Treating Ink at home

One of the bigger concerns I have when instructing my clients on how to properly treat a spot is making sure that they do not end up in over their head. On way they can do this is by treating ink spots in their carpet, area rugs or furniture. It is for this reason that I warn to never pour any liquid spotting solution directly onto an unknown spot.

Proper Spotting Etiquette

I will cover this in another post, so follow the link when it is available on how to properly treat the unknown spot in your home. For today though, just know that I prefer spotter application on to a clean towel, and gently blotting the spot first. This style of spot treatment is preferred for several reasons, but one of the big ones is so that an ink spot does not sneak up on you.

DIY Treatment

Warning!

I do not recommend treating an ink spill in your home. Whether the dog ate a pen on the carpet, or you actually have an inkwell that spilled (I’ve seen it happen), large ink spills should be left for professional cleaning products and equipment. Even with top tier cleaning agents and machinery to suck it all out, you still may be looking at some form of replacement or repair if the spill is severe enough. This is because ink + aqueous solution = a much larger permanent stain.

With the proper chemistry, we can keep the ink from spreading as we try to remove it. As long as the padding of the carpet or batting of the furniture, our equipment is capable of pulling the majority of the ink out as we flush it away. If the padding or batting is affected, that is when it becomes necessary to start thinking about avenues that do not include adding water, such as replacing the pad, re-stuffing the cushion or replacing.

If you have to try it yourself, you can find a plethora of recommendations on Google or Yahoo that will use hairspray, cornstarch and milk, or even rubbing alcohol, just please, please, PLEASE do not ever pour any liquid solution directly onto the spot. It will make the spot larger, and set the stain so that even the strongest, harshest solvents (which I refuse to use) will not remove the stain.

In the end…

I know how this may sound. I am a cleaning professional that wants you to hire me to remove your spots. Why call me when the internet can tell you how to start treating ink spots yourself. My problem is that I want to get every single spot and stain out when I am cleaning your home. Too many times have I been able to easily remove an ink spot that my client did not see, but was unable to remove the ones that had been treated previously.