Every parent and grandparent know that serving cold Kool Aid to youngsters is a welcome beverage that creates memories.
But when that sweet and colorful liquid spills, it can be a nightmare to clean up. Kool Aid stains now come in blue, red, orange, purple, green, and the color carpet owners consider among the worst to remove — red.
Rather than become flustered and upset with romping youngsters, it may be prudent for adults to know how to clean up the inevitable accident before ever serving the cold beverage.
While industrial products may be useful, they can also be too harsh for valued carpets.
That’s why it’s best to know how to remove colored stains using everyday household products.
If these methods don’t work, go ahead with the hard chemical route or call a professional. These are DIY products and instructions to get rid of Kool Aid stains from carpet and not have to worry about spill-prone youngsters.
Club Soda Can Defeat Kool Aid
Club Soda can be a simple and effective stain remover if you act relatively quickly. If you have a home bar, it’s typically a mixer.
Materials:
- Club soda
- Dry clean white towels
Steps:
- Pour club soda directly on Kool Aid.
- Let it fizz for one minute.
- Blot up stain with a white towel.
- Repeat previous until the stain is no longer visible.
Apply Lemon Juice to Kool Aid Stains
Lemon juice can be an effective Kool Aid stain remover on some carpets.
With acidic liquids such as lemon juice, it’s essential to know in advance whether this method will lighten the carpet.
That’s why it’s advisable to test lemon juice on an area that is out of eye-shot before addressing a stain.
Try testing a small area in the rear of a closet before going forward. If the carpet is resilient enough, these steps can prove useful.
Materials
- Bottle of lemon juice
- Cold water
- Spray bottle
- Laundry detergent
- Sponge
Steps:
- Add equal parts of water and lemon juice in a spray bottle.
- Add a splash of laundry detergent.
- Shake the mixture thoroughly.
- Spray directly on the Kool Aid stain until soaked.
- Let it stand for 5-10 minutes.
- Blot stain up with a sponge.
- Repeat if necessary
Common Dish Soap & Warm Water Works
Household dish soap has multiple cleaning uses, and it’s proven to be effective at removing Kool Aid stains from carpet.
The good news is that most living spaces have a product handy right next to the kitchen sink. When you experience a Kool Aid spill moment that seems to happen in slow-motion, you can fast-forward to a clean carpet.
Materials
- Dish soap
- Warm water
- White or light-colored towel
- Drinking glass
- Teaspoon
Steps:
- Pour one measured cup of warm water into a drinking glass.
- Add ½ teaspoon of dish soap.
- Stir thoroughly with a spoon.
- Blot up excess Kool Aid liquid with a towel.
- Dampen clean area of a towel with soap and water mixture.
- Blot up stain with a towel.
- Repeat.
Hot Water & Ammonia Carpet Treatment
There may be situations where you need to bring out the big chemical guns when Kool Aid makes a puddle on your beautiful carpet. Ammonia is one of those everyday household products that pack a punch.
Materials
- Ammonia
- Hot water
- Spray bottle
- White towels
- Hot iron
Steps
- Mix equal portions of ammonia and hot water in a spray bottle.
- Spray on Kool Aid stain.
- Place towel over the Kool Aid stain.
- Run a hot iron over it on the highest setting.
- Blot up the remaining stain.
- Repeat the process with a clean white towel each time.
The process may take as many as 5-6 passes to remove the stain altogether. It’s also essential to be sure that applying an ammonia product to the carpet will not melt or otherwise damage it. When applicable, this solution may even remove older stains as well.
Final Treatments: Warm Water, Cold Water & White Vinegar
One of the tricks of the carpet-cleaning trade is to have a coup de gras that removes the last remnants of a Kool Aid stain.
One of those methods includes the use of warm and cold water in conjunction with white vinegar.
If you can still see minor discoloration after working through another process, this may get you across the finish line.
Materials
- Warm water
- Cold water
- White vinegar
- White or light-colored towel
- Spray bottle
- Drinking glass
- Vacuum
Steps
- Pour a mixture of warm water and vinegar in a 2:1 ratio.
- Shake thoroughly
- Spray on discolored carpet area
- Blot up with a towel
- Repeat
Cold Water Treatment
- Fill a drinking glass with cold water
- Pour a modest amount of cold water on the discolored area
- Blot up with a dry towel
- Repeat
- Use a vacuum attachment to suck up moisture
- Let dry
- Repeat cold water treatment if necessary
Coldwater treatments are intended to be a not-impactful way to soak up any products you used as well as traces of Kool Aid.
