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Some smells are hard to eliminate from the air. Cooking bacon for breakfast means that’s what your house smells like all day. Imagine you work hard all day in the garage on your favorite diesel-powered off-roader, and some fuel gets on your shirt. The odor can linger for days despite multiple washes.
How can you mitigate the scent? Here’s how to get diesel out of your clothes and its smell off your skin.
How to Get Diesel Smell out of Your Clothes
The diesel fuel smell can stay in fibers for a while, as it has slowly evaporating sulfur compounds. Try these eight methods to remove diesel from your clothing.
1. Vinegar and Baking Soda
Recall how your parents and grandparents washed your old baseball uniform back in the day. The dirt and grass stains needed something strong, such as baking soda and vinegar. The former is a deodorizer, while the latter is a disinfectant that can lift stains as it reacts with baking soda.
Mix equal parts of vinegar and baking soda to create a paste. Apply it to your diesel-fuel-smelling garments, leave it alone for 30 minutes and then scrub them. The odor should be gone afterward.
2. Baking Soda and Cola
You likely already have baking soda and cola at home. Use carbonated soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola, because they have citric and phosphoric acids that can remove stains. The acidic nature of Coke is why many use it as a degreaser. The acid reacts with the oil, loosening and dissolving it from the surface.
Soak your diesel clothes in a mixture of cola and baking soda to degrease them more effectively. Let them sit overnight. Then, scrub and rinse them in the morning.
3. Stain Removers
These household cleaners have specialized ingredients formulated to break down specific stains, especially those that have set in on fabrics and other surfaces. Some of them are available in spray form, making them intuitive to use.
Some stain removers contain harmful chemicals, so consider purchasing eco-friendly alternatives. Eco-friendly stain removal spray manufacturers use green chemistry with an emphasis on plant-based surfactants to minimize potential toxicity.
Look for stain removers bearing the Safer Choice label — the United States Environmental Protection Agency stamp of approval for chemical-based products. This certification indicates that every ingredient in the stain remover meets the stringent criteria of the federal agency, ensuring the product is safe for both human health and the environment.
4. Ammonia
Ammonia has a standard pH level of 11, making it a base. It’s an alkaline substance that effectively mitigates that pesky diesel fuel smell.
You can find bottles of ammonia at the store, but use this substance with caution. Prolonged exposure can irritate your skin, lungs, eyes and other body parts.
Take a quarter cup of ammonia and pour it into a bucket of warm water. Mix to dissolve. Soak your clothes in this mixture for about 30 minutes, then wash your clothes as usual.
5. Fast Orange
Some individuals who know how to get the diesel smell out of their clothes use a hand cleaner. Fast Orange has become a popular deodorizer because it removes stains from your hands and clothes. Glycerin, lanolin and aloe are some of its ingredients.
Add your clothes to the washing machine and fill it with water. Apply a tablespoon of Fast Orange and wash as usual. The powerful cleaner rids the grease and the diesel smell.
6. Heavy-Duty Washing Detergent
Sometimes, it’s necessary to call in the big guys. You may need heavy-duty washing detergent to get rid of the smell of diesel fuel. These cleaners are more potent because they’re industrial strength. They’re typically more concentrated with enzymes to increase their potency.
For diesel smells, use heavy-duty washing detergent in pretreatment and/or regular washes. Read the label to determine whether you can use a commercial- or industrial-grade product in your home washer. If you’re in doubt, soak your stained garments in a heavy-duty detergent only. Afterward, rinse them out thoroughly before a regular wash to avoid leaving residue on the clothing or the machine.
7. Rubbing Alcohol
Remember when you fell off your skateboard and scraped your knee? Your parents lectured you about wearing knee pads while applying rubbing alcohol to the wound. It’s hard to forget the burn, but rubbing alcohol is an excellent cleaner.
Rubbing alcohol is effective because it quickly evaporates when exposed to air. Thus, it eliminates odors by removing moisture from the surface and stunting bacterial growth. Try it with your dirty clothes.
Mix equal parts rubbing alcohol and baking soda into a bowl to form a paste. Apply it to your clothes and scrub everywhere. You may need to repeat it several times, but the process is an effective DIY solution.
8. Essential Oils
Essential oils have gained popularity because studies have shown that they can reduce anxiety, and people appreciate their pleasant scent. If you’re in a pinch, try using them when removing the diesel smell.
A popular method for removing the diesel smell is using eucalyptus oil. Ensure the producer distills or compresses the essential oil to ensure it’s pure and potent. Put the clothes in the washing machine and fill it with warm water. Add about a couple of drops of eucalyptus oil to your machine and continue washing.
How to Get Diesel Smell off Hands
If you don’t like the diesel smell, you can change your clothes for a temporary fix. However, you can’t change your hands. Imagine going on a date and all your partner can smell is diesel.
Here’s how to get diesel smell off skin.
1. White Vinegar
Vinegar doesn’t have the most pleasant smell, but it’s an effective answer to diesel odor on your skin if you forgot to wear nitrate gloves while working on your vehicle. You may use it to clean coffee makers, sheet pans and other kitchen items. However, you can also use it to wash your hands.
White vinegar is an effective solution for diesel-fuel-smelling hands. Like lemon juice, it’s powerful when combined with alkaline substances. Pour white vinegar onto your hands and rub for a minute. Ensure you get it under every crevice and fingernail before rinsing.
2. Vanilla Extract
When you think of vanilla extract, you likely imagine cooking and baking. Vanilla does more than add flavor to otherwise plain healthy breakfast favorites, such as Greek yogurt and protein shakes. It’s also a game-changer for your hands when they reek of diesel odor.
The process is pretty simple. All you need to do is add drops of vanilla extract to a water container large enough to fit your hands. Wash your hands thoroughly, checking to see if the smell is gone. After a few rounds of washing, you should only smell vanilla on your hands. Wash with soap and water to neutralize the vanilla smell.
3. Hand Soap and Salt
This method may seem odd, but hand soap traps the oil and grease from your skin, and salt removes moisture from clothing. Think about how salt removes water from food, making it a terrific preservative people have used for centuries.
Mix equal parts hand soap and table salt to create a deodorizing mixture. Rub your hands with it, ensuring you don’t have cuts. You know what they say about salt and wounds.
4. Lemon Juice
Another solid deodorizer for your hands is lemon juice. You likely have some in the fridge, so it can be a good substitute if you need a strong cleaner. Lime water is a popular natural oil stain remover, but lemon juice’s higher acidity makes it better at neutralizing odors. Many household cleaners use it to react with alkaline compounds, but you can use it alone.
Wash your hands with water and soap, then dry them properly. Pour lemon juice onto your hands and rub them thoroughly. Don’t rinse yet — wait about a couple of minutes to let the juice soak in.
5. Toothpaste
Toothpaste makes your breath smell fresh before that big first date and rids the diesel smell from your hands. It may be messy, but it’s worth the trouble.
Many types of toothpaste contain calcium carbonate and other abrasive substances that eliminate stains and odor. Apply the typical amount of toothpaste to both hands. Rub for a few minutes and rinse it off. Your hands will smell closer to peppermint than diesel.
6. Dish Soap
A few years ago, Dawn’s marketing campaign showed rescue workers using its dish soap to clean animals affected by oil spills. The dish soap is good enough for ducks, turtles and other animals, so try it for your diesel-fuel-smelling hands.
Use warm water in your sink and wash your hands with dish soap. It may help to fill a bucket with water and soap and soak your hands for a few minutes.
7. Hand Sanitizer
Sometimes, you can’t access the soaps and detergents in your kitchen and laundry room. In a pinch, you may resort to hand sanitizer. Bring a small bottle in your vehicle or put some in your garage if you get diesel on your hands, especially if you’re in an arid area with scarce water sources.
Hand sanitizers contain alcohol that kills bacteria on your skin. Their primary purpose isn’t deodorizing, but it’s practical because of its antimicrobial properties. Rub hand sanitizer on your hands for about a few minutes. If you’re in a location with a water supply, wash your hands with soap and then rinse them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the most common questions about the lingering smell of diesel fuel on clothing and skin.
Does Diesel Stain Clothes?
Yes, diesel does stain clothing because it’s oily, dark and insoluble in water. The hydrocarbons that make it up give it a dark color, making it prominently visible. Its greasy texture causes it to adhere to the fabric more tightly. It doesn’t mix with H2O, and washing it with water alone can even worsen the stain.
Natural fibers, such as cotton, silk and wool, are more susceptible to diesel stains, as they’re highly porous and absorbent. Tightly woven fabrics are more prone to staining because substances can penetrate them more easily and deeply. Older fabrics are also less resistant to staining. Although synthetic fabrics are more impervious to this fuel, they can still stain and require specific cleaning methods.
Will Diesel Fuel Smell Go Away After Washing?
The smell of diesel fuel will eventually dissipate once its compounds have completely evaporated, but it may take several washes to remove its distinct odor. Pretreating your diesel-laden garments helps accelerate this process, and so does air-drying under the sun. Natural ventilation prevents a musty smell, while the sun’s ultraviolet radiation can break down the oils more quickly.
The key is to use a potent cleaning agent that can effectively degrease your pieces of stained clothing and wash them by themselves to prevent the stink of the fuel from spreading to other garments. If the smell persists in your washer, clean the drum by using your machine’s self-clean cycle or running a hot wash with white vinegar or a dishwashing tablet.
What Is the Best Way to Get Diesel Fuel out of Clothes?
The people who know how to get diesel out of their clothes swear by the paste made from vinegar and baking soda — a potent, eco-friendly solution. Good alternatives include a mixture of baking soda and cola, the Fast Orange hand cleaner, heavy-duty washing detergents and essential oils.
Soaking your diesel fuel-smelling garments in warm water with ammonia or scrubbing them with a paste made from rubbing alcohol and baking soda can do the trick. Stain removers can also work wonders when used according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Will Dawn Get Diesel out of Clothes?
Yes, dish soaps like Dawn can get diesel out of clothes. These products contain surfactants, which consist of components that surround the stain, break it down into manageable particles, cause them to form beads and emulsify them.
Dish soaps work best as diesel stain removers when used in pretreatment. Soak problem clothes in a diluted Dawn solution overnight, and then clean them in the washer.
Ditch the Diesel Fuel Smell
Some people enjoy the smell of diesel, but it gets bothersome after it soaks into your clothes and hands. You don’t want to show up to a date or your in-laws’ house smelling like a gas station. Use these 15 remedies to banish the odor.
Originally posted 5/29/2023 — Last updated 12/12/2025
