How to Remove Permanent Stains From Carpet (Color Safe)
How do you remove organic stains from carpet? Let me start by defining what an organic stain is. When I say organic, I'm talking about things like wine, coffee, urine, juice, grass, vomit, blood, or other things that come from nature. All of these things have organic dye molecules that give them their color. A stain occurs when these organic dye molecules become permanently attached to the carpet fibers and cannot be removed. If you have tried and tried to remove a spot from your carpet and It just doesn't come out, this article is for you!
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This article isn't really about removing spots/stains from carpet, it's more about making stains invisible by destroying the stain molecules that are stuck in the carpet. We can do this using an oxidizing agent called hydrogen peroxide. You are welcome to use 3% medical grade hydrogen peroxide, but 6% salon grade hydrogen peroxide works a lot better and faster. Hydrogen peroxide breaks down the stain molecules, which causes them to lose their color, and become invisible. It is quite amazing what hydrogen peroxide can do!
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You might be asking yourself, is hydrogen peroxide safe to use on colored carpets? And the answer is yes it is! Hydrogen peroxide only breaks down organic stains. Our carpets are dyed with synthetic dyes which cannot be damaged with 6% hydrogen peroxide. It is good practice to avoid using hydrogen peroxide on natural fibers like wool or silk carpets. How do I know if I have a wool or silk carpet? Well wool, silk, or other carpets made from natural fibers are extremely expensive and the people who own then generally know what they are made of. Over 99% of us have carpets that are made out of synthetic fibers, which are extremely resilient and hydrogen peroxide safe.
Before using hydrogen peroxide on a stain, it is important to try and remove as much of the stain as possible using a spot removal product, or carpet cleaning machine. After this, we can apply the hydrogen peroxide to the remaining stain and watch it disappear. Sometimes hydrogen peroxide can remove stains in a matter of minutes, but other times it can take hours to remove stains.
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If hydrogen peroxide alone doesn't remove a stain, you can also add a couple sprays of household ammonia cleaner to the stain to boost the strength of the hydrogen peroxide. Make sure you don't mix the hydrogen peroxide and ammonia in the same spray bottle because the ammonia will cause the hydrogen peroxide to break down quickly, and after a few days the mixture will completely neutralize.
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You will need: 6% Hydrogen Peroxide (preferred) or 3% Hydrogen Peroxide, Household Ammonia (optional)
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STEP 1 OF 1 - Remove Organic Stain with Hydrogen Peroxide
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As a demo, this is a coffee stain that was caused from a very hot cup of coffee. Dye molecules from hot beverages can easily stick to the carpet fibers resulting in a permanent stain. spots caused from cold coffee spills can be a lot easier to remove with spot removal alone, and hydrogen peroxide is not usually necessary for cold coffee spills.
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Use two spray bottles, one filled with hydrogen peroxide, and the other filled with household ammonia cleaner.
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If the stain does not disappear after 8 hours, use a towel to absorb the liquid from the carpet and apply fresh Hydrogen peroxide and ammonia.
generously spray the hydrogen peroxide, engulfing the entire stained area. Then apply a few sprays of household ammonia.
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Once the stain is gone, use a towel to absorb any remaining hydrogen peroxide/ammonia from the carpet.
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Depending on the type of stain, this process may take a matter of minutes or it could take several hours.
Allow the carpet to dry. The hydrogen peroxide and household ammonia completely evaporate, leaving zero residue in the carpet.
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After removing the stain, make sure the carpet dries within 24 hours. If the carpet is overly damp, a fan, or blow drier can be used to accelerate the carpet drying time.
