How To Clean Kumkum Stains On Carpet | Your carpet doesn’t need extra coloring

Kumkum powder is an important part of religious and cultural events in the beautiful South Asian country of India. Usually, people use it to color their skin for these types of events (think Holi).

Kumkum powder, while being great for coloring human skin, can also be great at coloring your carpets. If you spill it, you can find yourself with a colorful mess on your floor!

You can get kumkum stains out of your carpet by acting fast and blotting the carpet with a cloth. A bit of dish liquid, baking soda, and water will help pull the rest of the powder out of your floor. 

Step 1: Scoop Up the Spill

As soon as you spill kumkum on the carpet, it’s time to get to work. That’s because the sooner you catch the stain and start removing it, the easier it will be for you to remove the stain. 

Grab a spoon from your kitchen and start scooping it off your carpet. You can actually save this to use at a later point in time if you like!

Regardless of whether you’ll be recycling your spill or dumping it in the garbage can, make sure to go carefully. Try to get the powder off the floor without rubbing it deeper into the carpet. 

Step 2: Vroom, Vroom and Vacuum!

We know you probably think you’ve got all the loose powder off the floor. However, the truth is that it’s better to be safe than sorry!

The easiest way to make sure you get rid of all the loose powder on your floor is to break out the vacuum cleaner. Run the cleaner over the floor to get as much of the powder off the stained area. 

Pro Tip: if you’ve got a crevice tool, use that! The crevice tool makes it easier for you to suck powder out of the fibers, even if they’re wedged deep into the carpet

Step 3: Create a Quick and Convenient Cleaning Solution

With the worst of the powder off the floor, your job isn’t over. In fact, it’s only just begun! 

Now you’ll need to mix a drop or two of dish liquid, a cup of lukewarm water, and a tablespoon of baking soda together. Stir the mixture to dissolve the ingredients and then soak a towel in the mixture. 

Lay the towel over the stain and gently dab at the floor. You should notice the kumkum starts to lift out of the carpet and onto the towel. 

Wring out the towel in a separate bowl and dip it in your DIY cleaner again as needed. You can change out the water and create more liquid as you go, so that you’ve always got fresh fluid on the spot. 

Step 4: Use a Commercial Carpet Cleaner

Okay, so you’ve vacuumed, you’ve dabbed, and… you’re still faced with a slight kumkum stain on your carpet. What next?

If you still notice kumkum stains on your carpet after following the above steps, you might need to break out the commercial carpet cleaner. Just make sure that the cleaner is appropriate for your type of carpet before using it. 

Follow the instructions on the label to apply it to your carpet. You should find that this gets the rest of the kumkum out of your floor. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do You Get Vermillion Stains Out of Carpet?

You can get vermillion out of your carpet by applying a bit of liquid detergent and hot water. Then, use a toothbrush to scrub the stain before blotting up the solution. Finally, rinse the stain using a bit of warm water. 

What Stains Cannot Be Removed from Carpet?

Even though kumkum can be tough to get out of your carpet, they’re far from impossible to lift. A few examples of stains that you might not be able to remove include blood and ink, although these can also be treated if you act fast. 

Does Kumkum Stain?

Thanks to its bright color, kumkum will effectively stain skin and the floor. The good news is that with a bit of soap and water you can usually lift the stain out without a problem. If your stain is particularly stubborn, simply apply a bit of commercial carpet cleaner on the stain to get rid of the remaining kumkum. 

What Is Kumkum Made Of?

Traditionally kumkum is made out of dried turmeric powder. The turmeric powder is then mixed with slated lime powder, which causes it to turn the rich red color that we recognize as kumkum. Sometimes kumkum is made out of saffron as well, although this is much more costly.