Life happens on your carpet. Sometimes things can fall and get stuck in the fibers. Although our first instinct may be to cut out what seems like a hopeless stain, that’s not the best solution. Here are some tips to remove some of the toughest set-in gunk from your carpet and get it back to feeling new!

Gum


Start by freezing the stuck in gum with ice cubes, just put a handful in a zip lock bag and place the bag directly on the gum. Allow the gum to freeze and harden, this may take 2-5 hours. Then break the frozen gum with something blunt – a knife or spoon should work fine. Once it’s broken up, vacuum up the pieces quickly, before it thaws and softens again.

Another option is to heat the gum with a hairdryer. Be careful with this option and make sure the gum doesn’t melt into the carpet fibers. Once it starts getting melty, use a plastic bag to scrape up the gum. The gum should stick to the plastic. Continue doing this until the stain is gone.


Silly Putty or Slime


Similar to getting gum out, freeze the stuck in silly putty with ice cubes in a plastic bag on the stain. Give it about 2-3 hours to freeze and harden. Then break up the frozen slime with a knife or spoon. Once it’s broken up, throw away the pieces you can, and vacuum up the rest quickly.


Wax


Scrape off any loose wax with a scraper or butter knife, and vacuum away what you can. Place a damp white towel over the spill. Then place a hot iron on top of it for about 10-30 seconds. The heat should cause the wax to unstick to the carpet, and in turn, stick to the towel. If the towel dries out before the wax is gone, simply re-wet it and repeat the process until the wax has been completely removed.


Glue


Re-hydrate the glue by soaking a cloth or cotton ball in rubbing alcohol and dabbing it on the stained area. Once the glue is completely wet, very slowly wipe it away. Continue doing this until the area is clean.

Another option is to place a paper towel or thin cloth over the spill, then place a hot iron on top of it. The glue will become more liquid and will be able to be absorbed into the cloth or towel.


Nail polish


Wet the stain with cold water. Then spray the area with a decent amount of hair spray, followed by a small amount of rubbing alcohol. Scrub the hair spray and alcohol in with a scrub brush for about 60 seconds. Slowly start rinsing the area with cold water while continuing the scrub. Continue this process until the stain has been removed.

If the stains you’re seeing in your carpet are too much for any of these tips, FloorQuest has many carpeting options to fit everyone’s lifestyle!