Spicy Spillage: Removing Curry Stains from Carpet

While curry is a delicious dish with an aromatic scent, it's less enjoyable when it seeps into your carpet. This appetising smell can stick around for a long time, and the vibrant colour of the sauce creates a stubborn stain. Read on to find out how to handle a curry stain on carpet.

Quick!

Your best chance of success is acting as fast as possible. The longer that curry has to soak into the carpet, the more likely that it will stain it. This isn't always possible, but try to tackle the stain as soon as you discover it.

Remove excess

Use a spoon to scrape up as much excess sauce as possible. This will be much easier early on, but may still be possible with dry sauce. If the curry has dried, you may find that a knife is a better tool for scraping.

Blot

Blot the stain with a sponge or dishcloth soaked in warm or sparkling water. It's important not to rub the stain, as this can drive the stain further into your carpet and cause it to spread. Instead, gently dab the area to remove the sauce.

Make sure that you wring out the material you use to prevent saturating the carpet. Without doing so, it may take a long time to dry and lead to mould or further discolouration. Work from the edge of the stain to the centre to avoid smearing it.

Vinegar

If this doesn't remove the stain, you can try a mixture of washing-up liquid and white vinegar. Mix one tablespoon of washing-up liquid, one tablespoon of white vinegar and 500ml of warm or carbonated water. Leave this to soak for up to 30 minutes, then blot the area clean with more water.

Rubbing alcohol

If nothing above helps, you can use rubbing alcohol. Use the same blotting method as before, applying a small amount of rubbing alcohol to a dishcloth and blotting the stain. Then, clean the area by blotting it with water, and blot dry with a towel.

Ammonia

Curry stains are most visible on very light carpet, but this is also the kind of carpet that you might be able to get away with using slightly more intense methods. Always do a patch test on a hidden area of your carpet to avoid damaging a visible area.

You can make a stronger mixture with one teaspoon of washing-up liquid, one tablespoon of ammonia and 500ml of warm or carbonated water. Make sure you wear gloves and use a sponge or dishcloth to apply the mixture to the stain. Reapply more mixture every five minutes for a total of 30 minutes, then leave the carpet to air dry.

Hire a professional carpet cleaner

To avoid potentially damaging your carpet, the safest option is always to hire a professional carpet cleaner. They have experience with all kinds of stains – including curry stain on carpet – and will be properly trained to handle them.

The National Carpet Cleaning Association has a directory full of qualified, insured carpet cleaners all over the UK.  Search our directory to find carpet cleaners near you with a