The chewing of gum is great way to moisten the mouth, conceal bad breath, or even act as a stress reliever for some. However, it sometimes finds its way right onto our carpets. Either a child spits it out, or someone’s shoe fell victim to the casual spit of gum on streets and sidewalks, and brought it into your home. This poses a problem. Gum’s sticky nature makes it an annoying mess to remove. Steam Magic Carpet Cleaning will share a few methods to help you remove gum from your carpets.

Carpet Gum Removal Methods

Like a stain, gum is easiest to remove as soon as it happens. Keep in mind, the longer gum sets; the harder it will be to remove.
Method 1: Ice – This is a do it yourself method that you may want to try.
1. Place a handful of zip lock baggies filled with ice on the gum. This will harden the gum making it easier to remove. Leave the ice on until the gum hardens.
2. Take a scraping tool and scrape the gum from off the carpet. Sponge the gum stain directly with a cleaner. Cleaner 409 works very well on gum.
3. Cover the gum stain with a clean white towel or rag. Pat at the spot until dry.

Method 2 : WD40 – If you want to try another approach to removing gum, get some WD40, a fingernail brush, and spray detergent or degreaser.
1. Spray a generous amount of WD40 on the gum and stain. Allow the WD40 to set in for a few minutes.
2. Use a fingernail brush to scrub at the gum and stain. Brush side to side and don’t change directions.
3. Keep reapplying the WD40 and scrubbing with the fingernail brush until the gum is lifted.
4. To clean the area use either the degreaser or detergent spray on the old stain and the WD40.
5. Rinse a sponge with warm water. Pat the sponge onto the carpet and lightly scrub the stain until the stain is removed.

Method 3: Heat – For this method you will want to get a hair dryer, plastic bag, or scraper and a carpet cleaner.
1. Use your hairdryer on the gum. You will want to use the highest setting of heat. Blow the hairdryer directly onto the gum.
2. Watch the gum and wait until it melts. As the gum begins to melt, use the plastic bag or scraper and remove the melted gum from off the carpet.
3. Once the gum is removed, use a carpet stain detergent on the stain that is left behind. Using either a cloth or sponge, use warm water and pat at the stain.

Carpet Cleaning, Stain & Odor Removal in San Diego, Solana Beach, La Mesa, Mission Valley, La Jolla, Del Mar, Poway, Encinitas, Chula Vista California

Steam Magic Carpet Cleaning knows how much it sucks to encounter a big wad of sticky gum stuck to your carpets. Gum is one of those things that are difficult to remove and also can be an annoying job. We hope one of these three “do it yourself” methods helps you to remove that nasty gum, which no one ever seems to know how it got onto your carpet in the first place. If you have any questions or need help removing those impossible stains, Steam Magic Carpet Cleaning is happy to provide you with our services.