There’s nothing quite as unsightly as a pesky coffee stain in the middle of your carpet or sofa. They always seem to happen at the worst times when you’re rushing around in the morning or trying to get the kids ready for school so usually they’re not dealt with straight away.
Fortunately we’ve tried and tested the most popular methods of removing coffee stains using household cleaners and have put together what we believe is the most effective way to deal with them. We’ve broken up our methods for cleaning coffee stains into two categories for old and new stains which seem to react very differently.
New Stain
So you’ve been working from home and the mornings are generally less manic than before. You roll out of bed at a leisurely pace and make yourself a cup of coffee then boom! Surprise cat has you spilling it all over the carpet. Fear not – this proven method for dealing with new coffee stains will have it disappearing in no time.
As with all stains, the quicker it’s dealt with the better the results generally. As soon as the spill happens, get a clean cloth and blot the stain until you see a visible reduction in the discolouration. It’s important to constantly rinse your cloth to make sure you’re not just pushing the coffee deeper into the carpet fibres but rather you’re allowing the cloth to absorb the spilt coffee into itself. Do this for at least 5-10 minutes depending on the stain.
Once you’re done blotting, combine a table spoon of dishwashing solution, 2 table spoons of white vinegar and two cups of warm water. As with the initial blotting, get a new clean cloth and dab it into the cleaning solution. Starting from the outside and working your way in, blot as before. Continue to refresh the cloth with the solution until the entire stain has been blotted. Using a new, dry cloth, blot the solution on the stain to remove and dry it. Finally rinse with cool water to remove any remaining solution.
Old Stain
Often a coffee spill happens during the most rushed mornings where cleaning it up straight away is simply not an option. If you’ve spilt your coffee and don’t have the time to clean it up straight away, use the following steps to lift the stain and have your carpet/couch looking brand new.
Usually with an older stain, there’s no point in blotting the spill with a cloth as the liquid will have already dried. In this case, using some warm water, wet the stain area slightly to help in lifting the stain out.
Combine one tablespoon of laundry liquid, 2 table spoons of white vinegar and two cups of warm water. Using a cloth, blot the stained area working your way from the outside in, making sure that the stain has been blotted thoroughly. Once this is done, use a soft brush (dish/carpet/old toothbrush) to agitate the stain and assist in lifting the stain. This shouldn’t be too rigorous but just enough to disrupt the carpet fibres a little and help lift the stain.
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