Somehow, blood got into your mattress. Now, you’re looking for a way to make it pristine clean again. Whether the stain is new or has deeply absorbed into the mattress, there are specific solutions for any kind of stain.
Since blood contains numerous proteins in it, removing it might take more effort than other kinds of stain. However, removing blood stains from your mattress is not entirely impossible.
Easing the stain-removing process, there are preliminary steps you have to do beforehand. These steps are designed to make it easier in removing the stains. After that, you can move on and focus on the stain-removing.
If you decided to land here after looking for “how to remove blood stains on mattress” on Google, you’ve come to the right place. Here are a handful of cheap and easy ways to solve your problem—some methods might even come close to surprise you!
Easily Remove Blood Stains from Mattress: First Steps
Before rubbing the bloodstain clean, there are some steps you need to do first. Aside from precaution steps, these steps are also helpful if you’re dealing with small, and relatively easy to remove stains.
First and foremost, since you wouldn’t want to get the bedsheet stained, you’ll have to strip it off the bed first.
This way, it’s easier for you to access the mattress directly and reduce the chance of bloodstains going everywhere. Additionally, remove pillows, bolsters, and other accessories that may disturb your work.
Using a cloth or towel, soak them in cold water and blot it on the bloodstained areas to saturate the blood. It needs to be noted that you are only allowed to use cold water. Hot water will set the stain and make it even harder to remove it.
While rubbing the stain is tempting, rubbing motions only helps the blood to absorb into the mattress. It’s better to dab it slowly until the towel saturates it.
Once you’ve saturated the stain with a wet cloth, proceeds by blotting the stain with a dry towel to soak excessive blood. Continue the motion until no moisture comes out from the stain.
As a reminder, make sure to blot it gently as rubbing motion will push the stain even deeper to the mattress.
If you think that once is not enough, you can repeat the blotting and drying processes until the towel comes out clean.
While this trick is sufficient in preventing blood from absorbing even further, some bloodstains are resistant to this method. As a solution, here are six methods using specialized ingredients to remove blood stains that refuse to budge.
Specific Ingredients to Remove Tough Blood Stains
1. Baking Soda
Ready to remove any big and tough stains, baking soda is a natural solution for your problem. Not only that it is easy to make, but a mixture of baking soda and vinegar is also a popular, tried-and-tested solution to eliminate the most persistent stains.
When using baking soda to remove blood stains, you have two options: baking soda or baking soda and vinegar. Listed below is the recipe to nail both:
Baking Soda
Directly apply the baking soda to the stain and let it sit in for about 30 minutes. Once its done, clean the mattress with a clean cloth. Finally, dab the remnants with cold water until everything is clean.
Baking Soda and Vinegar
Directly pour baking soda to the stain and spray it with white vinegar. Afterward, wait until it bubbles for around 30 minutes. When its done, clean the mixture with a clean cloth and dab the stain with cold water.
Since vinegar has a strong scent, make sure to clean thoroughly to prevent any foul smell.
2. Cornstarch Mixture
Who would’ve thought that cornstarch could be a great stain-remover? A quirky, handful way to remove blood stains, a mixture of cornstarch, hydrogen peroxide, and salt will budge every stubborn stain in your mattress.
While hydrogen peroxide alone has strong stain-removing properties, pouring it out in your mattress will only soak it and make things worse. Therefore, take out your cornstarch and salt from the kitchen and create a stain-removing paste. Refer below for the ingredients of corn starch mixture.
- Pour ½ cup of cornstarch, a tablespoon of salt, and ¼ cup of hydrogen peroxide into a bowl. Mix it until it becomes a paste.
- Apply the mixture to the bloodstain and wait for 30 minutes.
- If the bloodstain is tough and old, consider removing it with a toothbrush after 30 minutes.
- Once it’s done, remove the paste with a wet, clean towel. Make sure to use cold water instead of hot.
- Finally, dry the spot with a clean towel.
3. Detergent or Dish Soap Mixture
Another way to budge strong bloodstains, pour one cup of detergent or dish soap from your dishwasher and mix it with ¼ cup of hydrogen peroxide.
Stir it until the texture becomes a paste. Afterward, pour it into the spot and wait about 30 minutes.
Once you’re done, clear the paste from the mattress and watch it becoming pristine clean again.
4. Ammonia
A strong substance, notorious for clearing any kind of stain, ammonia will be a great help in cleaning the bloodstains in your mattress.
However, you need to treat it with care as a low concentration of ammonia can damage wool, silk, and make you cough when inhaled directly.
As a precaution, make sure to use gloves and masks before dealing with ammonia. Refer below to remove blood stains with ammonia:
- Pour one cup of cold water with one tablespoon of ammonia into a bowl.
- Dip a clean cloth or towel into the mixture and dab it directly on the bloodstains.
- Once you have cleaned the blood, clean the spot with a damp, clean towel.
5. Meat Tenderizer Powder
Yet another surprising ingredient to remove blood stains, meat tenderizing powder contains bromelain and papain which can help to break protein until a molecular extent.
Surprisingly, aside from doing a great job in tenderizing meat, it is also a brilliant stain-remover. Blood contains a lot of protein, and this meat tenderizer will surely help you remove it. Here’s how to use a meat tenderizer to remove the stains:
- Pour one tablespoon of meat tenderizer and two teaspoons of water into a cup.
- Mix it until it becomes a paste.
- Apply the mixture to the stain and wait until it’s dry.
- Clean the paste with a damp, clean towel and dry the rest.
6. Talcum Powder
If you have a baby at home, you can use talcum powder as a solution to clean blood stains. Talcum powder works like a sponge to absorb blood stains and clear your mattress from it. Refer below how to do it by using talcum powder:
- Pour talcum powder and water into a bowl.
- Blend the mixture until it becomes a paste.
- Apply the paste to the bloodstains.
- Wait until the talcum paste is completely dry. Usually, it takes about a night. Talcum powder works best in warm temperatures as it helps the paste to absorb better into the mattress.
- Once finished, clean away the dried paste and dab the rest with a damp, clean towel.
How to Prevent Blood Stains in Your Mattress
Once you know how much of a hassle removing blood stains are, you’ll learn to be careful of not getting any stains in your mattress. To help you, here are some tips to prevent blood stains in your mattress.
- Protect your mattress with a waterproof mattress cover
Since buying a new mattress will cost you a lot of money, you’ll need an alternative to keep it clean from stains. This vinyl, waterproof mattress covers are responsible for protecting your mattress from stains, spills, or any other leaks. If you spill something, the cover will prevent the liquid from absorbing into the mattress. - Layer it with a waterproof mattress pad
Wanting extra protection for your mattress? Softer than the vinyl, a mattress pad will be a second layer that goes on top of your mattress cover. - Put on a thick bed sheet
While washing a thick bed sheet is a hassle by itself, it is better than dealing with tough stains your mattress. The bed sheet will also protect the mattress from dirt, sweat, and other scraps while you’re sleeping on it. Choose one that fits you best, make the bed, and get ready for a good night’s sleep.
Dealing with bloodstains in your mattress doesn’t always have to be a difficult task. To remove blood stains, you will need more than a resilient will, but also a dependable tool and trick to help you with!