Stains happen. It is a part of home life. When it comes to oil stains in the home, a little bit of elbow grease (pun intended) mixed with the right solution can make those stains disappear.
Oil stains can be especially difficult to remove. Sometimes you may even have to choose to hire professional cleaners to get them out of a surface or material. However, if you choose to do it yourself, it’s important to note that they can come from a variety of sources.
There are more common sources like butter, grease from food, motor oil, and salad dressing. However, there are also the oils in makeups, deodorant, gasoline, and even body oils that can wreak havoc on your surfaces.
Many times, homeowners or renters rearrange furniture, pillows, or decor to help hide the stain because they do not know how to properly remove it. But there are easy and effective ways to solve the problem instead of hiding it.
Read on to see how to handle oil stains on a variety of surfaces in the home.
Read Also:
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- How to Stain Concrete Floors? Step by Step Guideline
- How to Remove Hard Water Stains from Windows?
- Carpet Catastrophe: How to Remove Carpet Stains
- The Science Behind Oil Wells
Oil Stains in Carpets
Oils can get into a carpet from a number of sources. Prior to removing the oil, it is important to first remove any greasy solids around the stains, such as dirt or food crumbs.
It is important to lift the pieces from the area and not rub the spot, because that will only push more oil into the stained area of the carpet.
Believe it or not, for the actual solution to remove the oil, you may have the items already in your home to help remove the stain. Talcum powder, cornstarch, or baking soda can be sprinkled on the oily area.
This allows the oil to be soaked from the affected surface. Let it sit for at least fifteen minutes and then vacuum.
You can also use a home-made dry cleaning solvent. If you don’t have this mixture readily available, take two cups of hot water and mix it with a tablespoon of handwashing dish detergent. Add one teaspoon of ammonia and wet the area with a brush or sponge.
Then, take a paper towel to blot the stained area. When finished removing the oil through blotting, use fresh, unused water to remove any soapy residue left behind.
Oil Stains on Upholstery
No longer is the living room or family room just to sit or lay. It has become a place to socialize, entertain, relax, and eat. From greasy foods to oily hair and skin lotions, just about anything with oil can cause staining on the upholstery.
Covering it with a pillow or blanket will not make the stain magically disappear, though.
You can skip the expensive cleaning services by using items around the home to take care of oil stains on upholstery. This process is similar to oil removal from carpets, as listed above. However, there is a slight difference in the procedure.
Using either cornstarch or baking soda, cover the oily area with a thick coating and let it sit for at least fifteen minutes. Then, scoop up the cornstarch or baking soda with a paper towel and throw it away.
Remember not to rub the baking soda or cornstarch into the area, as it can make the oil go deeper into the furniture. Then, use a drop of liquid dish soap on a toothbrush and scrub the area.
Sometimes a deeper, the more oily stain will need more work. It is ok to apply more of the dish soap to help lift and remove the stain. Then, get a fresh paper towel with warm water and blot the area. Finally, allow it to dry.
Oil Stains on a Concrete Floor
Whether someone has concrete flooring inside their home, as part of the garage floor, or the driveway, keeping things looking clean is important.
Oil stains can happen on all sorts of surfaces, and concrete is no exception to the rule. Once the oil is on concrete surfaces, it can easily tract to other locations and surfaces, so stains need to be taken care of quickly.
Luckily, there are several ways to remove oil stains from concrete. One way is to cover a fresh oil stain with cat litter and let it sit for about thirty minutes. This allows the absorbent litter to soak up the oil. It is important to note that crystalized varieties of litter should not be used. Keep it to the clay-alternative kitty litter.
Another way to help get rid of an oil stain is to use cleaning solutions from the kitchen or laundry room. Take powdered laundry detergent and water and mix it into a paste to cover the stain.
Then scrub with a broom and rinse to remove the oil stain. Grease-removing dish detergent and a stiff-bristled broom can also do the trick.
Keep an Oil Removal Stash
When it comes time to tackle an oil stain, keep a stash of the needed supplies separate from where they would typically be located in the house.
The sooner an oil stain is taken care of, the better, so if everything is located in one common spot, it will help save time instead of running from room to room to find the needed supplies.
In addition, by leaving an oil cleaning stash separate, it lessens the chance of someone using the last bit of one of the ingredients, like baking soda, for other purposes. It’s frustrating to make a quick trip to the store to stock up on a simple supply when a spill occurs.
Keep Stain Removal Simple
When it comes to oil stain removal in and around the home, a little strategy and hard work can make your surfaces look new again.
Many times, using common household items and a little effort can save your floors and furniture. Knowing the right stain-removal methods can save you a ton of time and money.
Check the kitchen, laundry room, and bathroom now to see what is already there that can be used in case of an oil stain emergency. Tackling oil stains is not as overwhelming when you are prepared!
