How To Remove Blood Stains From Carpet

Removing blood stains successfully from your carpet is no accident when you follow these procedures and tips.

Blood stains are reddish when fresh but dry to a dark brown color. It contains albumin (a water soluble protein coagulated by heat, similar to an egg white when heated), fat, iron and fibrin (a protein which gives blood the ability to clot).

This type of stain is water soluble and is on the alkaline side of the pH scale (pH 7.4).

Procedures to remove blood stains

1. Time is of the essence! Immediately blot up as much of the spill as possible. The longer a stain sets the more stubborn it becomes to remove. Use a clean white bleach-free cloth to remove a stain as the color from the cloth could transfer to the fabric or surface you are cleaning.

   How to Blot: Push your index finger knuckle into a white bleach-free cloth. Work your knuckle forward and backward then left to right across the carpet stain. Twist your wrist in a clockwise direction. Carpet fibers are twisted clockwise. This motion removes stains from between the fibers without causing the carpet to fuzz. Remember to frequently move the towel to prevent the stain from spreading.

2. For successful blood stain removal, the protein component must be considered. Excessive heat may cause the protein portion of the stain to set.

   Apply a lukewarm alkaline cleaning solution (pH 9-10) and blot. Always pretest any stain remover on an inconspicuous area of the carpet. Apply a few drops to each color in the carpet test area. Press a clean, white cloth on the wet area for approximately 30 seconds. Check both the towel and the carpet for color transfer, color change or any other damage. Repeat same procedure with another stain remover if you notice any change.

   Do not scrub the area. Scrubbing can distort the pile and harm the fibers. Scrubbing can result in making the stain set into the carpet or rug.

   Work from the edges of the stain to the center to prevent the stain from spreading. Continue as long as the stain is getting transferred onto the towel. Apply more solution to a fresh area on the towel and repeat the process as long as the stain is being removed. Patience is a virtue as far as this step is concerned!

   If available, utilize a carpet cleaning machine or a spray bottle to apply the alkaline cleaning solution to flush the stain. Then extract to remove stains from carpet. As an alternative a shop vac may be utilized for extraction purposes. Dry treated area as much as possible. Care must be taken not to over-wet the carpet.

3. Any blood stains remaining can be treated with an oxidizing bleach.
   
   Depending on the carpet fiber type, caution must be exercised when treating stains with an oxidizer due to possible color loss, fiber damage or permanent setting of the stain.

   Oxidizers to use include:

   • commercially formulated oxidizers available to the carpet cleaning industry
   • hydrogen peroxide, safest on all fiber types
   • sodium percarbonate, safe only on synthetic fibers
   • a 50/50 mix of hydrogen peroxide and ammonia will work faster than hydrogen peroxide alone, however, this mixture should not be used on natural fibers
4. When the desired results are achieved, thoroughly rinse oxidizer from carpet and dry carpet as much as possible.

   When most of the moisture is removed, you may use clean, dry towels weighed down by flat, heavy objects like a book or brick on the damp area to absorb any remaining moisture. This helps prevent wicking of any deep staining material not removed that will move to the surface as the carpet dries.



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