Looking to get stains out of couch cushions? You’re in the right place! With 4 kids and 2 dogs, we’ve had out share of stains!
I’ve got a trick that will get stains out of couch cushions and banish any stinky smells too! And it’s easy!!
If you have pets or children, you know they can leave a mess behind on your couch. But you don’t have to live with the stains or the smells. Make sure to check out our simple & natural air freshener recipe and an easy way to deodorize stinky shoes.
Get stains out of couch cushions and make it smell fresh again! If you want to jump right to the cleaning recipe – click here…
The Stomach Flu Gone Wrong
A few weeks ago I got a call from a friend, MIchelle. Her 3 year old daughter had been sick – the dreaded stomach flu. Click here to learn how we prevent the spread of the stomach flu in our house.
We had a play date planned. Instead Michelle locked her family down at home. Praying the illness wouldn’t spread.
Unfortunately their plush microfiber couch had be a casualty. Her sweet daughter got sick all over their light colored couch!!
Have you ever had your child throw up on your furniture? Or maybe on you!? I can raise my hand to both.
Not fun!!
I’m thankful our couch cushions are removable. It makes cleaning the coach a lot easier. But there are times I don’t want the hassle of washing the cushion covers. It means removing, washing, waiting to dry, then putting the cushion covers back on. It’s a day long process. I DO NOT put the covers in the dryer.
So what do we do then?
Plus not all couches have removable cushions. My friend Michelle has a couch with non removable cushion covers.
Poor Michelle had to scrape all the puke off of those cushions. If your reading this Michelle – make sure your next couch has removable cushion covers!!
While Michelle did a great job cleaning up the couch… sadly stains remained that she couldn’t remove. And the couch had a lingering smell.
If you have kids, I’m sure you can understand. At one point your kid will puke, pee, or make another royally huge mess on your furniture.
The key is knowing how to get stains out of couch cushions for good. This trick will also get the stink out too!!
Below is a picture of what her couch looked like post pukearama. It was clean but stained and smelly.
Save Your Couch!
While you may think an incident like this might send the once loved couch to the curb…. you can save your couch.
It will take a little elbow grease to get stains out of couch cushions. But in just a short 15 minutes and you’ll be all fixed up and ready for the next challenge your child throws at you.
Here’s what you’ll need to get stains out of couch cushions:
- Rubbing Alcohol (I prefer to use bottom shelf vodka but either one works)
- Microfiber cloth or terry cloth
- 1-2 drops of castile soap or dish soap
- 15 minutes of elbow grease
That’s all folks. It’s really easy!
A note of caution: I have not used this on every couch out there. You should make sure your couch is colorfast and test a small area first.
But if you’re desperate enough and you’d had to replace your couch anyway, go for it!
If you have removable couch cushions, wash them on cold and line dry. (again make sure to check manufacturers instructions too)
If you’re ready to dive in – let’s do this!
Let’s Get Out Couch Cushion Stains
Liberally saturate the area in question with rubbing alcohol. Make sure to saturate the whole stained area. Let it soak in for a minute so you can reach the areas deep down where the smells are coming from.
Now take your clean cloth and scrub.
Scrub the entire area until you can no longer see any stains. Look for the rings that remain from the previous cleaning.
Then let it dry.
The alcohol will dry more quickly then water. You avoid the rings you often get when you spot clean your couch.
Just make sure to let the couch dry between cleanings. It’s hard to see the stains when wet.
If it’s not completely clean the first time, do it again. But this time add a drop or two of soap to the entire bottle of rubbing alcohol to get out really stubborn stains.
Here is the remarkable after.
Michelle admitted to me later that her husband did the dirty work of scrubbing. She got to play with the kids instead. But I did get some great before and after pictures so you can see how well this works!
The best part is the alcohol took care of the stains AND the smell!
This trick can be used many other places too… keep reading to find out where!!
Clean Your Mattress Too
This trick works well for any upholstered material. Think recliners, mattresses, gliding rocking chairs….
You can clean these surfaces and get rid of the stink.
Mattresses are a common place to encounter stains. If you don’t have a waterproof mattress protector on all your beds, you need them!!!
We have one on every bed in our home and extras for accidents happen. And accidents do happen!!
This is the mattress protector we use on our beds. It breathes and doesn’t make crinkly sounds when you move. Those crinkly sounds are so annoying!!
Once or twice a year I freshen our mattresses. When I wash the sheets and mattress protectors, I sprinkle some baking soda on the mattress and rub it in. Let it sit for a few hours then vacuum it off.
I prefer to use baking soda with essential oils in it (I use it to clean may stainless steel sink too!). The essential oils gives you a fresh scent.
Ink Stains on Furniture
One night while making dinner, my little guy got a hold of a pen. One of the other kids left lying around. Do your kids do that too? I find pens EVERYWHERE!
I thought he was playing with his toys – it’s the kiss of death when they get all quiet thought.
He wound up drawing on the back of the sofa.
While I knew our couch cushions would cover it up, there was no way I could leave it that way.
With a bunch of alcohol (I prefer to use super cheap vodka), a microfiber cloth, and a lot of scrubbing it is all gone.
And no…. I didn’t drink any vodka while scrubbing. Although I deserved a glass of wine after it was all over. It was work.
Alcohol works well to get stains out of clothing too!
Get Cleaning
Now that you know the tricks to get the stains out of your couch and upholstered furniture…. what are you going to clean first? Hit me up in the comments below!
I hope you don’t have a crazy mess like Michelle did. But if you do, there is hope!
Let me know how you make out
I did this to my otterman and it looks brand new. Next I’m doing the sofa.
Hi Darla!
I’m so glad to hear of your success!!! Amazing stuff 🙂
Shannon
I had a similar stomach flu incident on my leather couch that I needed to get some professional help with from a local furniture cleaner down here in Santa Rosa. They did great at getting the stain and stink out without damaging the leather. I did follow your tips for getting some stains out of a tenant’s couch we provided for them and it worked great! Thank you so much for sharing.
Alicia!
Oh man – that must have been a rough one with a leather couch. So glad they got the stains and stink out. And glad this worked for you on another couch. Shannon