid detergent or stain remover.
-
Step 6
Wash and dry the garment the way you normally would.
-
Modern gum made its appearance in the late 1860s, when chicle—the latex of the sapodilla tree—was first brought to the U.S.
