How to remove blood stains from clothes, mattresses and carpets

The best way to remove a blood stain from fabric is to act immediately: blot up the excess with a paper towel, rinse the spot with cold water from the reverse side of the fabric, apply a little liquid detergent and wash in cold water. Do not use hot water, a tumble dryer or an iron until the stain has disappeared completely, because heat will set it. Soak a dried stain first.

Why you should never use warm water on blood

In its guide to removing blood, the detergent manufacturer Tide states that haemoglobin in blood coagulates in the air and clings firmly to fibres. The same guide explicitly warns that hot water will set the stain. Hence a simple rule: as long as the stain is visible, no heat.

This applies to other sources of heat too. A tumble dryer, iron, hair dryer or drying on a radiator can bake in what is left of the stain so that another wash can no longer get it out. After washing, therefore, check the laundry in daylight first and only then put it to dry.

Blood behaves differently from wine or wax. With wine you are dealing with a dye, with wax with a fat that, on the contrary, is removed with heat. For wine, you will find the method in the article red wine stains: what to do immediately and afterwards.

What you will need

• disposable gloves (always for someone else's blood)
• white paper towels or a light cotton cloth
• cold water and a bowl or sink
• liquid detergent, or a stain remover intended for the given fabric
• mild washing-up liquid for mattresses, upholstery and carpets
• a soft brush or blunt spoon for dried residue

Fresh stain on clothes: method

The method is based on the guide from the detergent manufacturer Tide; always adapt it to the care label of the particular garment.

1. Carefully blot up the excess blood with a paper towel. Do not scrub, as you would spread the stain and push it deeper.
2. Turn the fabric inside out and rinse the stain under a stream of cold water from the reverse side. The water then pushes the blood out of the fibres rather than through them.
3. Apply a little liquid detergent to the stain and leave it to work in cold water for several minutes (Tide states up to 5 minutes).
4. Do not rinse out the detergent; put the item straight into the washing machine.
5. Wash in cold water or at the lowest temperature the programme allows.
6. When the programme has finished, take the laundry out immediately and check it. If the stain is still visible, repeat steps 2 to 5 and do not put it in the tumble dryer.

Dried stain: patience instead of force

Dried blood is bonded more firmly to the fibres, so it needs time. First, carefully remove the dried residue from the surface with a blunt spoon or a soft brush. Then soak the item in cold water with a little detergent and leave it to soak.

If the stain does not shift, reach for a stain remover that the label states is intended for the given fabric. Many such products contain oxygen bleach. Before using it, look at the triangle symbol on the garment's care label. According to GINETEX, the international association for textile care labelling, an empty triangle means any bleaching is allowed, a triangle with two diagonal lines permits oxygen bleach only, and a crossed-out triangle prohibits bleaching.

Always take the dosage and contact time from the product label and test it first on a hidden spot, for example on an inner seam. For silk, wool and materials marked for professional cleaning only (the circle symbol), it is better to just carefully blot the stain with cold water and take the item to a dry cleaner. Tell them that it is blood.

Blood on a mattress

You cannot wash a mattress, so the main principle is to use as little water as possible. A large amount of water soaks into the filling, the blood spreads over a wider area and the mattress takes a long time to dry.

1. Blot the stain with a dry paper towel, pressing rather than rubbing.
2. Dampen a cloth with cold water and a drop of mild washing-up liquid and dab the stain with it from the edge towards the centre.
3. Keep blotting with a dry towel and swap the cloth for a clean part.
4. Finally, dab the spot with a cloth with clean cold water so that no detergent is left in the mattress, and blot again.
5. Leave the mattress to dry thoroughly in the air, ideally with the window open. Do not use a hair dryer or heater.

If the mattress has a removable cover, follow its label and wash it using the method for clothes. You will find more advice on mattresses in the article how to clean a mattress at home.

Blood on a carpet and sofa

The Carpet and Rug Institute, an American association of carpet manufacturers, recommends in its guide to blood on carpets acting quickly, blotting up the liquid with a white towel, testing the cleaning solution first on a hidden spot and applying it from the edge of the stain towards the centre with light pressure and without scrubbing. As one option, it gives a solution of a quarter of a teaspoon of washing-up liquid in a cup of water.

After cleaning, according to the same source, the spot needs to be rinsed several times with lukewarm tap water, because detergent residue attracts dirt. Always blot the water up and do not soak the carpet.

For sofas, first find the upholstery care label; the method by fabric type is described in the article how to clean a sofa at home according to fabric type. If the stain remains after cleaning at home or is large, machine upholstery and carpet shampooing will help. Úklid 1-2-3 offers sofa upholstery shampooing, and current prices are in the price list.

Safety: when it is someone else's blood

Infections can be transmitted through blood. In its overview of bloodborne pathogens, the American agency OSHA names among them the hepatitis B and C viruses and HIV, and for the workplace recommends treating all human blood as if it were infectious. The same is sensible at home if the blood is not your own.

• Always put on disposable gloves and do not touch blood with bare hands, especially if you have a small cut on your hands.
• If there is glass or another sharp object at the spot, do not pick it up with your hands; use a brush and dustpan.
• Put used cloths and gloves in a sturdy plastic bag, tie it and throw it into the general waste.
• After cleaning, wash your hands with soap and water.

For hard non-porous surfaces, such as tiles or a worktop, the CDC in its guidance for healthcare facilities gives this procedure: first remove visible blood with absorbent material, then clean the surface and only then disinfect it, for example with chlorine bleach diluted 1 : 100, with gloves and eye protection. Without prior cleaning, according to the CDC, even a strong chlorine solution may not work fully.

With chlorine products, always read the label, ventilate and never mix them with acids (for example vinegar or limescale removers) or with ammonia. Do not use chlorine bleach on coloured textiles, mattresses or carpets unless the manufacturer expressly permits it. Why mixing is dangerous is explained in the article which cleaning products should never be mixed.

The most common mistakes

• Warm water or a tumble dryer before the stain has gone.
• Scrubbing instead of blotting and dabbing; the stain spreads and the fabric may be abraded.
• Soaking a mattress or carpet; moisture stays in the filling and may start to smell.
• Bleach without checking the label; the triangle symbol tells you whether bleaching is allowed.
• Mixing products, especially chlorine with an acid or ammonia.