How to Avoid Red Wine Stains in Carpet

Few things ruin a really good time as much as when you spill red wine on your carpet or, worse yet, someone else’s. Here you’ll find steps to avoid red wine stains in carpet altogether, as well as how to avoid stains sticking once the damage is already done. While everyone around you is cringing in fear, despair and helplessness, you can be the one who knows what to do!

Things You'll Need

• Rugs
• Heavy wine glasses
• White wine
• Hydrogen peroxide
• Dish soap

Instructions

1. If you’re having a party and serving red wine, place inexpensive dark-colored rugs on the carpet in the highest-traffic areas. It’s much easier to get red wine stains out of dark fabrics than the light-colored carpet most of us have in our homes. Some printed rugs are especially effective. In some cases, red wine stains on dark prints (treated or not) are practically unnoticeable.

2. Another way to avoid red wine stains in carpet is to serve red wine in heavy wine glasses, as they’re not as easy to accidentally tip over as the lighter-weight glasses.

3. Keep a bottle of cheap white wine on hand. If there’s a red wine spill on the carpet, neutralize the stain by immediately pouring white wine on it.

4. After pouring white wine over the red wine spill, soak up the liquids with a dry cloth or towel.

5. Prepare a solution of one-half cup hydrogen peroxide and one tablespoon of dish soap. The dish soap need not be one of the chemical-filled kinds. Any natural, biodegradable dish soap should work just fine.

6. Using a cloth, apply the hydrogen peroxide-dish soap solution onto the stain. Let it sit for up to two hours.

7. Blot the hydrogen peroxide dish soap solution with a towel and warm water. Follow it up with a dry cloth.

8. If you do not have white wine on hand, soak up as much of the red wine spill as you can with a dry cloth. Do not rub, as that will work the wine deeper into the carpet fibers. Then follow steps Five through Seven.

9. Repeat Steps Five through seven as necessary, until the stain is gone.

Tips & Warnings

• If the red wine stain is already dry, use a wet cloth to soak the area in warm water, enough to work its way down into the carpet fibers. Then follow Steps Five through Seven.

• Remember to never rub a red wine stain, as it will work it deeper into the carpet fibers. Only blotting will do.

• If don’t have hydrogen peroxide or dish soap on hand, or you’re entertaining guests and do not want to stop to treat the stain, simply pour the white wine onto the red wine spill, soak up what you a dry cloth, then liberally sprinkle the area with salt or baking soda. If you do not have white wine either, blot up as much of the stain as possible with a dry towel, then sprinkle with salt or baking soda. When you're ready to treat the stain, you'll probably find that the salt or baking soda has soaked up some more of the spill. Simply vacuum it up and apply the hydrogen peroxide-dish soap solution.

• If you do not have any of the ingredients to avoid a red wine stain in carpet mentioned here, blot up as much of the spill as you can with a dry cloth then pour warm water on it. Blot up as much as you can, then repeat the process. You’ll still need to use the hydrogen peroxide-dish soap mixture, but this will at least buy you some time until you can get to the store.