A few months ago I ordered a replacement for my trusty iPhone case. Speck #1 had served me well, so I replaced it with Speck #2 and Speck #3. I’ve always liked the fabric-backed case look, so I got two more, and they are cute. Simultaneously colourful and protective. BAM.
The top is what I've cleaned, the bottom is still dirty. Ick, eh?
Case #2, with it’s lovely purple floral pattern on a white background, has served me well since Case #1 was sent to the great iPhone in the sky. Unfortunately, that lovely, stark white background just wasn’t looking so stark anymore. It was looking narsty. A bit of ground in melted chocolate here, and a lot of general dirt and grime there… ew. But I fixed it!
All you’ll need is a toothbrush, baking soda (USA / Canada), hydrogen peroxide, and a little container to mix things together in.
This is what I started with. Take a look at the colour of the fabric between the letters at the bottom of the case to see how dirty it is!
Start by removing your phone from the case. This step is not optional, folks. If you can’t figure it out, YouTube it.
Then mix together 2 tsp each of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda (USA / Canada) in that container. Stir them together with the toothbrush, get a bit of the mixture on the toothbrush, and start scrubbing. You’ll want to do this over the sink as you will be surprised and disgusted by the amount of grimy water that immediately starts washing off your case.
Et voila! All clean!
Once your case is nice and clean (use the part of the case that is protected by the raised brand letters to judge), give it a quick rinse under some running water and pat dry thoroughly. Let dry completely before putting it back on your phone (duh). Try not to scrub too long, and don’t leave it to soak. I’m not sure what glue Speck uses, but it is probably some kind of soluble, and you don’t want your newly cleaned fabric backing to peel right off.
This worked perfectly the first time! Thank you so much, there is nothing out there about how to safely clean these cases, and I didnt want to buy another one! Thank you!!!
I’m so glad I helped save your phone case, Hannah 🙂 Don’t forget to try the baking soda/hydrogen peroxide mixture on other stubborn stains—it once saved a cream coloured shirt of mine from a 6 month old grape jello stain!
Thanks for this! 🙂 I haven’t tried it yet, but your method seems to be the most efficient and helpful! My friend has a similar case; I’ll have to tell her about this! I have the arctic blue colorbar case for the iPhone 5 since November and it’s pretty faded (tiny chocolate stain here, black jeans dye there, a little of whatever everywhere). I tried using those Tide to-go pens with no luck. Thank god I hurt myself a while ago and my mom bought sprayable hydrogen peroxide for the wound! I do have two concerns before I use this method: I know the smallest drop of any liquid causes the fabric to peel, you know. Any suggestions for avoiding this? Also, is it the color from the case that’s fading? Or is it just all the dirt? When I clean it, I hope the mixture doesn’t take all the color away, but instead brightens it. Thanks again!!! 🙂
How funny—demin dye and chocolate are my two biggest stain issues as well 😛 I’ve washed my fabric case using this method around 5 times, and it hasn’t started to peel at all. I’d just recommend using as little hydrogen peroxide as possible to create a paste, and staying away form the edges, where the peeling is most likely to start. If it does, you can glue it back down. And in my experience, it’s all dirt! I have this case (http://www.speckproducts.com/iphone-case/iphone-4-case/fitted-cases-for-iphone-4s.html) with the purple flowers on a white background, and every time I clean it, it’s back like new, with a bright white background and pretty purple flowers. Hope that helps, and good luck with your case!
Worked wonderfully!!! Thank you for the tip!
Awesome, glad to hear it!
This seems very helpful but I have a question! I have this case http://www.speckproducts.com/iphone-case/fabshell-burton-for-iphone-5.html will cleaning it with that paste bleach it or will it keep its color? Thanks
It won’t bleach it! I have this one and one similar to yours, and they are both bright as ever 🙂 Just don’t leave the paste on and you’ll be fine.
Okay thank you 🙂
🙂
This is amazing! I have been disgusted by the dirt and chocolate stains on my Speck case. I was about to throw it away, but had spent $35 on it. It worked very well. It was a little difficult to scrub the sides using the toothbrush. It is as white as it was when I purchased it 4 months ago. Other people even remarked on the stunning difference. Glad my Google search led me here. Thank you, thank you!
Yay! Don’t you just loving fixing things and getting them all shiny and new again? Thanks for reading 🙂
I used this and wow just wow. But I can’t find any ways to clean the front of the case. How did you clean the front of your case?
Hi Jentry! Well… it’ll sort of depend on what the front of your case is made from. If it’s like mine, start with soap. It’s also worth trying this mixture as well. My favourite cleaner is a mixture of ground soap, borax, and washing soda (in more or less equal parts), but that’s kind of a pain in the arse if you don’t happen to have all the ingredients on hand already.
This worked great! I have the same brand but blue stripes. It made the color brighter than when I bought it and softer too! I used my phone with dirty hands once and it got all over my case!! Haven’t used it since until now! Thank you
Fantastic! Yay for making things like new again 😀
This looks amazing, and I can’t wait to try it out (based off all the amazing feedback you’ve gotten), but I went looking for the hydrogen peroxide at the supermarket (I live in El Salvador), but they were only able to give me peroxide for hair that contained hydrogen peroxide. Would this work too, or do I need to get the pure hydrogen peroxide?
Hi Grace! I’d look for the pure stuff—have you tried a pharmacy? It’s sold here for cleaning cuts.
Is this method safe for a polyester ipad case? Other sites suggest detergent etc.
It’s still new and im afraid that it may destroy my case
It should be, but if you’re unsure, do a swatch test. I couldn’t find information on precisely what the fabric on my case was, but it must be a synthetic as it’s far too durable to be a natural fibre, so there’s a good chance it’s polyester, and it worked great on that 🙂