You can use Shout® Laundry Stain Removers on all colorfast, washable fabrics. Colorfast means the fabric won't fade or run when it's washed. If you're not sure if a fabric is colorfast, check the garment label. If it says wash separately, with like colors or in cool water, this may be an indication that the dye (color) is not colorfast. When using Shout® Laundry Stain Removers, be sure to follow label directions and don't leave them on fabrics longer than is recommended.

We can't give away our "trade secrets," but we can say that Shout® Laundry Stain Removers are detergent based with powerful cleaning agents. Shout® does not contain any phosphates or bleach.

While all Shout® formulas are tough on stains, some formulas are especially effective on certain stains like grease, grass stains or motor oil. To find out which Shout® formula will work best on your tough stains, consult the Stain Solver section of this Web site.

Yes, all Shout® bottles contain 25% High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), which can be recycled.

Leave Shout® Trigger, Citrus Action and Advanced Stain-Lifting Foam Laundry Stain Removers on colorfast garments for one to five minutes before washing. (For set-in, greasy stains, Shout® Trigger and Citrus Action can be left on overnight.) Don't leave these products on longer than recommended; they could cause color loss or color change if the dyes are not stable. Shout® Advanced Ultra Gel Stain Remover can be left on colorfast garments for up to one week. However, don't leave it on bright, khaki, or fluorescent garments for more than a few minutes before laundering. It could cause color loss.

If the stain is lightened after the first treatment but is not completely removed, treat the stain and let it sit overnight or longer before washing. Some stains may require two or more treatments for complete removal.

Heat sets many stains and can make them permanent. If you're not sure the stain is gone completely, it's a good idea to let the garment air dry, then check for stain removal. If you missed a stain and it went into the dryer, retreating the set-in stain with Shout® Trigger or Citrus Action and allowing it to sit overnight before rewashing may remove the stain. You can also try using Shout® Advanced Gel—this super-concentrated gel is ideal for set-in stains.

The problem could be "soil redeposition"-a situation in which soil removed from clothes during the wash cycle settles back on the fabric instead of being carried away in the wash water. This can happen if not enough detergent is used or if the wash load is too large to allow maximum machine agitation and cleaning. Soil redeposition often goes unnoticed because the soil is evenly distributed over the fabric. Then, when a laundry stain remover is used, it may:

1. remove some of the soil to another area, creating blotchy spots, or

2. clean only the treated area, making that area look lighter than the rest of the garment.

Remedy for soil redeposition:

Apply Shout® Trigger, Citrus Action or Advanced Stain-Lifting Foam Laundry Stain Removers generously to the entire garment and launder it again. This works best if:

1. the garment is washed with only a few other clothes or by itself,

2. the washer load is set on full,

3. detergent use is increased by 50%, and

4. the water temperature is set as hot as the fabric can stand.

Check the garment care label. Warnings such as "wash in cold water," "hand wash," "do not use detergent," "turn inside out to launder" and "wash separately" may indicate that the dyes in these items are not colorfast.

Cottons, rayons and silks are often colored with non-colorfast dyes. Blue jeans are a typical example of non-colorfast clothing.

If you're unsure about a garment's colorfastness, do the following test before washing it.

Test for colorfastness
Soak a hem, seam, or other unnoticeable area of the garment in this solution for two to three minutes:

1 cup of warm water

1 teaspoonful of detergent

Let the garment air dry. If the dye runs or fades, you may want to return the garment to the store where you bought it or pretest it with another cleaning product.

You may also want to try the above test if you plan to pretreat a garment to remove a stain. Apply the pretreatment product directly to an unnoticeable part of the garment. Rinse it out. If the color doesn't change or run, you may safely wash and/or use the pretreatment.

It's not recommended. Items treated with Shout® Laundry Stain Removers need to be laundered before use, and laundering may damage dry cleanables. To treat stains when they happen on dry cleanables, use Shout® Wipes.

Yes. We often think of spots and stains as adding color to fabric. Usually this is true. However, perspiration, acidic foods and juices, and even certain medications and antiseptics can actually remove or change fabric color if the dye is sensitive.

When you successfully remove stains such as these, you reveal the area that's been discolored by the stain. This discoloration is not reversible.

The superclean effect occurs on fabrics with soil buildup caused by soil redeposition. When a laundry prespotter is used on an area of the garment, it removes the soil buildup. That "supercleaned" area (which can resemble a bleach spot) looks lighter than the rest of the garment. Use the following remedy.

Remedy for superclean effect
Treat the entire garment with Shout® Trigger, Citrus Action or Advanced Stain-Lifting Foam and rewash the garment with twice the normal amount of detergent.

Shout® Laundry Stain Removers do not contain bleach. Shout® Citrus Action, Trigger, and Advanced Ultra Gel clean with enzymes and surfactants. Shout® Advanced Stain-Lifting Foam uses surfactants and solvents to remove stains.

Shout® products are available in grocery, drug, hardware, and discount stores in the U.S. and Canada. If you live in the U.S., you can place an order through the SC Johnson Direct Mail Order service to have your favorite Shout® products sent right to you! Credit card orders: call 1-800-848-2588. Or fax orders to: 1-920-751-5850.

Shout® Advanced Gel actually contains 70% more stain fighters than regular Shout® Trigger, Citrus Action or Advanced Stain-Lifting Foam. Its super-concentrated power helps get out your tough laundry stains the first time!

Try Shout® Advanced Gel. Its super-concentrated formula is specially designed for a wide variety of set-in stains. Read the label and follow the directions to help save your clothes from stubborn, set-in stains!

Shout® Trigger is designed to remove both tough and everyday stains and will work well on some set-in stains. However, for your best chance of removing a difficult set-in stain, we recommend using Shout® Advanced Gel.

Shout® Action Gel™ is no longer available. As a replacement, we recommend trying Shout® Advanced Ultra Gel with the stain-lifting brush to treat your toughest everyday stains or Shout® Advanced Gel to treat your set-in stains.