How to Get Playdough Out of Carpet in 4 Ways

Finding some sticky playdough lying on your carpet can be a cause for panic. But don't worry, you'll be happy to know that you can get it out of your carpet by following some simple steps. So, how to get playdough out of carpet?

You can start removing it by using another soft piece of playdough and drying it. Then, you'd have to freeze it, scrape it with a blunt object, and vacuum it. The dye in the playdough will leave a stain on your carpet even after you get it out.

Use dish detergent, rubbing alcohol, or hydrogen peroxide to remove the stain. Keep reading this article to find out how you can execute these methods in detail. Let's dive in!

How to Remove Playdough From Carpet

When you have playdough stuck in your carpet, your natural instinct may be to add water and some cleaners to remove it. Or perhaps, you'd want to vacuum it right away. But doing these things will only make the stain worse or push the playdough deeper into the carpet fibers.

Avoid doing any of these things. Remember that it's always easier to get dried playdough out of the carpet than playdough that's either soft or moist. With that in mind, follow these steps to remove the playdough from your carpet:

Use Soft Playdough

If there are pieces of playdough that are already somewhat embedded into the carpet fibers, you can use soft playdough to get some of it out. Remember that playdough sticks to itself thanks to its chemical composition. So, use a soft piece of playdough to pull out the small hardened pieces of playdough lying on your carpet.

You should ideally use white playdough if you have it. It'll contrast the color of the playdough stuck in your carpet, and it'll be easier to remove it. Roll this piece of playdough into a ball and press it against the playdough stuck in the carpet. Getting the bulk of the excess out is the first step in getting playdough out of carpet.

Separate the carpet fibers so that the white piece of playdough can reach the small pieces that are deeper in your carpet. Get as much playdough out as you can with this method. You won't be able to use these pieces of playdough later as you'll pick up hair, dust, lint, and all kinds of dirty stuff that are on your carpet. That's a tip, though. You can use playdough to get hair out of carpet!

For any remaining chunks you can't pull out with other playdough, try using a plastic spoon or a butter knife to lift them out. It's very similar to getting putty out of carpet or any other thick material. You want to get as much of the bulk excess out as possible before doing anything else.

Let The Playdough Dry

If you didn't get too much playdough out using the above method, don't panic. It just means that the playdough hasn't dried properly, and that's why it's difficult to get it out. If you leave the playdough as it is for one or two days, it'll become harder and easier for you to remove it.

You need to get all the moisture out of the playdough, and it's important to be patient in this step. Check back every few hours, and if the playdough feels hard, you can move on to scrape it.

What do you do if the playdough falls on an area in your home with high foot traffic? You can simply place a cardboard box over it. That should keep other people away from walking on it and pushing the playdough deeper into the carpet while it dries.

Freeze The Playdough

If you don't have the time or patience to let the playdough dry by leaving it alone for a day or two, you can expedite the drying process by freezing it so that it becomes harder in a shorter period. There are two ways you can go about freezing the playdough.

You can spray the playdough with a can of compressed air and freeze it. Hold the can 2 to 3 inches from the carpet and apply it to the stuck playdough for 10 to 15 seconds. Make sure you keep your fingers away from the cold air when you're spraying, as it can cause freeze burns.

You can easily find cans of compressed air in auto parts shops. But if you don't want to use it, another route you can take is to use ice to freeze the playdough. Fill up a small bag with ice, place it above the stuck playdough and let it sit there until the playdough completely dries up.

If you use this method, you may have to refill or change the ice bags. It's always better to freeze the playdough than let it dry on its own. That's because it'll have less time to soak the carpet, and the dye in it won't spread too far. Once the playdough is hard, you can now start getting it out. Freezing is critical for how to get playdough out of carpet while minimizing the stain left behind (which we'll also deal with).

Scrape the Solid Playdough Off

Now that the playdough is nice and hard, you can start scraping it away. All you need to do is scrape it from the carpet with a blunt object. You can use a credit card, a metal spoon, or a butter knife to start breaking the hardened playdough pieces into smaller chunks.

Make sure that you don't use an object that's too sharp, as it can damage the fibers in your carpet. Pay attention that you don't push the playdough down and deeper into the carpet fibers.

Keep moving the blunt object you choose back and forth until you break the playdough into smaller pieces. You can also use a toothbrush to scrape it if the bristles in it are hard enough to break the playdough. Pick the playdough you can with your hand and throw them away.

Vacuum The Remaining Pieces

Once the playdough is broken down into smaller pieces and unstuck from the carpet, you can take out your vacuum cleaner. Use the vacuum cleaner's hose to prevent pushing the broken playdough bits further into the carpet. The brush attachment of a vacuum cleaner is ideal for removing these broken pieces.

Use it if you have that. You may have to alternate between scraping and vacuuming the playdough multiple times until you get it out. But if you keep at it with patience, you'll surely remove every last piece of playdough from your carpet.

How to Remove Playdough Stains From Carpet

The dye in the playdough can leave a stain on your carpet even after you get all the playdough out of it. But there's no reason to worry as you can easily remove a playdough stain with household items.

Dish Detergent

You can use a clear and non-bleach liquid dish detergent to remove playdough stains from your carpet. Combine one teaspoon of liquid dish detergent and two cups of warm water together and put the solution in a bowl.

Take a white piece of cloth and dip one end of it into the bowl with the solution. Apply it to the stained area and blot it after a few minutes. You should now be able to lift the stain. Reapply the solution if you want to lift the stain easily.

Rubbing Alcohol

You can remove playdough stains from your carpet using rubbing alcohol but don't pour it directly onto the carpet as it can damage the carpet fibers. Test the rubbing alcohol in an inconspicuous spot of your carpet as it may not be suitable for use on all types of carpet.

If the carpet isn't damaged or doesn't undergo any discoloration because of the rubbing alcohol, it's time to use it to remove the stain. Soak a paper towel in rubbing alcohol and blot the stained area with it. You'll be able to see if it starts to lift the stain as the white paper towel will get dirty.

Switch the paper towels as you need so that you don't spread the stain any further. Be gentle while blotting the stain, as you can spread it further if you're not careful. Keep at it until the stain completely disappears.

Keep some rubbing alcohol around. It's useful for removing marker from carpets, ink in general, blueberry stains, grease and even nail polish from walls.

Hydrogen Peroxide

It's a strong bleaching agent which can also be quite effective in removing playdough stains. Use 3% hydrogen peroxide the same way you've learned to use rubbing alcohol to take care of the stains. Be sure to test it out on your carpet before applying it, as it can cause discoloration.

This is another item to always have on hand. It can help you remove syrup from carpet, coffee, beer, chocolate, and many other beverages and food-based liquids.

What to Do After Removing the Playdough Stain

No matter which products you use to remove the playdough stain, you can't leave it on your carpet for a long period. Rinse the treated area with cold water to get these products out. Once the cleaning products are out, you need to dry the carpet to prevent the growth of mold and mildew in it.

You can press some paper towels to the treated area so that it can absorb the moisture from the carpet and dry it faster. You can also use a hair dryer, desk fan, or a wet-dry vacuum to expedite the drying process and restore the carpet's original look. Removing playdough from carpet has never been easier!

That’s How to Get Playdough Out of Carpet!

You can get playdough out of your carpet using the tips mentioned in this article without any professional help. Make sure you rinse and dry the treated area after removing the stain to protect your carpet.

Your kids deserve to have a fun time making lovely shapes with playdough. And sometimes their fun can lead to a mess for you to clean up. But you no longer have to worry about how to get playdough out of carpet as you learned several ways of doing it in this article.

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