Question

How does soap remove an oil spot?

Answer 1

It has two personalities. One part of the molecule dissolves into oil. Have you ever noticed that if you dripped oil onto a water surface that the oil will collect together and be separate from the water. This is how it observed when people say oil and water do not mix. Part of soap has this ability to collect onto oil.

The other part of the soap molecule has the ability to dissolve into water.

Here is how soap works: The oil loving part of soap collects onto the oil stain in the fabric. But then what happens is that it pulls away from the water, that is; It puckers, as it were. While the oil loving end puckers up to the oil in the stain they together become surrounded by the other personality of the soap molecule - the part that dissolves into water. In this way the oil is picked up, surrounded, torn away from the fabric and floated out (with the help of some mechanical agitation) into the water and then rinsed away.

The trick to cleaning up oil is to have a good soap - and any good basic soap will do. You do not need perfumes or decorations or shapes or magical properties. Soap is soap is soap is soap. Sunlight laundry bar is an excellent soap to have around the house. It is excellent in the medical cabinet as well for it is a first treatment to the oily contaminations of poison ivy. It is, however, very drying to the skin so do not use it as a skin soap except for emergency washing of poison ivy.

The second trick to cleaning up oil is have plenty of it so that you have enough soap molecules to handle the oil mess.

The third trick is to have plenty of rinse water to float the mess out with. Oil is much easier to handle when it is heated so using hot water is sensible whenever the fabric will endure heat.

Soap and hot water. Simple. No nonsense. It works. That is how.