How to Clean Candy Stains

Co-authored by Michelle Driscoll, MPH

Last Updated: February 26, 2023 References

We all look forward to the sweet tastes and festivities of the holiday season. However, the amount of sweets can lead to extra cleaning duties such as cleaning candy stains. Children sometimes hide away little pockets of candy in their bedroom. This candy can end up on the carpet or the sheets. Family members may forget about the candy in their pant or shirt pockets. This candy can then get stuck to clothing. Chocolate candies can fall onto clothing while children are eating. Do not despair about candy stains. There are ways of removing the stains and getting your house back in order.^{[1]
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Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Removing Candy Stains from Clothing and Sheets

1
Pick the candy off the clothes or sheets. If it is hard to get off, you can try scraping it off with a spoon. If it remains stuck, try pouring a bit of cold water onto it and letting it sit for an hour. Afterwards, try scraping it off again with the spoon.^{[2]
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- If it is gum, tootsie rolls, lollipops, saltwater toffee, or a similarly sticky candy, you can use ice to get the chunks of candy off the fabric. Grab some ice cubes from the freezer. Place them on the candy stain and let the ice sit on the fabric for an hour. Afterwards, try scraping off the candy again. If it is still stuck, you can try letting it sit on ice for a while longer.^{[3]
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2
Pre-treat the stain. Use a mix of one teaspoon vinegar, one teaspoon liquid dish soap and one cup of warm water. Use a rag or sponge to apply the mixture to the stain. Let it sit for ten minutes.
- You can also try stain removal products, such as OxiClean, Grandma’s Secret Spot Remover or similar products.
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3
Blot the stain. Use a clean rag to blot the stain. Working from the outside to the inside of the stain, remove the stain with a clean rag. Use fresh parts of the rag as you go, so that you avoid applying the stain to unaffected parts of the fabric.
4
Soak the items in oxygen bleach. Oxygen bleach or sodium percarbonate is a useful agent for removing stains. In a small tub, add one or two tablespoons of sodium percarbonate into a gallon of water. Put in the stained clothing or sheets. Let the items soak for one hour, remove, and then launder.
- If the stain is especially bad, you can try soaking the items in oxygen bleach overnight and then laundering them in the morning.
5
Wash the stained items. After you have finished the stain removal process, you will want to wash the stained items. You may want to launder them on their own or with other recently stained clothing.
- Choose warm or hot water to launder recently stained clothing or sheets.^{[4]
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- Use the recommended amount of laundry detergent. Look on the detergent label to see the recommended amount.^{[5]
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- Wash the stained items in a small load of similarly colored clothing. ^{[6]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Getting Rid of Candy Stains on Your Carpet or Upholstery

1
Pick up chunks of candy. Carefully remove any chunks of carpet that are attached to your carpet or furniture. Be careful to place the chunks into the garbage immediately, so there is no danger of further stains.^{[7]
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- If the hard candy is really stuck to the carpet or upholstery, you can moisten the candy with cold water and let it sit. Once it has softened a bit, you can pull it up from the carpet.^{[8]
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- If it is a caramel candy stain, you can use an alcohol soaked pad or sponge to remove the caramel.You can use rubbing alcohol.
2
Spray the stain. You will need to spray a cleaning solution onto the affected area of carpet or upholstery. You can use a plastic spray bottle with an appropriate cleaning solution. At this stage, you have the choice of using one of the following cleaners:^{[9]
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- Mix a quarter teaspoon of liquid hand detergent and one cup of warm water. Use this solution to clean the carpet.
- Use an ammonia cleaner containing one tablespoon of ammonia per cup of water. Be careful with ammonia because it could discolour your carpet if it is too strong.
- Avoid dish detergent. The detergent used for dishwashing has bleaching agents and dye, which could adversely impact your carpet.
3
Blot the stain. Use a clean rag to gradually blot the stain, starting from the outside and moving inwards. At this stage, it is important to adjust your rag so that you are using clean parts of it to blot out the stain from the carpet. This will help you avoid reapplying the stain to the carpet.^{[10]
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Research source} It is also very important to move from the outside towards the inside, so that you avoid staining other parts of your carpet.
- If the stain persists, you can blot it again with white vinegar. ^{[11]
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4
Rinse and dry the area. After removing the stain, you should rinse the area to remove any lingering cleaning solution. Use a damp wet cloth to rinse the carpet. Then, you should dry the area by blotting the area with a clean and dry cloth. Afterwards, you should let it air dry for a day and avoid stepping on the area.^{[12]
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5
Get carpet or upholstery cleaning. At the very least, you should vacuum your carpets and upholstery. If it has been a while since you last had a professional cleaning done, you should consider whether it is an opportune time to get professional carpet or upholstery cleaning.
- Carpet cleaners have methods and chemicals available that you do not have in your home. If your candy stain remains after trying multiple attempts at removing it, you could get a professional to clean your carpet. Professional cleaning can help get rid of pollutants, get rid of mite infestations mold growth, as well as get rid of stains. They use methods like steam cleaning and shampooing to thoroughly clean your carpet.^{[13]
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Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Eliminating Chocolate Candy Stains

1
Scrape off the chocolate. Be careful not to spread the chocolate to other parts of the item that are not yet stained. You can use a spoon to get the chocolate off if it is especially stuck.
2
Apply cold water or soda. If it is upholstery or carpet, you can apply the cold water or soda water with a sponge or spray bottle. If it is a piece of clothing, you can pour cold water or soda water over the stain. Try to pour the cold water or soda over both sides of the clothing so that it is totally saturated.^{[14]
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3
Treat the stain. For the stain remover, you can use a mix of two cups of cool water and one tablespoon of dishwashing liquid. You can also use a commercial stain remover such as Persil Small & Mighty. Get the fabric totally saturated with the stain remover.^{[15]
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4
Let it soak for fifteen minutes. After a few minutes, you can rub the stain with a rag or a brush. When you do this, try not to spread the stain to other parts of the item. You may need to continue applying stain remover and scrubbing until the chocolate stain is removed.^{[16]
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5
Clean the item. Once the item is dry and the stain is more-or-less removed, you should clean it. If it is clothing, you should launder the item. If it is carpet, you should vacuum. You may also want to consider a commercial carpet cleaning service in the near future. If it is removable upholstery, you should launder. If it is not removable, you may need to get a professional upholstery cleaner into the house.