Tips On Removing Milk Stains

Don’t waste time crying over spilled milk!

Get to work quickly to blot up the excess and try to prevent it from being absorbed into the fabric and resulting in a stain.

How To Remove Milk Stains

If milk, milkshakes or ice cream is spilled on the carpet or furniture, grab some paper towels or very absorbent soft cotton rag. Blot up any that is still on the surface, and then press the paper towels or rags against it several times to bring out as much moisture as possible.

Any milk remaining in the material will spoil and you’ll be stuck with a foul odor for months so it’s important to act as soon as possible.

Keep in mind that milk, milk shakes and ice cream are organic and do not react favorably to cleansing agents with chemicals that may “cook” the milk right into the material you are trying to remove it from.

After you’ve blotted up as much as possible, grab a household sponge and wet it with clean, cold water. Apply the wet sponge over and over to the still wet stain, alternating with a clean paper towel.

Tips For Removing Milk Stains From Furniture

Now there is no reason to cry over spilled milk. If you can get to the spill right away, your chances are good at removing the stain. As we mention above, blot as much liquid up as possible before using the cleaning solution.

If the spilled milk was quite a bit and you couldn’t get to it right away, after the initial blotting, try using a wet-dry shop vac to remove even more liquid from the cushion and padding.

That being said, if you can remove the cover, take the padding out and soak up the liquid then let air dry.

To clean the area and avoid possible odors, use 2 tablespoons dish soap and mix with 2 cups cold water. Dab at the area working from the outside of the stain in towards the middle.

Continue the process until clean. Place a dry, clean towel over the area you just cleaned until dry.

Removing Milk Spills from a Throw Rug

If the milk was spilled on a throw rug, there’s not much of a problem unless the rug is too big to go into your washer or not made of washable material.

However, in this case, we will assume you can throw the rug into the washing machine. Fill the tub with cold water, soak for five or ten minutes, add detergent and allow it to go through a cycle. When the cycle is complete, take the rug out and examine it for staining.

If it looks clean, go ahead and dry it as you normally would do.

Removing Ice Cream or Milkshake Stains from Clothing

As with all spills, it best to get to the stain as soon as possible. If you’re at home, take the shirt and rinse it under cold water. If you’ve rinsed it immediately chances are the rinsing will work at removing all traces of the ice cream.

If the ice cream was wiped up but you were not able to rinse completely, try pretreating with an OxiClean type of product (rub it into the stain) and let sit for 3 to 5 minutes then soak in cold water for another 5 to 10 minutes, rub the stained area gently after a few minutes. Rinse completely then wash as usual.

• Repeat if necessary until the stain is gone.

Before putting the item in the dryer, make sure the stain is completely gone or you run the risk of setting the stain permanently.

Removing and Treating Sour Milk Odors

Speaking of deodorizer, another method that works well in some cases is using baking soda.

1. Blot excess milk with a sponge or paper towel.
2. Sprinkle baking soda on the stained area.
3. Using a small spray bottle of water, lightly mist the baking powder making sure it absorbs the water.
4. Allow the wet baking powder to dry overnight.
5. When it has completely dried, scrape off the excess; using a small brush, give it a light brushing to loosen the rest of the baking soda.
6. Vacuum the whole area.
7. If the stain remains, treat with lemon juice.
8. Allow the lemon juice to remain for about 15 minutes.
9. Then spray with water and blot with a paper towel

Removing Formula Stains

Very often, the biggest problem with milk stains is on baby shirts and children’s clothing. While “moo-stashes” are cute, milk dribbles on clothes is not.

Here’s a tip for busy moms who get in a hurry and don’t always have the time to treat little baby shirts to keep stains away. We don’t use diaper pails like we used to because most of today’s mothers use disposable diapers. Diaper pails were a common bathroom accessory in households with babies and toddlers. Lacking a pail, you can still take a moment to fill a sink with cold water and drop the stained little t-shirt or undershirt in to soak.

I know an efficient young mother who keeps a few inches of “soaking water” in her washer. Throughout the day, as the toddlers and babies’ clothing need changed she just tosses the soiled clothing into the washer where it can soak. They are often stained with juice, milk, and chocolate … whatever the kids took a liking to.

At the end of the day, the last thing she does is run the clothing through a short cycle. The result is far fewer ugly stains on the kids’ clothing.

USE BLEACH WITH CAUTION. As a general rule, be careful when attempting to bleach milk stains from clothing or other materials. While your intention is to lighten the stain itself, the bleaching agent in the cleaner may alter and ruin the rest of the material – leaving the stain as is or a dingy looking color! There are products like Dreft that can work quite well at removing stains without harsh chemicals.

It is usually not impossible to remove milk stains provided it’s on a washable surface. The real culprit with milk is after it has soaked into the fabric and perhaps run down into the padding or the foam of furniture, it will spoil and you’ll notice a sour milk smell. It’s much better to try to remove as much of the milk as possible and then clean it thoroughly as best you can. It’s a nuisance but you can do a pretty good job of cleaning it if you just don’t give up.

Cleaning Formula from Upholstery

Blot up as much of the formula as you can using a cleaning cloth or paper towels, work from the outside edges of the stain in towards the center of the stain to help keep the stain from spreading. Then make the following mix to clean the remaining stain:

• 1 tablespoon dish soap
• 2 cups cold to cool water

Add the dish soap to the water and mix together. With a clean damp cloth, blot at the remaining stain. You may have to do this a time or two but with patience the stain should come out.

If there is a way to unzip the cover, you can either place a towel under the area you’re working on to keep the water out of the padding or carefully remove the cover and work on the stain. Sometimes it’s easier to use the towel as some covers are hard to remove.

Milk Spills In The Car

If the milk is spilled on leather, moisten a cloth with cool water and wipe the seat thoroughly. Get down into the cracks of the upholstered seat and be as diligent as you can at reaching into every crevice. After you have thoroughly wiped the seat, allow the surface to dry and then apply a leather cleaner and protector.

If milk has spilled on the carpet, be sure to blot up as much as you possibly can, use the dish soap and water method for cleaning. If the carpet is removable, take it out and rinse it well with a hose. Let dry completely before returning it to the car.