Ink in carpet. Any tips? Am I screwed?

[Andrew M Hanna]

Through a combination of preventable mistakes, I am left with several stains in my carpet. Epson pigment ink has flummoxed the professionals we brought in. Any other ideas before this gets really expensive?

 

[The Hat]

Any other ideas before this gets really expensive?

That’s a huge pity, but I found that dye inks were almost impossible to get off and pigment inks were easier..

So try 40c hot water with 10% washing up liquid (Fairy) mixed in well and spray it onto the stain, don’t be afraid to give it a good soaking, (Leave on a few minutes) then using a sponge, rub in a circular motion for a minute then use a patting motion with cotton or paper towels to soak up the excess moisture..

You’ll know if this method is working if the cloths you use to pat dry the carpet are covered in ink, repeat as many time as necessary, good luck..

 

[Andrew M Hanna]

Thanks Hat!

 

[The Hat]

Thanks Hat!

Please come back and let us know how it went..

 

[Paul W.]

We just had some new windows installed, and I believe the interior wood is finished in polyurethane. I spilled some red computer ink on it, about a couple of inches by a quarter inch. The ink seeped in right away into the wood. Might the rug spilllage technique described here work on wood? I suppose I should just try it, but I'd like first to hear some feedback.

Thanks all!

 

[The Hat]

I suppose I should just try it, but I'd like first to hear some feedback.

If the ink has stained the wood you could try using table salt, pour it all over the area and spray it with a tiny bit of water, and as the salt dries it may draw the ink out of the wood..

If you like spray the stain with water and then add the salt.. same thing..

P.S. Is it pigment or dye ink ?...

 

[Paul W.]

Thanks, The Hat, appreciate your response. I'll try your table salt method (both ways!). As for kind of ink, if it was black I'm quite sure it was pigment ink. If red, it would have to be dye. Care to comment on how to treat the two kinds of ink?

Thank you!

 

[RWL]

I have never done this so take my suggestion with that admonition. You can get 10% Hydrogen peroxide at places that supply hair dressers. Sally Beauty Supply is close to me and a quart of the peroxide cost around $5 in the USA. You're dealing with white carpet, so if you get some bleaching of the white to a lighter shade it may not be noticeable. I have used this on wood to remove walnut stain down to "bare wood" again, but there it's a two part process where you treat the wood with a lye solution and then paint on the peroxide. It took 4 or 5 applications to get the wood bleached. I'm not sure I'd do that two component process on carpet though.

 

[pharmacist]

If the ink has stained the wood you could try using table salt, pour it all over the area and spray it with a tiny bit of water, and as the salt dries it may draw the ink out of the wood..

If you like spray the stain with water and then add the salt.. same thing..

P.S. Is it pigment or dye ink ?...

In the old days textile dyers were using salt (and alum) to fix the natural obtained colours into their fabric, so the nice colours will be fixed into the fibers and stay permanent......I am not sure this is a good idea.