A clean and pristine home is a thing to behold. But as we all know, life happens. A spotless Instagram-worthy home is as fleeting as the time it took to snap a picture of it. This is especially true for households with children.
Kid mess is on another level. Things get used, out of place, and dirtied even in the midst of cleaning. One such headache is the dreaded slime. The color, consistency and the smell is a triple cleaning nuisance. It doesn’t help that the stuff stains and turns hard once it has seeped and dried into the very fibers of your carpet. Definitely something busy parents want to avoid.
Ofcourse, well meaning parents are willing to risk having slime in the house. Slime gives beloved tinies that tactile sensory exploration that just sparks their curiosity. Every parent will find that hard to deny their kid.
So in the inevitable event that slime spills, smears, stains, or splatters your carpet (or an unfortunate combination of all) here’s how to deal.
For Fresh Spills
Use Dish Soap And Water
If slime has been freshly spilled on your carpet, act quickly. Mix warm water with a few drops of dish soap and soak the affected area. Cover the area with a wet cloth and let it sit for an hour. The combination of warm water and dish soap should help break down the slime and keep it from drying and crusting further into the carpet.
After an hour, use a heavy duty scrub to scrub out the slime. Make sure to work in multiple directions to get as much as you can. For any stubborn sticky slime, use a butter knife or a spoon to scrape it out.
Try The Icecube Method
Fresh slime spills can also be cleaned up using ice cubes or ice packs. Apply an ice pack directly over the spill to freeze it. This should take around 15 minutes. Once the slime has frozen, scrape it out with a butter or knife or spoon. Use a vacuum to get any remaining small bits left over.
Use Vinegar
Using vinegar to clean up slime is especially effective at breaking it down. This makes it easier to clean up and makes the slime less sticky. Mix two parts vinegar with one part warm water to clean up fresh slime spills. Spray the solution directly onto the slime and rub it out with a cleaning brush. Brushing the slime off immediately should help offset any stains once the affected area has been dried and vacuumed.
For Hardened Spills
It’s all too relatable to be making your cleaning rounds around the house, only to unearth hardened slime. This stuff is especially challenging considering it has dried and crusted into the carpet. The first step and main goal is to rehydrate the slime so it’s easier to clean up. You can use the above methods to clean up the slime once it has been rehydrated.
For hardened slime, soaking and scraping may have to be done several times before you’re able to get through all the slime. Dunk a rag into warm water and gently wring it. Use the wet rag to gently blot the slime and rehydrate it. It’s important to do this gently as you don’t want to push the slime further into the carpet. When the slime is thoroughly rehydrated, use the rag to pluck it out. Scrape out the residue with a butter knife or a spoon.
How Get Slime Stains Off The Carpet
Slime comes in all kinds of fun yet hard-to-clean colors. Hot pink, laser green, royal red and even glow-in-the-dark are just some colors that appeal to kids and deplore parents.
Even after you’ve cleaned up all the slime gunk, stains can still be an issue. The first step is to clean the slime first and then deal with the stain. Once you’ve cleaned up the slime and removed all the gunk from the carpets fibers, you can address stains with a dedicated stain removal product. Always do a spot-check on a small portion of the carpet to ensure no discoloration happens.
Once you have your stain-removal product on hand, use it according to the label. Products like OxyClean powder work well with removing slime stains. Simply pour the powder on the affected area and dissolve it with water. Use a clean cloth to wipe off the stain.
Don’t Over Complicate It
For your sake, try not to overcomplicate slime clean ups. That ooey gooey mess happened all in good fun. The main things to keep in mind for slime spills is to:
- Keep it/get it hydrated
- Break it down with your chosen cleaning agent
- Rinse and repeat. Slime is sticky, so don’t feel hopeless if your first cleaning attempt doesn’t remove all of it. Slime has been known to need up to 4 attempts to completely get it out.
Try the above methods as many times as needed to clean up slime. Utilizing the dissolving power of vinegar, the freezing power of ice, or the accessible cleaning power of dish soap has an added perk besides effectiveness. All methods are non-toxic and safe for children to be around. You likely won’t have to use harsh cleaning chemicals.
Cleaning up slime spills with common household products is also an excellent opportunity to teach your child about cleaning up messes. Where you see fit, have them join you in soaking, scrubbing and scraping up their own slime spills. This should help them understand that slime and carpets don’t mix.
When To Call The Professionals
In the event of unfortunate slime spills that just won’t go away, call the professionals. A round of deep steam cleaning and some higher-grade stain removal products should do the trick and get your carpet slime-free.
