The Story of Soilove

Green bottle of Soilove

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For years I thought I was the only person who knew about something called Soilove. I first discovered it back in 1982 while searching for a laundry stain product that could beat the outrageously high price of the name brands. Those were easy to spot because they were always shelved at eye level.

When I reached the top shelf and found a lowly mint-green bottle of an off-brand stain treatment called Soilove (pronounced “soil-love”), I was suspicious that anything so cheap could be any good. Still, I decided to give it a try.

Believe me, I love to find a bargain. But when the bargain brand outperforms its pricey competitors, that really revs my engine.

Soilove is such an amazing product. It removes stains from laundry like you can’t believe. I’ve used Soilove to get out new stains, old stains, red stains, grass stains, baby stains, food stains, blood stains, makeup stains, pet stains, and every other kind of stain imaginable—except for yellow mustard. Not even Soilove can handle a yellow mustard stain.

Back then, I paid $.79 for a 16-oz bottle of Soilove in my local supermarket. Soilove is still available today, provided you know where to look. Soilove is available in  99 Cents Only stores. Readers tell me they’re seeing Soilove in their local dollar stores, You can order a case of 12 bottles of Soilove from Amazon. If you’re particularly frugal, you could easily stretch a case of Soilove to cover a couple of years of domestic miracles.

Soilove has rescued so many things for me, I cannot imagine my life without it.

Over the years I’ve come up with many other uses for Soilove—other than removing every stain I’ve ever attempted from clothing, except for yellow mustard. Let me assure you that Frank Kagarakis, the owner of America’s Finest Products, Inc. in Santa Monica, Calif., and manufacturer of Soilove (yes, it’s made in the USA), tells me that the only approved use for Soilove is to apply it to washable fabrics to remove stains. That’s all. He does not endorse, acknowledge, promote or in any other way suggest that Soilove should be used for any other purpose. Neither do I.

Now that we have that out of the way, let me tell you all the ways I choose to use Soilove anyway—and have without any negative results.

Jewelry

Soak fine jewelry in Soilove and then brush with an old toothbrush. Caution: Never put pearls, opals or other soft stones in any kind of cleaner.

Bathtub

Cleans fiberglass and porcelain tubs beautifully.

Sticky label removed

How annoying is it to buy something beautiful only to have the label cemented right in the most conspicuous spot? Just spray on Soilove and let it sit for a few minutes.

Hubcaps and chrome

Spray it on, scrub gently with a cloth or soft brush, rinse.

Patio furniture

Soilove will just melt away all that grime. Spray, let sit for a few minutes, scrub if necessary and rinse.

One last thing: I suggest you transfer Soilove into your own spray bottle. It will last a lot longer because that will allow you to be more judicious with its use. The bottle it comes in does not spray, and if you try to treat your stains by pouring it on, you’ll waste a lot of the precious commodity. You only need to saturate a stain, not the entire item, for Soilove to do its miraculous work.

My industrial-strength spray bottle from Home Depot works perfectly.

A close up of a bottle

Believe me, you’re going to love Soilove. 

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41 replies
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  1. pennynibbelin says:

    Should I use it full strength or half water in my spray bottle? I did use it full strength on a stain on my husband’s yellow t-shirt, and it took alot of the yellow out. I hope he doesn’t notice.
    Suggestions?

    Reply
    • Susie says:

      Never soak in soilove just pour it on and toss in washer. I’ve even poured a whole bottle in dirty truck driver clothes!

      Reply
  2. Andrea C. Wirt says:

    I want to order Soilove but am discouraged by the comments about leakage in shipping and not receiving the correct number of bottles. Has this improved any?

    Reply
  3. Annamarie says:

    Mary, I have been trying to locate the product Soilove. Dollar store does not sell it. On line the cost is $14 and up. Cannot locate a retailer and cost of .99??
    HELP!

    Reply
  4. Joanna H says:

    I am normally a huge fan of yours, but today I’m appalled! After reading this article I searched for Soilove online and came across the website soapsgoneby.com where low and behold it said the exact same thing you did in your article. Since there website has been running for I assume years I can only assume that you chose to plagiarize their work. You should be ashamed. If you are not going to write all your articles yourself, then at least give credit to the people you stole it from!

    Reply
    • ABC says:

      All I got when I clicked on the link was some kind of search page about bathroom remodeling. I even typed the url in by hand and got the same thing!

      Reply
      • Raqs says:

        I was able to get to the website and they were even thanking Mary about that.
        Best unofficial uses for Soilove as shown on www.cheapskatemonthly.com.

        Thanks to Mary Hunt of Debt Proof Living for these great unofficial uses of Soilove.

    • Nicole Celli says:

      You should be embarrassed. If you are not going to read the articles in their entirety, then at least have the decency to not make accusations against people without having all facts.

      Reply
  5. PH says:

    I started using Soilove quite a few years ago (~8) when I read about on your column. Fortunately, I don’t have to use it very often so the 6 bottles I bought from a former source (I think Soaps Gone Buy) have lasted me this long. However, I now need it again and am glad to know it’s available on Amazon, even if it’s in a quantity that will likely last a decade for me 🙂

    Reply
  6. Deb says:

    So you are here now, in Colorado? Remember you have an open invitation to come to Fort Collins for coffee!!

    I do have a question though. Have you found Soilove at any of the stores here?

    Reply
  7. Mary says:

    I also use this as my first line of defense to remove stains. I just put a pin hole in the cover that come over the spout. I make sure that it alines with the small hole in the cap.

    Reply
  8. Kate Glover says:

    I have used Soilove joyfully ever since I first read about it here. I collect a lot of great stuffed animals from Goodwill for our local hospice. They always go through the washer and dryer before I take them to hospice. A lot of them have stains of mysterious origins. Before they go in the washer, regardless of their material make-up, they get a good brushing with Soillove. I’ve taken out old coffee stains, marker names, grease, tire tracks, and literally everything I tried it on has been removed beautifully, usually in one washing. It is such a thrill to be able to donate a beautiful clean high-price stuffed animal, such as Gund or Build-a-Bear, to hospice. I’ve told everyone I know about Soilove, I’ve given away bottles to people who really need it, like young mothers. I wish there was a store close to me that carried it, but I don’t mind paying the shipping for such a great product. I cannot imagine being without it.

    Reply
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