How To Get Glue Out Of Carpet

Can you imagine living in a time before glue? We break things, and we fix things. We make things and change things. But what happens when you spill glue onto your carpet? How do you get that glue out of your carpet?
How To Get Glue Out Of Carpet
No worries, because we have solutions for removing glue from the carpet. For typical craft and water-based glues, it's simple.
  • Scrape up any dried excess, being careful not to pull up carpet fibers
  • Soak with a warm wet sponge to soften the glue
  • Use white distilled vinegar or dish soap to loosen the embedded bits
  • Alternately, try a mixture of dish soap and warm water
  • Gently loosen
  • Soak up all excess and dry

But maybe your spilled glue episode is something worse, like gorilla glue or hot glue. No worries, we're going to cover many different types of glue and the proper way to get them out of your carpets.

Getting Glue Out Of Your Carpet

Anyone who likes to craft or who has kids knows that spills happen. You have that shiny new bottle of white glue, and something happens, and you're left with a puddle on your carpet. Now it's time to clean that glue. Here's how.

  1. Scrape up any dried excess, being careful not to pull up carpet fibers.
  2. Soak with a warm wet sponge to soften the glue.
  3. Use white distilled vinegar or dish soap to loosen the embedded bits.
  4. Alternately, try a mixture of dish soap and warm water.
  5. Gently loosen.
  6. Soak up all excess and dry.

If your glue is still wet, then your job is easier by far. Get warm water and a sponge and mop up the glue. Use enough water to draw all the glue up into the sponge properly. Warm water works best, but it's always good to do a little test dab on an out of the area way of your carpet to make sure you have no color bleed with moisture.

How To Remove Hardened Glue From Carpet

If your glue has already dried, then your steps become slightly more complex. But all is not lost, there are solutions.

You'll want first to scrape up any excess you can get off, while at the same time being careful not to tear any carpet fibers.  After you've done this, make a mixture of half distilled white vinegar to half warm water. Dab onto the glue spill. The vinegar helps to break up the adhesive in the glue. Same with water, test out an inconspicuous area of your carpet first with the vinegar mixture.

Once the vinegar has gotten into the carpet, you should be able to peel the adhesive up easily. We found this vinegar for you on Amazon. Click here to see this on Amazon.

An alternative to distilled white vinegar is household dish soap. You'll want to make a mixture of one tablespoon of dish soap to one cup of warm water. Gently let the mixture soak into your glue stain and then gently pry it up. You don't want to scrub and end up sending the glue deeper into your carpet fibers.

Other Types Of Glue Stains In Your Carpet

It's all well and good with craft and water-based glues; they can be gotten out of most carpets reasonably easily. But what happens if you have a different sort of glue? We'll look at some of the ways to remove other glues below. Some are easy, and others will be more challenging.

How To Get Gorilla Glue Out Of Carpet

Gorilla glue is a polyurethane-based adhesive, and one of its big selling points is just how adhesive it is. Which makes getting up spills on your carpet tricky. It is removable with acetone on other surfaces, but on a carpet, you risk it running through and eating up the carpet backing.

Some suggest cutting away the stain if your carpet has enough pile. But most people suggest patching the carpet, cutting away a small portion with the glue spill on it, and replacing it with a similar piece.

How To Get Wood Glue Out Of Carpet

Wood glue, depending on the type, can be equally as tricky as gorilla glue. However, in some cases, you can remove it with a solvent. Your first try should be the vinegar trick we used with regular craft glue. If that does not work, try this method (always doing a spot test first to make sure it won't harm your carpet).

Apply a small amount of solvent, like the one below, to your glue stain. Lay a dry rag across the top of the area. Then using an iron set on the steam setting at medium heat, steam, and loosen the glue. Gently rub it loose. Repeat if necessary. Clean with gentle soap and water when the stain is removed.

Click here to see this on Amazon.

How To Get Hot Glue Out Of Carpet

If your glue gun drips hot glue onto your carpet, do not attempt to wipe it up immediately. Rubbing hot glue will only spread the adhesive and make the stain worse.  Instead, grab a thin piece of fabric, something the glue will adhere to, then rub an iron over the top, transferring the hot glue from your carpet to the fabric.

If your hot glue has dried, you can also try this trick as the heat from the iron should soften and remelt the glue.

How To Get Hair Glue Out Of Carpet

This one is also dependant on the type of hair glue you are using. If it's a water-based glue, you can try to use a solution of white distilled vinegar and warm water and gently scrub it up. If it's not water-based, it may require a solvent. Acetone typically works on hair glues but can potentially damage your carpet's backing. You could try to dab it up with acetone gently, but use super sparingly, and always spot test your carpet in an out of the way location.

Or try a solvent like Goo Gone, which claims to be safe on carpets.

Click here to see this on Amazon.

How To Get PVC Glue Out Of Carpet

PVC glue is a slow-drying plastic compound meant for putting plastic pipes (as found in plumbing fixtures) together. It's super bonding, which means it's also super hard to get out of your carpets. Like with other glues, you can try a variety of things to see if something might work, but ultimately you may have to replace or patch your carpet for a PVC glue stain.

But here are a few of the techniques we've listed above that could help:

  • Clean up as much excess as possible with a sharp knife.
  • Cutaway bits of carpet with the glue if the pile is long enough in your carpet
  • Use a combination of white distilled vinegar and warm water or dish detergent soap and warm water
  • Gently rub the stain
  • Try a solvent like one of the ones listed above

Hopefully, as you clean up your stain, you won't be stuck with having to patch or replace your carpet. Simple glues like Elmer's and some hot and wood glues are easy to clean. Be careful with Gorilla Glue and PVC glue as they will be much more difficult to remove from the carpet.

We have a few other household cleaning posts on Home Decor Bliss that may be of interest to you. Please click on the links below.

How to Get Slime Out of Carpet

How To Get Playdough Out of Carpet [In 6 Simple Steps]

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