How to Get Blood Out of Carpet and Hardwood Floor

Spilling blood on your carpet or hardwood floor is really frustrating, and concerning. It can seem like an impossible task to get it out. And, there is always the fear of the unknown – will this stain be here forever?

​However, there are several tricks to removing blood and restoring your carpet or hardwood floor to its previous state. If you’re looking for how to get blood out of carpet or how to get blood out of hardwood flooring, we’ll go over both below.

How to Get Blood Out of Carpet

For starters, as tempting as it might be, don’t race over to the sink and apply hot water to the blood stain. Hot water actually works against you, setting the stain into the carpet and making it significantly harder to remove.

​1. Apply Cold Water

Rather, get cold water on a towel and dab the blood stain. You want to dab and blot, rather than rub or scrub. Rubbing or scrubbing with the towel will actually work the blood further into the carpet, rather than removing it.

Again – don’t scrub! This is a situation where elbow grease will work against you!

2. Apply Cleaning Solution

Once you have dabbed as much of the blood up with cold water on a towel, you will want to create a solution of one part dishwashing detergent, mixed with two parts cold water.

Mix thoroughly, and start applying the solution to the blood stain. Again – blot or dab – don’t rub. This process could take several tries. The hope is that, with each application, you will remove a little bit more.

One other option is to use hydrogen peroxide on the stain on the carpet. Hydrogen peroxide works well because it creates oxidation when applied. It will bubble when poured or dabbed on – that’s ok. Let the peroxide sit for at least 30 minutes, and the dab it dry.

3. Vacuum and Clean As You Normally Would

Once you’ve dabbed the peroxide away, confirm that the carpet is dry. If it is, you can go about cleaning as you normally would.

Run your vacuum cleaner over the area, being careful not to be too aggressive with the cleaning.

​How to Get Blood Out of Hardwood Floor

Hardwood flooring can soak blood up quickly, so you want to act as soon as you can. If your hardwood floor is unfinished, you are at even greater risk of the blood staining permanently. Get your hardwood floor vacuum ready and these cleaning agents​ we’ve listed below:

​1. Baking Soda

Baking soda will be your ally when it comes to removing blood from hardwood flooring. Sprinkle baking soda over the stain, and be liberal in your application.

Next, dip a cloth into vinegar, and blot the baking soda with the towel. You can gently rub the mixture into the wood, but do not rub aggressively.

​2. Hydrogen Peroxide

Wipe the area dry with a different (and dry) cloth. ​Hopefully your stain has come up at this point, but you might have to repeat this multiple times.

Hydrogen peroxide can also be applied, as we did in the example for carpet, but it can leave a stain on certain flooring types.

Look up how hydrogen peroxide interacts with your specific type of wood before applying.

3. Steel Wool

​If you have a wax or finish on your hardwood floor, there is a chance that the steps above won’t remove the blood. This is because the process above is for wood, and your flooring has a protective seal overtop of the wood.​

In this case, you might need to scrub the blood out with a piece of steel wool or abrasive rag.

Be careful! The goal is to only remove a little bit of the finish to get the blood out. You don’t want to remove very much of the finish, but just a tiny, tiny bit.

Overscrubbing will really hurt you and remove too much finish, leaving a divot in the floor and an exposed area of your wood. 

If you want a more softer way to clean you floors, you can use a specialized mop for grout and tiled flooring​​.

​Conclusion

Spilling blood on your flooring, whether on carpet or hardwood floor, is definitely alarming. Don’t worry, though, you should be able to get the stain out by following these steps.