9 Easy Ways to Remove Coffee Stains
Updated: Apr. 03, 2019You don't need store-bought cleaners to banish the post-spill mess. These coffee-stain removal tricks will get the marks out of your carpet, clothes, cups, and more with stuff you have in your pantry.
Spills will happen
If you’re a daily coffee drinker, learning how to remove coffee stains is very important because spills are bound to happen. Whether it’s in your car, on your clothes, or on your furniture it’s important to treat the stain quickly. We talked to some cleaning experts to learn about what products they use to get out coffee stains. Luckily, you probably already have most of these things in your cabinet.
Cold water
It might seem simple, but Lauren Haynes, a cleaning expert at Star Domestic Cleaners says it works. “Run cold water through the front and back of the stain until you manage to clean it,” says Haynes. It should work well if the stain is fresh.
Vinegar
Alberto Navarrete, cleaning expert and general manager of Emily’s Maids, recommends vinegar to anyone wondering how to remove coffee stains. Vinegar works well because the acid in it degrades the coffee stain. He recommends mixing vinegar and water and scrubbing the stain with a towel dipped in the mixture until it comes out.
Shaving cream
When you’re trying to figure out how to remove coffee stains, your mind probably doesn’t go to shaving cream. “Shaving cream contains active ingredients such as surfactants and cleansing agents that are like the ones found in other household soaps,” says Haynes. “To clean coffee stains with shaving cream just rub, rinse with water, and repeat if necessary.” Make sure you aren’t believing these cleaning myths.
Baby powder
Apply baby powder to the stain and let it sit for a few minutes. Then brush it off with a damp cloth, says Haynes.
Egg yolk
This stain remover might surprise you, but many people swear by it. Beat an egg yolk and work into the coffee stain with a terry-cloth towel for about a minute. Rinse thoroughly with water, and the stain should be completely gone.
Natural soap
If you have a bar of soap lying around get it wet and scrub it on the coffee stain, says Haynes. Let it sit for an hour and then rinse it with water. If you decide to bring your coffee-stained clothes to the dry cleaner instead, make sure you know about these secrets they aren’t telling you.
Baking soda
Similar to toothpaste, baking soda is abrasive and will remove stains easily. Navarrete recommends mixing water and baking soda—or if the stain is really bad, laundry detergent and baking soda—and rubbing the stain until it comes out. Try these genius cleaning hacks from professional house cleaners.
Beer
Figuring out how to remove coffee stains from your carpet may seem impossible, but you can literally lift it out by pouring a bit of beer right on top, says Bryan Stoddard, director of Homewares Insider. Rub the beer lightly into the material, and the stain should disappear. You may have to repeat the process a couple of times to remove all traces of the stain. Now that you know how to remove coffee stains, read up on these cleaning tricks for hard-to-clean household objects.
