How to Get Permanent Hair Color Off of Floors

Cover your floor with a drop cloth to avoid dye stains.

Since hair color products are so easy and convenient to use, it makes sense to dye your hair at home instead of going to a beauty salon. Although the hair dyeing process is simple, spills and splatters occur. While usually not a problem with temporary or vegetable-based hair dyes, permanent hair color can be difficult to remove. It's important to act quickly to remove permanent hair color before stains set in.

Things You'll Need

• Drop cloth
• Clean cloths
• Rubbing alcohol
• Acetone-based nail-polish remover
• Mineral spirits
• Water
• Dish soap
• Ammonia

Instructions

1. Soak a clean cloth with household rubbing alcohol and firmly rub the hair-color spot on the floor until gone. If the hair color does not fade, repeat.

2. Pour mineral spirits onto a clean cloth and firmly rub the stain until gone. Mineral spirits emit noxious fumes, so keep the room well-ventilated by opening windows and turning on exhaust fans. If you feel sick from inhaling the fumes, go outside to get fresh air.

3. Apply a small amount of acetone-based nail polish remover to your cloth and rub off the hair dye stains. Don't allow the nail polish remover to soak into the floor; it can damage the finish.

4. Remove hair color stains from your carpet by mixing 1 tablespoon ammonia, 1 teaspoon liquid dish soap and 2 cups hot water in a bucket. Dip your cloth into the solution and wring out excess liquid. Gently blot, and then firmly scrub the hair dye off the carpeting. Repeat twice, if necessary, then blot up the excess solution with a clean cloth dipped in cool water, and let dry.

Tips & Warnings

• Wear protective gloves to avoid skin irritation from cleaning chemicals.

• Do a patch test on a small area of the floor before cleaning it with chemicals to make sure the chemical won't damage the floor.

References

• "Good Housekeeping": Stain Buster -- Hair Dye
• Stain Removal 101: Hair Dye Stain Removal -- How to Remove Hair Dye Stains