Your couch is something that you spend a lot of time lounging on. It’s a pretty important part of your living room.
Being able to kick back after a long day feels fantastic. However, it’s hard to enjoy your time on the couch when it has seen better days.
Sometimes you might spill things on the couch or your pets might make a mess. This causes the couch to become stained and this might even lead to the couch becoming a little bit smelly.
What can you do to remove couch stains? Are there good methods that will allow you to get the couch looking good as new?
Read on to learn about the best methods to remove couch stains. You’ll learn about several options that you can try out that will make a difference.
1 – Look at the Care Tag
Looking at the care tag on the sofa is imperative. Couches are made using many different types of materials.
Some cleaning methods will work well for one couch while not working for another. Every couch should have a care tag that will give you various bits of information.
There will be different letter marks that dictate what you can and cannot do. These letters will be either W, X, S, or WS.
Couches marked with “W” can be cleaned using water as well as water-based cleaners. It’s common to use water and dish soap to clean stains off of couches like this.
Sofas that are marked “X” are incredibly delicate. You need to be careful not to stain these couches because you’re only supposed to vacuum them.
These “X” couches might require upholstery experts to remove stains. It’s not something amateurs should try to tackle because the couch would get ruined.
The “S” mark indicates that you can’t use water or water-based cleaners on the sofa. Only special dry cleaning solvents can be used on these couches.
Finally, “WS” means that you can use water and dry cleaning solvents on the couch. This isn’t the most common couch care tag to find.
2 – Using Water and Dish Soap
Using water and dish soap is a common cleaning method. This is going to be a good option for getting rid of many stains.
So long as you can use water on your couch safely, it’ll be easy enough to try to remove most stains using this method. The basic idea is to mix up a bit of water along with some dish liquid.
You don’t need to use much dish soap. Typically, it’s fine to use just one tablespoon of dish soap and a few cups of water.
Some stains can be rubbed out while others will need to be blotted. It just depends on what you’re dealing with.
3 – Vinegar
Vinegar is a powerful cleaning mixture that can help to cut through some types of stains. Sometimes when stains are a bit stubborn it’ll be better to use vinegar than it will to use dish soap.
You might not enjoy the powerful smell of vinegar depending on your sensibilities. However, it is good that vinegar can help to cover up bad smells.
Household vinegar is common and it can be combined with water to make a cleaning solution. You can use a cleaning cloth and vinegar to cut through many types of stains.
This will also be useful for cleaning other things in your home. It’s worthwhile to keep vinegar tucked away somewhere in your house.
4 – Hydrogen Peroxide
Hydrogen peroxide is useful when you’re trying to cut through stubborn stains. Sometimes peroxide can help stains to come out and it’ll make blotting simpler.
However, it’s possible that this will be too harsh for certain couches. It could change the color of the couch a bit so be warned.
Generally, you only want to use hydrogen peroxide if all else fails. Even so, it’s good to remember that this is something that can get rid of stains.
On some couches, this will be a great stain removal tool. Plus, many people keep hydrogen peroxide at home to treat wounds, and that means that you likely have some.
5 – Rubbing Alcohol
Rubbing alcohol is a powerful stain remover as well. Much like hydrogen peroxide, it’s something that you must use very carefully.
Generally, people use rubbing alcohol as a method for blotting stains. The rubbing alcohol is put on cotton balls or cleaning clothes and then you dab the stain to gradually pull it up.
There could be problems with using rubbing alcohol on many couches. So you’ll want to approach this issue based on the care tag information of your couch.
At the very least, it’s good to know that rubbing alcohol can be of use when fighting stains. It helps when blotting many types of stubborn stains that you’ll learn about later.
6 – Using Commercial Solvents
Commercial solvents need to be used to remove stains on couches that are marked “S.” These solvents are made using special materials that are safe for specific types of fabric.
Generally, you’re meant to apply the solvent to the stain and then dry the area using a blow dryer. These solvents are rather strong and you’ll want to open the windows in the living room while you clean things up.
Some people even choose to wear masks when using these commercial solvents. The smell might bother you if you choose not to wear a mask.
Follow the safety instructions that are on the product that you’re using. It should help to remove most stains if you do things correctly.
7 – Use Baking Soda for Grease Stains
Baking soda is a great cleaning tool that many people use to deodorize things. It can also help you out if you’re dealing with grease stains.
Spilling grease on your couch (or dropping some type of greasy food on the couch) will be problematic. A grease stain will look nasty and you’ll want to get rid of it as soon as you can.
Pouring a bit of baking soda on the grease stain makes things easier. The baking soda draws the grease out of the couch material.
Once you’re finished, you should be able to brush the baking soda away or vacuum it up. It’s nice and simple overall.
Best of all, it’s generally safe to use these methods on most couches. It should work fine on most leather couches, suede couches, microfiber sofas, and water-safe fabric sofas.
How to Get Blood Out of a Couch
One of the most frustrating stains that you can deal with involves blood. Bloodstains on your couch might seem like a nuisance, but they can be removed if you do things the right way.
To remove blood stains from the couch, it’s best to use a little bit of hydrogen peroxide. Apply some hydrogen peroxide to the area with the blood and the stain should disappear.
You can wipe it up and rinse the section of the couch with a bit of water. Cold water should do a good job of getting rid of any residual hydrogen peroxide.
If you don’t have any hydrogen peroxide that you can use, a little bit of dish detergent can do the trick. Mix up one tablespoon of dish detergent and two cups of cold water.
Dip a sponge in the mixture and then dab the bloodstained area of the couch. Some minor scrubbing should get rid of the bloodstain and you’ll then be able to rinse the couch to finish up.
How to Get Chocolate Out
Getting chocolate out of the couch isn’t going to be any more difficult than removing a bloodstain. You can use similar methods to remove the chocolate stain.
The best course of action to take is to grab a bit of dish soap from underneath the sink. Mix up one tablespoon of dish soap with two cups of cold water to make a cleaning mixture.
Now you can use a sponge or a cleaning cloth to apply the mixture to the stained area of the couch. You’ll spend a bit of time blotting up the stain until it has been completely removed.
If you find that the chocolate stain is stubborn, it’d be best to turn to hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide can be mixed with dish soap.
One part dish soap and two part hydrogen peroxide should do the trick. Apply this mixture to the stain directly and let it sit for ten minutes.
This will cut through the fat content and you’ll be able to remove the stain. The problem with this method is that the hydrogen peroxide may lighten the couch fabric a little bit.
So it’s best to try using it on a spot on the couch where you can’t see things too well at first. If it seems fine there, you can use it to remove the stain.
Try using dish liquid and water first to be safe. Only use hydrogen peroxide if you must.
How to Get Pen Out
Ink stains have the potential to be very bad. If you don’t act fast, it’ll be particularly difficult to remove the stain from the couch.
Ideally, you should start blotting the stain right away. As soon as you know that your pen has stained the couch, begin blotting it to try to remove as much of the ink as you can.
Rubbing alcohol does a great job of removing ink stains. This method will work for a variety of different couch surfaces.
You should be able to use rubbing alcohol to remove ink stains on fabric, vinyl, or leather couches. However, it might be best to test the rubbing alcohol on a small area of the couch first to see if it has a negative impact.
Apply the rubbing alcohol to a clean cloth and then use that to blot the stain. Don’t apply the rubbing alcohol directly to the couch.
You want to dab the stain with the rubbing alcohol rather than rub it with the cloth. It might take some time to remove the stain, but you must be patient.
If the alcohol on the cloth begins to dry, it’s best to use fresh alcohol. So apply more alcohol to the cloth when necessary and use a different clean cloth if you need to.
When you’re done, you should use a bit of water to wipe the alcohol off of the couch. Dry the area with a towel and all should be well.
Another option is to use vinegar. The same method applies here when using vinegar and you’ll want to blot the stain instead of rubbing it with a cloth.
How to Get Red Wine Out
Red wine stains have the potential to make your couch look horrible. It can be frightening when you spill a whole glass of red wine directly on the couch cushions.
Thankfully, getting rid of wine stains won’t be that tough. You will need to use the right cleaning mixture to remove the stain, though.
Hydrogen peroxide and dishwashing liquid can work in tandem to get this job done. Combine three parts hydrogen peroxide and one part dishwashing liquid in a container.
Apply this mixture directly to the wine stain so that it can start doing its work. It’ll take a little bit of time for the stain to start to come up.
Typically, you’ll need to let this mixture sit on the stain for up to one hour. After the right amount of time has passed, it’ll be time to blot out the stain using a clean cloth.
Blot the stain carefully and then wash out the mixture using water. You should be able to dry things with a towel and the stain will be completely gone.
As always, it’s best to take action fast when you notice the spill. It’s easier to get the wine stain off of the couch if you start working on it right away.
How to Remove Ink From a Leather Couch
It’s simpler to get rid of ink from a leather couch than it is from a fabric couch. You can get good results by using just soap and water.
Standard soap and water should allow you to clean the couch and get rid of the stain. Mix up a bit of soapy water and then grab a sponge.
Use the sponge to work on removing the ink stains. Some people like to use paper towels to soak up and remove the ink.
You’d soak up the ink with a paper towel and then clean things with soap and water. After you’re finished, wipe the leather clean.
When you’re done, it might be good to apply a leather cleaner to the couch. This can help the couch and keep it protected.
Just remember to dry things completely whenever you’re using water on a leather couch. If you use too much water it can leave water marks on your couch that will ruin the look of your sofa.
How to Remove Dry Erase Marker
Getting dry erase marker on your couch has the potential to be quite annoying. You might find that the stain won’t come up when you use normal soap and water.
The best course of action is to use rubbing alcohol. Rubbing alcohol can help you to blot the stain and get your couch back to normal.
You don’t want to soak the couch with rubbing alcohol, though. It’s better to soak a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol and then use that to blot the stain.
Be patient and try to blot the stain up a bit at a time. You might go through several cotton balls depending on how bad the stain is.
As usual, it’s better to try to remove the stain fast. Taking action quickly will make blotting easier since the stain won’t have time to settle in the couch.
Does Baking Soda Stain Couches?
No, baking soda is a common thing that people use when cleaning couches. Baking soda is a cleaning material that can help to deodorize a couch.
Some types of stains will be stinky and it might be good to deodorize the couch after getting rid of the stain. A fabric couch can easily be cleaned by sprinkling baking soda on it and letting it sit for twenty minutes.
You can vacuum the baking soda up when you’re done. The purpose of the baking soda is simply to deodorize the couch.
Stains can be removed by using common cleaning materials such as vinegar, dish soap, hydrogen peroxide, or rubbing alcohol. Which cleaning material you will want to use might depend on the stain that you’re dealing with.
Final Thoughts
There are so many ways that you can clean your couch and get rid of stains. Many stains can be stubborn and hard to deal with, but knowing the right method to turn to helps a lot.
Depending on what type of couch you have, some methods might not be possible to use. For example, you can’t use water or water-based cleaners on certain types of sofas.
Be sure to avoid using things that will harm your couch. You want to remove the stain from the couch in the safest way possible.
In the future, it’d be best to avoid staining the couch. Try to be careful when eating on the couch and consider using a couch cover if all else fails.
Be sure to tell your friends what you learned if they’re dealing with couch stains as well. It just might help them to make good choices.
I have two Associate’s degrees, one in Medical Assisting and the other in Computer Technician, and I am roughly five classes from a bachelor’s degree. Though I never ended up working in the medical field, I have five and a half years of experience in IT. I recently became a stay-at-home mom to my two young boys, and I’m so excited to start this adventure with them! In my spare time, I love to bake and read pretty much anything I can get my hands on.