Stain bleeding through carpet from below

Question

We were spot-cleaning our carpet in preparation to put our house on the market, and when we tried to clean a very small dark spot from the rug, it suddenly became a much larger reddish-brown ring on our white carpet. Each time we attempt to clean it, it looks good and then we come back 10 minutes later and the stain has reappeared. Has anybody ever experienced this and how did they solve the problem? What could it be??

Shaz Mahmood · Answer

I'm going thru same problem

Rus1058682 · Answer

Have it tested.. Could be blood, unless you had the house built, you never know..

Rus1058682 · Answer

How are you 'spot cleaning' ? The reason I ask, is if you are just spraying on a cleaner and scrubbing, you are probably just making it worse.. Try soaking it with cleaner, waiting a few minutes, then using a shop vac to extract it.. I hope that helps.. Otherwise, it sounds like time to call a pro..

Nancy · Answer

Your cleaning product created the stain.  too much product and water was used.  A good professional can probably get it out or make it less noticeable.  professional carpet cleaning does wonders for staging your home for sale.

Janet Pizaro · Answer

There is a product known to work on these types of stains. It is called stain extinguisher from chem dry. Home Depot should carry the product. If no in the store buy it on lone from HomeDepot.com or amazon.

Ryan · Answer

More than likely it is the pad under the carpet that still has the stain. The stain was on the carpet and soaked through to the pad, the carpet got cleaned, but spot cleaning only cleans the carpet not the deeper stain in the pad. It will continue to reappear until the carpet and pad are deep cleaned by either a machine or professional. I had this problem until I asked a pro.

Shari · Answer

Many deep stains can 'wick' back to the surface.by traveling up the strands of the carpet from below. You need to put pressure on it to squeeze out the stain from below. If the spot is dry when you start this process, wet the area, put a dry cloth or paper towels over the stain and then put something heavy on it like a brick. Check it every 5-10 minutes. (The wetter the area, the sooner your cloth or paper towel will be wet and need to be changed.) When the cloth or paper towel has absorbed moisture and stain, put down another dry cloth or paper towel, and then add the heavy object again. Make sure whatever you are using for weight can not be harmed by moisture or the stain. For instance, you wouldn't want to use a heavy book or a piece of furniture. You can even stand on it but that gets old in a hurry if you need to repeat the process many times...and it definitely might take multiple attempts before the stain completely disappears. I actually got black paint out of my carpet by this pressure method, plus I've used it on pet stains.

Louise · Answer

I have the same problem

Stephanie · Answer

The best thing to do is to have the carpet plugged - with carpet that has no stain in a closet. This would not cost much at all.

Teri · Answer

Been there before. We had replaced a carpet but not the pad.Years later I had a stain that looked good after I cleaned it but as soon as it started to dry kept coming back. Nothing helped and drove me crazy. Here it was the pad that was making it appear. Had to get a new carpet and pad.

Hollie · Answer

This happened a lot to me this last spring and summer. I appears the high humidity with a stained pad caused the stains to reappear.

Glenda Watkins · Answer

Use peroxide it might work

Freida davis · Answer

Same problem with no answer!

Bre1943597 · Answer

Plugging carpet & Pad May Sound Best Answer!!!

Pam · Answer

Try spraying it with white vinegar pretty good and sprinke with baking soda (heavily). Let that sit for several hours or overnight. Scrape off the baking soda, spray with vinegar again and blot (it will bubble, this is good). See how it's going, you may need to do this two or three times. If the stain is still there, fold up a wet (not sopping, not damp) white towel or rag over and use your iron on it. Keep doing that until the stain is gone. Keep moving to clean parts of the rag/towel as it draws out the stain. This will take time but will work. I have cleaned some pretty awful mystery stains with this method. Also, do not use soap on the carpet, only vinegar (the smell will be gone when dry). PS I only clean my carpets in my steam cleaner with a vinegar/water 50:50 mix. Works fantastic. Good luck!

Nancy · Answer

I did exactly what Pam suggested on dog stains that kept coming back.  And, it worked.  No more stains.

Sherrie · Answer

https://www.facebook.com/relovedrestyled/It could be your not rinsing the cleaner out good enough. Keep rinising and use a white cloth to blot it dry.

Cathey DeRosa · Answer

I just had a bleeding problem from a wound and had to go to the hospital. I can't believe there is a solution to the problem I left with dried blood all over my carpet. I rent and don't know what to do. I'm going to try this, when I feel a bit better and I'll let everyone know if Pam's solution worked on blood stains. This carpet is cheap indoor/outdoor, but I have to get the stains out. Thank you and I will try. I've already saturated it with cold water and blotted it with the chux pads you get in the hospital. That helped, but I will see what happens with the vinegar/baking soda. They both work so well on so many other things. I'm a believer. I just got back from the hospital, no kidding! I will try when I can! thanks

Eroque022810 · Answer

Do you have pets and if you do is this left from an accident the had by not making it to the litter box or outside? I ask because when we bought our home the carpet was brand new and was great although I like wood better it was new and would do. After a few months I began to see some curry colored spots pop up. It was a very light carpet. Anyway I asked a painter we had an he looked and said it was cat pee stains,which answered why it sometimes smelled like urine, I thought it was the power room. Well needless to say we had carpet removed,which wasn't necessary to get rid of because we could have just replaced the paid once the plywood flooring was painted with kilz,that was the issue these people didn't attack the problem at the source,the kilz did the trick. Like I said we could have replaced pad and had carpet cleaned but the idea of what had leeches through was just so gross that we replaced carpet. I still have a very light shirt ply carpet and no more stains. So it maybe that every time you soak the area the plywood gets wet as well and spreads the stain making a bigger mess then before. So if you have pets and know what happened their then all hope is not lost.

Chloe Crabtree · Answer

Use 1/4 cup of white vinegar, 1 tbsp. of Dawn dish soap, and fill with water. Spray area liberally and let soak for 5-10 minutes and then proceed with blotting with a clean, dry towel until stain is removed. Some carpet stain removal products can be of great benefit for combating many types of carpet stains.

Stain bleeding through carpet from below

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