How To Get Hair Dye Out Of Carpet (4 Easy Ways)

Hair dye can be difficult to remove, but thankfully not impossible. In this article, we will outline some techniques for how to get hair dye out of your carpet, whether the stains are old or new.

How To Get Hair Dye Out Of Carpet

It is more than possible to get hair dye out of your carpet. You can use soap, vinegar, ammonia, or even baby shampoo. How you approach it depends on whether the stain is old or new, and how light or severe the stain is.

Read on to find out about how to get hair dye out of your carpet.

Why Is It So Hard To Get Hair Dye Out Of Carpet?

Whether you’re covering your grays or trying a new style, hair dye is made to last.

In fact, most of us probably have a box lying around seeing as the expiration date is around 1-3 years. Whether permanent or semi-permanent, the pigments in hair dye are designed to give our hair lasting color.

This isn’t what you want if you manage to slop some onto your carpet, however! But fear not, we’re here to give you some advice on how to get hair dye out of your carpet.

Pretreatment: Things To Bear In Mind

Do A Patch Test

It’s always a good idea to do a patch test first with your chosen cleaning solutions on an area of the carpet that can’t be easily seen.

This is to make sure they won’t cause any discoloration or damage to your carpet.

Deal With The Stain As Soon As Possible

If it’s a new stain, you should deal with it as soon as possible to prevent the hair dye from spreading and the stain from becoming stronger. Strong colors such as red or orange hair color or even longer-lasting dye can very quickly become an issue. So if you’ve had a spillage, make sure you clean it up immediately.

Warnings

If you’re going to be working with ammonia and hydrogen peroxide, make sure you wear a mask and gloves, as these substances are toxic. Also, open a window to avoid the hair dye smell.

Keep the room well ventilated by opening windows and doors and keep children and pets away from the area.

Make sure the carpet is thoroughly dried before use.

How To Get Fresh Hair Dye Out Of Carpet

For a new hair dye stain, don’t waste any time when it comes to getting it out of the carpet. This is also the case if you’ve spilled hair dye on wooden floors.

Immediately but gently lift up any excess dye with a blunt knife or spoon, being careful not to scrape the hair dye into the carpet, making the stain worse.

Gently dab at the stain with a clean, dry cloth to remove any further excess.

Method 1: Dish Soap, Vinegar, and Rubbing Alcohol

This method uses mild cleaning agents and is suitable for smaller, less severe stains.

You’ll Need:

  • Dish soap
  • White Vinegar
  • Rubbing alcohol
  • Large bowl for mixing
  • Cloths
  • Sponge

Instructions:

  1. Make A Solution

Mix one tablespoon of dish soap and one tablespoon of white vinegar with two cups of warm water in a large bowl.

  1. Apply Solution To Stain

Dip a clean cloth into the cleaning solution, and wring it out to remove excess liquid. Gently dab onto the stain. Do not rub as this will spread the stain.

3. Blot The Stain

Now take a dry cloth and blot the stain. It should lift the dye that the cleaning solution loosened in the previous step. Keep alternating between the damp and dry cloth until the stain is gone.

4. Rinse The Stain

Soak a sponge in cold water and dab at the stain to rinse off the area. Remove excess water from the carpet with another dry cloth.

If traces of dye still remain, use a few drops of rubbing alcohol on a cloth and blot at the stain. Then dab off the area with a dry cloth.

Keep doing this until the stain has gone.

Then leave to dry and vacuum off to restore the carpet fibers.

You may also be interested in this article about how to safely remove hair dye from skin.

Method 2: Use Ammonia 

Ammonia is an effective hair dye remover.

If you’re dealing with a more difficult hair dye stain, ammonia may be the solution.

Please bear in mind that ammonia is toxic so wear gloves and open the windows and doors to ventilate the room while using it.

Ammonia should not be used on a wool carpet as it will destroy the fibers.

You’ll Need:

  • Ammonia
  • Dish soap
  • Water
  • Dry cloth
  • Protective gloves
  • Bucket or large container for mixing

Instructions:

1. Mix the Ammonia Solution

Open the windows and doors in your house to ventilate the room. Mix one teaspoon of dish soap and one tablespoon of ammonia with two cups of warm water in a bucket.

2. Apply the Ammonia Solution

Wear gloves during this step as ammonia burns and irritates the skin. Dip a clean cloth into the solution and dab it onto the hair dye stain.

Let it sit for half an hour, making sure to keep children and pets away from the area.

3. Repeat As Necessary

After thirty minutes, repeat the above step by dipping a clean cloth into the solution and dabbing in on the stain.

Leave for five minutes.

Repeat this step if necessary and keep doing so until the stain is gone.

4. Rinse With Water

Finally, dip a clean cloth or sponge into water and dab at the area to remove the ammonia solution. Then leave the carpet to air dry for a whole day.

Method 3: Use Hydrogen Peroxide For Removing Hair Dye

This method is ideal for difficult stains that won’t budge any other way. Do a spot test before using this method as hydrogen peroxide can remove the color from not only your hair but from your carpet too!

One option if this does happen is to color in the affected area with a fabric pen of a matching color once the area is dry.

Hydrogen peroxide is also harmful so do wear gloves and keep the room well ventilated.

You’ll Need

  • Hydrogen peroxide
  • Eyedropper
  • Sponge
  • Fabric pen

Instructions

1. Apply The Hydrogen Peroxide 

Using the eyedropper, cover the stain with a few drops of hydrogen peroxide. Make sure to cover the stain completely with the solution.

2. Let It Dry

Let the carpet dry for up to 24 hours while the hydrogen peroxide works to break up the stain.

3. Sponge The Area

Once the carpet has dried and the hydrogen peroxide has done its magic, use a wet sponge to blot the area. Do not rub the carpet with a sponge.

Then leave the area to dry off.

If the carpet has become discolored, you can use a matching fabric pen to color the area in. These can be bought from craft stores in a range of colors.

And of course, make sure you dispose of any excess hair dye as soon as you’ve finished coloring your hair.

How To Get Old Hair Dye Out Of Carpet

How To Get Old Hair Dye Out Of Carpet

Old hair dye stains can be more difficult to get out of your carpet, but here is one method you can try, using hairspray, astringent, and baby shampoo.

Hairspray, Astringent, And Baby Shampoo Method

You’ll Need

  • Hairspray
  • Astringent Solution
  • Baby Shampoo (dish soap also works)
  • Cloth

1. Spray The Stain With Hairspray

Spray the stain with hairspray, making sure the stain is completely saturated so that the hairspray can penetrate the carpet fibers.

Leave for five minutes. Rinse off with a cloth dipped in cold water.

2. Apply The Astringent

Next apply the astringent to the stain and leave it to soak on the stain for five minutes. Then again rinse the stain using cold water.

3. Apply The Baby Shampoo

Dab a few drops of baby shampoo onto the damp stain and gently scrub until the stain dissolves. Then rinse the area with cold water and pat it dry with a dry cloth.

Disclaimer: This site is not intended to provide professional or medical advice. All of the content on LovedByCurls.com is for informational purposes only. All advice should be followed at your own discretion. Ingredients may change at any time so always check the product label before using. Check our full disclaimer policy here.

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Nicola Sloan

Nicola is a freelance writer and researcher whose specialisms lie in health and wellness, beauty, and psychology. She has fine, wavy hair and is a big fan of co-washing every alternate day between shampoos (as dry shampoo makes her sneeze!)