Getting Marker out of Carpet????? (ideas, clothes, son, 4 year old)

[oceandreams94]

Hi, does anyone have any tips for getting marker out of carpet? My 4 year old son went crazy with blue and pink Crayola marker and now I am not sure what will take it out!!

Any ideas?

Thanks
Jen

[poprocksncoke]

Try Oxyclean! It got out stains in my car's seats.. just test a little area first to make sure it doesn't turn it a funky color.
I think they also make carpet dye, maybe you can spray that on as well!

[tiffela74]

LMAO!!!!!! sorry, i had to laugh.
Ive heard common vinager mixed w/some water will do the trick, but Id definatly check it out first.
Dont forget to put yourself in a time out too to cool down.
good luck,
Tiffany

[kawgpz550]

Originally Posted by oceandreams94

Hi, does anyone have any tips for getting marker out of carpet? My 4 year old son went crazy with blue and pink Crayola marker and now I am not sure what will take it out!!

Any ideas?

Thanks
Jen

Ok, if this helps you out at all, I OWN a carpet cleaning business

First off, I would start by going to Wal-Mart and buying some stuff called OOPS! Among other chemicals, it has Xylene in it (but more diluted than STRAIGHT Xylene). But do read the label and MAKE SURE you get the right OOPS (more than one variation) that does indeed have Xylene in it! Put it on a cloth and scrub the area...DO NOT POOR IT ON THE CARPET! The Xylene CAN/WILL eat away the backing of the carpet and cause the fibers (carpet threads) to come out...do not get it wet enough to soak down in! Just scrub the surface. If it seems like it is getting too wet, wait til it dries completely then try again.
If this does not work, go to Home Depot or other ahrdware store and buy some straight Xylene. I know for a fact that Xylene WILL do the trick, but it is some REALLY STRONG stuff...Just do like I said above, just be VERY careful with it. You don't want to replace the marker with a bald spot.
We have had to do this many times for our customers. Just make sure you do not do it for too long of periods. If it is getting too wet let it dry before continuing and do not let it soak into the backing...

Some other home carpet care tips:

Red Dye Stains (such as Kool-Aid, punch, or other red dye #40 stains)
Mix 1 half hydrogen peroxide and 1 half ammonia together in spray bottle. Get a WHITE towel (old one you don't mind ruining ) and DAMPEN it (not soaked). You will also need a clothes iron.
Spray the red area with the solution. Place towel over top of area then put the HOT iron on top of towel. DO NOT ALLOW IRON to come into direct contact with carpet. It WILL smell a bit! You will notice that the iron will steam...let it steam for about 20 seconds. Remove towel and iron, and repeat as necessary. Just keep an eye on the carpet, we have only had this happen once, but it is possible to discolor (lighten) the carpet if you treat it too many times...but again...this DOES WORK! However, for some reason, this will NOT work on Crystal Light's RED varieties. For this reason, I will NOT ALLOW my family to drink Crystal Light anymore

Pet Stains:
1 part club soda, 1 part vinegar. Spray and dab with a towel The soda helps bring the urine UP and the vinegar helps neutralize the smell.

Candle WAX (this is not intended for NYLON carpet), but is good for most standard residential carpets. Nylon is usually seen as indoor/outdoor commercial carpet like in some restaurants. Most normal threaded residential carpet is not 100% nylon.
Need brown paper bags and a clothes iron. Lay the brown paper bag over the wax, lay iron on top of bag. You will need to do several times. The heat will cause the wax to draw up into the bag! WORKS GREAT!!!

[movingtohouston]

Originally Posted by kawgpz550

Ok, if this helps you out at all, I OWN a carpet cleaning business

First off, I would start by going to Wal-Mart and buying some stuff called OOPS! Among other chemicals, it has Xylene in it (but more diluted than STRAIGHT Xylene). But do read the label and MAKE SURE you get the right OOPS (more than one variation) that does indeed have Xylene in it! Put it on a cloth and scrub the area...DO NOT POOR IT ON THE CARPET! The Xylene CAN/WILL eat away the backing of the carpet and cause the fibers (carpet threads) to come out...do not get it wet enough to soak down in! Just scrub the surface. If it seems like it is getting too wet, wait til it dries completely then try again.
If this does not work, go to Home Depot or other ahrdware store and buy some straight Xylene. I know for a fact that Xylene WILL do the trick, but it is some REALLY STRONG stuff...Just do like I said above, just be VERY careful with it. You don't want to replace the marker with a bald spot.
We have had to do this many times for our customers. Just make sure you do not do it for too long of periods. If it is getting too wet let it dry before continuing and do not let it soak into the backing...

Some other home carpet care tips:

Red Dye Stains (such as Kool-Aid, punch, or other red dye #40 stains)
Mix 1 half hydrogen peroxide and 1 half ammonia together in spray bottle. Get a WHITE towel (old one you don't mind ruining ) and DAMPEN it (not soaked). You will also need a clothes iron.
Spray the red area with the solution. Place towel over top of area then put the HOT iron on top of towel. DO NOT ALLOW IRON to come into direct contact with carpet. It WILL smell a bit! You will notice that the iron will steam...let it steam for about 20 seconds. Remove towel and iron, and repeat as necessary. Just keep an eye on the carpet, we have only had this happen once, but it is possible to discolor (lighten) the carpet if you treat it too many times...but again...this DOES WORK! However, for some reason, this will NOT work on Crystal Light's RED varieties. For this reason, I will NOT ALLOW my family to drink Crystal Light anymore

Pet Stains:
1 part club soda, 1 part vinegar. Spray and dab with a towel The soda helps bring the urine UP and the vinegar helps neutralize the smell.

Candle WAX (this is not intended for NYLON carpet), but is good for most standard residential carpets. Nylon is usually seen as indoor/outdoor commercial carpet like in some restaurants. Most normal threaded residential carpet is not 100% nylon.
Need brown paper bags and a clothes iron. Lay the brown paper bag over the wax, lay iron on top of bag. You will need to do several times. The heat will cause the wax to draw up into the bag! WORKS GREAT!!!

Will the trick you used with the iron work on set in koolaid stains? We are renting our house and the carpet had some stains in it when we moved in. How about yellow popsicles? will this work too?

[oceandreams94]

Thank you for all your replies!!!!

Jen

[kawgpz550]

Originally Posted by movingtohouston

Will the trick you used with the iron work on set in koolaid stains? We are renting our house and the carpet had some stains in it when we moved in. How about yellow popsicles? will this work too?

First off, YES, it should very well work on set in kool-aid. Like I said, if it is dark red Crystal Light...nothing will take it out That stuff is BAD! Give it a try...do it like two or three passes and see what happens...it definately cannot hurt

As for yellow, or blue or green

I don't know why, but we (or any other professional carpet cleaner we know) have YET to be able to find ANYTHING to work on other colors EXCEPT...usually OOPS works on those dyes just like it does the markers. But if the OOPS (with XYLENE) doesn't do it, than Xylene will.

[L.K.]

I did this for the red kool-aid spill,only using the blue Dawn dish washing liquid.It worked!

[kawgpz550]

Originally Posted by L.K.

I did this for the red kool-aid spill,only using the blue Dawn dish washing liquid.It worked!

But then there will be the everlasting issue of havign soap residue. That spot will always be a magnet for stains and will keep coming back. Then once it gets wet (ie. getting your carpet cleaned) it will be very sudsy...The Peroxide/Ammonia mixture does not leave a residue

[L.K.]

you don't put the soap right on it .You add only a few drops of soap to a gallon of water,soak a cotton towel in it,wring it out and then lay the towel over the spot.I would be afraid of the peroxide bleaching the carpet out.