Life Hack: I spilled a glass of milk, how do I get the stain and the stink out of the carpet?
What to do when you discover milk has spilled on your carpet or rug. Picture: iStock
Spilling milk on a carpet can be a nuisance but is easily treated when you know the moment it happens. However, sometimes milk can spill and it is only when a stink rises that we notice it, usually after a child spills their drink and doesn’t tell you about it immediately, or when a pet knocks over a glass with their wagging tail. The worst result is that awful odour but you should tackle more than simply the smell when you become aware of it. Here, we share some tips for cleaning freshly spilled milk as well as a trickier dried-in situation.
Find the area where the milk spilled on your carpet. You might notice some staining or dried-in milk left in the area too. First, scrape away any dried-in milk with a blunt instrument, like a butter knife or a spoon, and vacuum the flakes away.
Next, dampen the area with cold water. You might be tempted to use warm water for this but the warmer the water the stronger the smell could become as the heat intensifies it.
Use a toothbrush or another small brush to rub a paste made from washing powder and water into the carpet where the spill landed. This will help to remove both the milk and the smell. Wash this away with clean water.
If you have cleaned the stain and it is now gone but the odour remains, mix a 50:50 solution of white vinegar and water and spray this onto the carpet before blotting the area. Sprinkle some bicarbonate of soda on top after your carpet has dried. This can be vacuumed up and will help to deal with any lingering odours.
If milk has just been spilled you should move quickly to clean it up to avoid any stinks such as those caused by dried-in milk from developing in your carpet.
Your first step in this instance is to use a dry cloth to soak up the liquid from the carpet. Put a tablespoon of washing-up liquid into some warm water and mix. Dip a cloth into this solution and dab at the spill until you have removed as much of it as possible.
Sprinkle some bicarbonate of soda over the spill and allow it to sit for half an hour to soak up any developing smell. Vacuum the powder for the best results.
If you don’t have bicarbonate of soda to hand, cornstarch is another cupboard staple that can work well on a problem like this. Cornstarch is very absorbent so after drying the spill with a cloth, sprinkle some over the area and leave it for 30 minutes before vacuuming.
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