How to Get Dried Paint Out of Carpet: A DIY Guide

Did you get paint on your carpet while painting baseboards (I always do) or repainting one of your rooms (guilty of this too)? Maybe your kids spilled paint while making “art”! Here we offer a step-by-step guide on how to get paint out of carpet and other stains you may find.

First things first you’re going to want to grab some Goo Gone. This stuff is magic (on other types of residue as well). If you don’t feel like using the full blown liquid on the dried paint stains, then you should check out the spray version.

How to Get Dried Paint Out of Carpet

1. Apply Goo Gone on old paint spills.
2. Then, you’ll want to use a putty knife (or a scrub brush) to scrape up as much of the excess paint as you can.
3. Next, you need to focus on the individual carpet fibers as there is still going to be some dry paint there. You can create a mixture of Dawn Original dish detergent with some hot water and spray that on the carpet.
4. Once you spray you’re going to need a clean white cloth to dab the stains. The goal here is to transfer any paint residues from the carpet to the clean rag like a sponge.
5. After you’re done and it’s dry, vacuum your carpet!

Pro tip: Be careful of over-spraying since you can soak the carpet pad, which can end up causing mildew that you can’t see.

Do You Have to Use A White Cloth to Clean Up Stains?

You really don’t want to use any other color because dyes from colored cloths can transfer back to your carpet and you don’t want that to happen. If you don’t have a white cloth on hand, use a paper towel. You don’t want another stained area!

man and woman painting bedroom walls and getting paint on the carpet

How Do You Get Wet Paint Off Carpet?

Vinegar and dish soap mixed with warm water are commonly used household items that can be effective at removing most wet paint from carpet. To use vinegar to remove paint from carpet, you can try the following steps:

1. Start by blotting up as much of the wet paint as possible using a clean, absorbent cloth.
2. Next, mix together equal parts vinegar and water in a bowl.
3. Dip a sponge or cloth into the vinegar solution (or a warm soapy water solution), and gently dab the paint stain with the sponge or cloth.
4. Continue to blot the stain with the vinegar solution until the paint is lifted from the carpet.
5. Rinse the area with clean water, and blot it dry with a clean cloth. 6. Go ahead and run over it with your vacuum cleaner too!

Sometimes the type of paint stain is important to know. The methods for removing oil-based paint stains is different than most other paints. Oil-based paint is typically harder to remove, so it may require more powerful cleaning agents.

How Do You Remove Oil-Based Paint From Carpet?

To remove oil-based paint from carpet, you can try the following steps:
1. Start by blotting up as much of the wet paint as possible using a clean, absorbent cloth.
2. Next, mix together a solution of one part dish soap and two parts warm water.
3. Dip a sponge or cloth into the soapy solution, and gently dab the paint stain with the sponge or cloth.
4. Continue to blot the stain with the soapy solution until the paint is lifted from the carpet.
5. Rinse the area with clean water, and blot it dry with a clean white rag.

If the stain persists, you can try using a commercial carpet cleaner or a solvent such as rubbing alcohol or acetone to help remove the remaining paint.

Do You Remove Acrylic and Latex Paint From Carpet The Same Way?

Yes, you can use the same methods to remove acrylic paint and latex paint from carpet. Acrylic paint and latex paint are both water-based paints, so the same cleaning techniques can be used to remove them.

They are easier to remove than oil paints.

Be sure to follow the instructions on the product label, and test it on a small, inconspicuous area of the carpet before applying it to the stain. Also, be sure to ventilate the area well and wear gloves and other protective gear when using solvents.

Get Mystery Stains Out of Carpet

dog looking guilty laying on the carpet, how to get stains out of carpet

If there are some other mystery stains left in your carpet and you have no idea how to get rid of them, then there is a good chance that you can iron them out. This sounds crazy and before you grab your iron and go to town it’s important to understand that I mean you can steam the stains out.

Make sure your iron is filled with water and set it to steam. Place a clean white cloth (you should have 100s of these by now) over the stain and iron it making sure you’re keeping the iron in a constant motion.

You don’t want to burn your carpet. Rotate the cloth as the stain will transfer to one spot and saturate that spot. Vacuum when you’re done.

How to Get Cat Pee Out of Carpet

Women's hands in yellow gloves, wash the stains on the carpet

Cat pee is the most resilient stain on the planet. Dawn dish detergent and warm water isn’t going to work on this bad boy. You need to go heavy duty which means whipping out the ammonia.

Now, ammonia isn’t something that you want to sling around your house often. Use only in extreme circumstances. Before opening a bottle of ammonia make sure there is plenty of ventilation in your room. That means open up all of the windows. It smells terrible and odor has no problem sticking around.

Once you have good ventilation going, then you want to mix two tablespoons of ammonia in one cup of hot water. Make the water as hot as possible. Then you spray the stain.

Don’t drench the area because you don’t want to soak the pad but you do want to make sure that the ammonia is getting into the carpet fibers. To scrub the stain you’re going to want to use a stiff-bristled scrub brush and a some elbow grease.

After that you’ll want to blot the ammonia away with one of your wonderful white cloths. Then go over it with a lightly dampened cloth to neutralize what’s left and hopefully kill the smell.

Now vacuum your carpet as you normally would!

Shampoo Your Carpet

Once you are happy with the stains being gone it’s time to shampoo your carpet. I’m not talking about getting a rag and a spray bottle.

I’m talking about using a dedicated carpet cleaner or handheld steamer to get stains out.

You can rent these from Home Depot or Lowes, but since you can find them under $100 why not grab one of your own and keep it around the house?

Stains can be tricky so even though they don’t seem to be around the first pass through wait a couple of house to see if they return. If they do then just do another pass with the carpet cleaner.

how to get dried paint out of carpet, someone using carpet cleaner to remove stains on carpet

If you want to make sure you kill any odors then you’ll want to add some white vinegar to your cleaning solution.

What If The Carpet Stain Won’t Come Out?

You can hide them.

If you’ve done your best to get rid of the stain and there are still remnants of it there, and you’re out of elbow grease, then how about putting a rug on top of it as a last resort?!

But wait…

Aren’t we just putting a rug that will get dirty on top of a carpet that’s already dirty?

Nope! Ruggable rugs are full size rugs that you can put in your washing machine. And they are beautiful. And they are not as expensive as you are probably guessing.

I love mine and wrote a full Ruggable review for you! You can be messy AND have rugs!

No one will ever know that the carpet underneath has that one horrific red wine stain.

Important Things To Keep In Mind When Cleaning Carpet

Paint thinner or turpentine may work at removing dried paint from carpet, but they can also be harmful to the carpet and to your health. These are powerful solvents that can damage the fibers of the carpet and may cause respiratory irritation if inhaled. Additionally, paint thinners can be flammable, so I don’t recommend using them.

Make sure you follow the instructions on the product label when you’re trying to figure out how to get dried paint out of carpet. Test it on a small, inconspicuous area of the carpet before applying it to the stain. You don’t want to clean a stain, just to cause a new bleached area to worry about!

Also, be sure to ventilate the area well and wear gloves and other protective gear when using solvents. Luckily, 99% of stains can be removed by some type of cleaning agent if done within the first few days!

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