Mothers like slime much less than children, but the fact is that it is quite difficult to wash it off clothes or upholstery or carpet. Since regular washing with powder does not always help clear stains from slime (from the English word “slime,” another name for this toy), various folk and chemical remedies will come to the rescue. Freezing helps a lot; in this way you can remove sticky residue from clothes and even hair. But there are many other proven methods that we will discuss in this article.
Ways to clean slime from clothes
Most often, such stains appear on a child’s clothes. There are many ways to remove sticky mucus from jeans, T-shirts and other wardrobe items. Let's look at the most popular of them.
Freezer
Cleanses freezing mucus well. The soiled item is placed in a chamber with a low temperature, having previously been wrapped in a bag; you can also simply apply an ice cube to the dirty area. Then scrape off the stains with a knife. You need to act carefully so as not to damage the fabric. In some cases, it is not possible to completely remove traces of slime, then you need to repeat the procedure or try other methods.
Hot processing
Experienced mothers of babies who love to have fun with slime recommend using the opposite method to the previous one, that is, exposing the polymer material to high rather than low temperatures. This method is only suitable for those fabrics that are not afraid of hot water. To clean a stain from an item, you need to put it in a basin, pour boiling water over it and leave it until the water cools to room temperature. After this, the clothes must be washed by hand or in the washing machine.
Laundry soap
Using regular laundry soap, you can try to clean the slime stain if it has appeared on your clothes recently. It is necessary to thoroughly treat the dirty area with a bar and leave it for half an hour, then thoroughly wash and rinse the item. Not all marks come off the first time; if necessary, the procedure can be repeated.
Alcohol
Apply alcohol or an alcohol-based solution to a cotton swab and thoroughly clean the stain. Not only ethyl, but also isopropyl is suitable for this purpose.
Petrol
It cannot be used to clean thin, delicate and fleecy fabrics, as there is a risk of damage. For other children's things, gasoline is suitable, especially if you did not notice the stains immediately and they had time to dry thoroughly. Before use, make sure that the product will not harm the fabric. To do this, use a cotton swab soaked in gasoline to wipe an area on the clothing that is not noticeable. Then treat the stain itself. Afterwards, remove any remaining gasoline with a damp cloth and wash the clothes.
Hydrogen peroxide
This antiseptic can be found in almost every home, especially if children live there. You can also use peroxide to clean slime from clothes. It is also applied to a cotton swab and the sticky mass is rubbed until it comes off.
Salt, ammonia and lemon juice
This mixture helps to clean clothes well: squeeze the juice of half a lemon onto the salt and add a little ammonia to make a paste or slurry. The mixture is applied to a cotton swab and rubbed into the stain. If it is dried out or old, then leave the paste for 20-30 minutes (if it is new, then 10 is enough), after which it is treated with a brush with stiff bristles.
Dish detergent
Regular dishwashing detergent that you use daily is also suitable for cleaning clothes from slime stains. Such thick gels cope well with various types of contaminants. You need to pour a little product onto the sticky area and leave for 10-15 minutes, then rinse. This method works well to clean newly appeared slime stains, but old or stubborn marks may not come off the first time.
Acetone
This substance can be used if the slime gets on the fur parts of shoes or clothes made of this material, or gets tangled in the fibers. A cotton swab is moistened in acetone and particles of the polymer material are carefully removed. This liquid quickly makes the slime non-sticky, and its parts come off well.
If a fur coat or any other item of clothing made from natural fur gets dirty, it is better to take the item to the dry cleaner.
Cleaning slime from different types of fabrics
You can remove slime from different surfaces using the above methods, but it is better to choose a product that is suitable for a specific fabric.
Cotton, linen and denim
For these natural materials, treatment with boiling water, solvents, laundry soap, ammonia, medical alcohol, vinegar, gasoline and kerosene is suitable.
Guipure, silk and wool
For these types of fabric, the freezing method, stain removers and solutions with detergents and laundry soap are used. Please note that acidic solutions are not intended for processing silk.
Slime from silk will help remove laundry soap
Viscose, knitwear, synthetics
These fabrics are cleaned using household chemicals, which are selected according to their composition, taking into account the color of the material. It is acceptable to use the freezing method.
Outerwear
To clean the surface of slime, ice cubes in a bag will do. In addition, you can try the mechanical method.
Hydrogen peroxide will clean the carpet from slime
Special chemicals
To remove heavy dirt and old slime stains, you can use special chemicals. It is worth purchasing one of them if the child really loves this toy and constantly dirty clothes, furniture, walls and ceilings in the house. Here are the most effective means of this group:
- Stain remover Dr. Beckmann, designed to remove glue and chewing gum stains.
- Vanish for cleaning complex stains.
- Universal products WD-40 or RW-40 are lubricants for cars, but they perfectly clean any surfaces from traces of slime, and also remove pencil from painted wallpaper, ink from fabric, stains from sticky store price tags, chewing gum and other contaminants.
What to do if the stains are dry
To effectively remove dried stains, you should first scrape all pieces of slime from the fabric and only then use stain removers.
Such preliminary preparation will greatly facilitate subsequent procedures. For very old and stubborn stains, it is better to go to a dry cleaner. Ammonia with salt. You can gently wash slime from colored clothes using the following solution:
- Ammonia – 1 tbsp. l.;
- Water – 3 tbsp. l.;
- Salt – 1 tbsp. l.
Ammonia destroys the molecular bond of a non-Newtonian liquid and thereby helps clean the surface of the fabric from contamination. Use the resulting solution to lubricate the stain, and when it comes off, wash the item in the usual way.
How to clean slime from carpet and upholstery?
While playing, a child often stains the carpet, sofa or bedspread with slime. These stains can be removed in several ways:
- You can remove fresh marks from a carpet or carpet using the toy itself: since the mass is sticky, the particles will stick to each other, and most of the stain will be collected. Sticky dried marks can be carefully scraped off with a sharp object.
- Another option is to use a special cleaner for carpets and rugs (for example, Vanish).
- Slime stains can be removed with a cotton swab soaked in hydrogen peroxide, acetone or alcohol.
- Another option is to use dish soap. Just as with clothes, you need to pour a small amount of liquid onto the mark and, after waiting about 10 minutes, rinse it off with water.
After removing the stain, it is recommended to steam and vacuum the area of the carpet.
If the contamination is severe or old and it is not possible to clean it with improvised means, then you can call in professionals. Today, cleaning companies provide home-based services, and the visiting specialist will select the most effective method for removing the stain.
Carpet cleaning video
Long pile
If the slime ends up on a long-pile carpet, you need to use special carpet cleaning products. Before this, uncured pieces of Velcro are removed with your hands or with a larger piece of slime.
Depending on the brand of cleaner, the liquid is poured directly onto the stain, or dissolved in water and applied as foam. The area to be cleaned should become damp. After a few minutes, rub the carpet with a brush and a damp cloth. After a few hours, the remains of the dried slime are removed with a vacuum cleaner.
Ways to remove slime from hair
If slime gets on a child’s head and gets tangled in the hair, it can be removed quite simply; you don’t have to cut the area.
- The freezing method helps a lot: cover the stained strand with ice and wait until the sticky substance freezes, after which its parts can be easily removed. This method is only suitable if the child has long hair, since it is undesirable to apply ice directly to the head.
- Another product that will help remove slime from hair is vegetable oil, any you can find in the house. It is applied to the strands in which the sticky mass is entangled and rubbed in well. Afterwards, the soiled hair is treated with laundry soap and a hard washcloth, and rinsed with water. If necessary, repeat the procedure. Instead of oil, you can take Vaseline, night cream, special cosmetic oil products for hair, or Johnson's Baby. They are applied to the strands, and then the slime is combed out.
If a child likes to play with slime, then you should always make sure there are no stains left, since the sooner you start cleaning, the easier it will be to deal with dirt of this nature. When your baby plays, you need to be careful not to get the sticky substance on your hair. The appearance of stains is inevitable if a child has such a toy, but an experienced housewife can always quickly deal with stains using our recommendations.
Salt
To remove slime stains, not only sea salt, but also regular table salt is suitable, however, in combination with ammonia and lemon juice. Take 3 teaspoons of ammonia, 20 drops of lemon juice. Rub the stain with the mixture, gradually removing particles. You can leave it for a few minutes to react and then repeat again. After the item has become more or less clean, it is sent to the washing machine and washed with powder.
If the item has been stained for a very long time (more than 3 weeks), first fill the stain with ammonia and wait at least half an hour, and then do the procedure with salt.
How to fix burnt carpet?
Cutting out a patch
- Before repairing a burnt carpet, you need to place a piece of plywood under the area of the carpet with the hole, so as not to subsequently damage the floor.
- Cover the hole in the carpet with a new piece of carpet. Mark the boundaries of the patch, which should cover the damaged area in size.
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Recipes
The use of carpet slime cleaning products is based on the principle of dissolving dried particles and allowing them to better move away from the pile. Removal of contamination from slime residues begins after the slime itself has been removed.
Work order:
- The area of contamination is moistened with a product prepared for this purpose.
- Leave the product to act for a quarter of an hour.
- After exposure to glue solvent, alcohol or another substance, the remaining slime becomes viscous; they are removed with rags or napkins.
- The stain treated in this way is thoroughly wiped with a wet cloth, collecting any remaining mucus.
- After this, the treatment area is wiped with a dry cloth.
- Let the carpet dry. If the room is cold, you can use a low-heat hairdryer to dry.
If the carpet has unstable coloring, home recipes cannot be used. The only way out is to go to the dry cleaner.
Vinegar
Vinegar can remove traces left by slime. To treat contamination, it is used in diluted form: for ½ glass of water you need ¼ glass of vinegar. Vinegar is not used in its pure form, as it can damage the carpet fibers.
Alcohol
Medical or industrial alcohol can be used to remove slime.
To do this, soak a cotton swab well with the product and treat the area of contamination. For large stains, do not pour a lot of alcohol at once, as this can damage the carpet itself. Moisten the area affected by the slime with alcohol gradually.
Do not use alcohol-containing products that have a pronounced tint, as this can lead to new stains. To a greater extent, this prohibition applies to light-colored carpets.
Glue solvent
Glue remover will help remove slime residue from the carpet and deal with the stain. A napkin soaked in it must be applied to the area of contamination. For these purposes, you can use, for example, Dr. glue remover. Beckmann.
WD-40
WD-40 is a car lubricant that will help clean the carpet after children's pranks. This product is safe for carpeting.
Having removed the main part of the slime, you may encounter a new problem - stains on the surface. For the best effect, you need to treat the entire stain. After a few minutes, you can collect the remaining slime with a damp cloth.
How to remove slime stain on carpet?
Below we will consider the main methods and means that have confirmed their effectiveness in combating pollution caused by slime:
- mechanical restoration. If the toy is in a soft state, it is advisable to use it to collect the remains from the carpet. Dried traces of mucus will require scraping;
- use of stain removers for carpets. The instructions on the packaging of the product will tell you how to clean slime from a carpet;
- dishwashing detergent. It breaks down the fats that form the basis of the sticky “fun.”
Traditional methods, proven over years of successful use, are widely popular in the fight against stains on the carpet. Among them:
- laundry soap;
- hydrogen peroxide;
- vinegar or alcohol;
- a mixture of sea salt, lemon juice and a small amount of ammonia.
Before you think about how to remove slime from a carpet, you need to make sure you have the necessary attributes. For this you will need:
- spoon or knife to scrape off remaining dirt;
- vacuum cleaner;
- suitable cleaning agent;
- gloves to prevent contact of active substances with the skin of the hands;
- textile or paper towels;
- clean hot water.
To enhance the result, many housewives prefer to use a steam generator. However, this device is not mandatory.
Laundry soap
Smelly brown laundry soap can remove even dried slime. The slime is soaked in water and rubbed with a piece of laundry soap, achieving abundant foam. The item is left for several hours, preferably overnight, and the next morning it is put in the washing machine.
There is a similar method. A bar of soap is grated and the shavings are soaked in clean water. Rub this mixture onto the dried stain. Wait 6-8 hours and wash with powder. In very difficult cases, the procedure is repeated 2-3 times.
What actions to take
To remove residues of the substance, as well as stains, it is necessary to follow a certain sequence:
Clean the carpet using a scraper or knife
It is important that most of the slime is removed. Apply one of the products and wait 30 minutes, then clean with a soft brush; you must start from the edge of the stain, otherwise it will spread over a large area. Treat the stain with a damp sponge, this will get rid of any remaining slime and detergent components. Place a dry towel on the stain and wait until the liquid is absorbed. Dry the area using a hairdryer.
Thus, you can remove any stains on the carpet, but you should first familiarize yourself with the composition and characteristics of the pile in order to correctly select the detergent. Regardless of the chosen method, it is necessary to conduct a small test before applying the substance to the furniture. To do this, wipe a not too noticeable area with a sponge soaked in the composition. If there is no negative reaction, you can begin cleaning.
Step-by-step instruction
There are a number of methods designed to remove slime stains from clothes. Most of the techniques presented are universal and suitable for all types of fabrics, with the exception of very thin and delicate materials.
The thermal cleansing method is suitable for:
- denim,
- linen,
- terry,
- cotton fabrics.
It is enough to soak the item at a temperature of about 80-90°C and leave for 2-3 hours. After this, the clothes are washed in the usual way using any powder or stain remover.
After 3-4 hours, the jelly-like mass will harden and all that remains is to remove it with a knife or scissors. The main thing here is to act very carefully so as not to pierce the fabric.
If the stain is small, you can simply place a few ice cubes on the dirty area, wait until they melt, remove the remaining slime mechanically and start washing.
