How to remove organic coffee stains from carpet?
As a professional carpet cleaner and complete coffee addict I would like to help you remove coffee stains from your carpet. Most articles will recommend applying a vinegar water solution to your carpet. After removing 100’s of coffee stains from all types of carpets over 15 years I found this is not the best solution.
The best way to remove organic coffee stains from carpet is with 3% hydrogen peroxide.
5 Steps to remove an organic coffee stains from your carpet
1. Place down paper towels on the coffee to absorb the liquid. Keep replacing the paper towels until you can no longer absorb any more liquid.
Please blot the stain as in the video. Rubbing the stain can distort the carpet fibre.
2. Spray the coffee stain with 3% hydrogen peroxide . The larger the stain the more product you will need to apply. Please don't go overboard. Applying too much product can over wet the carpet. You will almost instantly see the coffee stain begin to lighten. Please do not apply any other cleaning products to the stain. It will make this less effective.
3. Apply some downward pressure to the coffee stain. Pressing down firmly or standing on top of the paper towel will help absorb excess moisture.
4. Reapply a light mist of the 3% hydrogen peroxide to the stain.
5. If the coffee stain is still visible you can apply a light mist of the 3% peroxide to the coffee stain the next day. As a professional I find this the best way to remove organic coffee from carpet but you need to be careful not to remove dyes especially from delicate rugs.
Where can I purchase the 3% hydrogen peroxide?
It’s available at most chemists such as:
Most supermarkets also sell hydrogen peroxide but the labels might be confusing so I would recommend purchasing from a chemist.
How do I know if my coffee stain is an organic or synthetic dye?
If the coffee you dropped on the carpet was an instant coffee or coffee syrup there is a high chance that it was a synthetic dye. You can use the same process on both types of coffee stains but it will work better on an organic stain. If you made your coffee with coffee beans then it would be an organic dye.
Always test in an inconspicuous area before removing the coffee stain.
Why does hydrogen peroxide work?
Most coffee stains are organic dyes. To remove an organic dye we need to add oxygen to the stain to help remove it. Hydrogen peroxide adds oxygen to the coffee stain.
How to remove synthetic coffee stains from carpet?
Synthetic coffee stains are much more difficult to remove than organic coffee stains. Ultimately you need to apply a reducing agent to remove a synthetic stain but this is very risky as a reducing agent doesn’t know when to stop reducing (taking the colour out) and can bleach the carpet.
I would recommend treating a synthetic coffee stain the same as an organic coffee stain to reduce the risk of damaging your carpet.
If you don’t see any improvement to the synthetic coffee stain I would recommend calling a professional carpet cleaner.
