How to Remove Mattress Stains

We’ve all been there – you strip the bed, ready for fresh sheets, only to notice an ugly stain staring back at you. Whether it’s a coffee spill from a lazy Sunday morning, sweat marks that have built up over time, or even the occasional accident from kids or pets, mattress stains are never a welcome sight.

The good news? Most stains aren’t permanent, and with the right cleaning methods, you can lift them out and restore your mattress to looking (and smelling) fresh again. We’ll walk through the simple, tried-and-tested ways to remove mattress stains, using things you probably already have at home.

Removing yellow stains from a mattress

Noticed your mattress looking a bit yellow in spots? Don’t panic – it’s incredibly common. Sweat and oils from daily life can leave yellow stains that appear worse than they actually are. The good news? It’s easy to make things look new again if you know the appropriate trick.

After liberally covering the mark with bicarbonate of soda, let it sit for approximately 30 minutes. This aids in removing any musty odours and moisture.

After that, lightly spritz the area with a solution of white vinegar and water, and then gently dab with a fresh towel. Add a small drop of mild detergent to your mixture if the patch is being difficult to remove.

After you’re finished, allow the mattress to air dry fully. The yellow stains should disappear, leaving the mattress brighter and cleaner.

Getting a blood stain out of a mattress

The most important thing to remember about getting blood stains out of a mattress is that you need to use cold water. Hot water can set the stain into the fabric of the mattress and make it virtually impossible to remove.

You may find that all you need is cold water on a clean cloth. Carefully dab the stain without rubbing, as this only spreads it further. Adding a little baking powder to the water and applying it to the stain will help with more stubborn spots. After leaving it for around 30 minutes, blot again with clean water and allow to dry.

Alternatively, you can make a solution of 50/50 cold water and distilled vinegar and transfer it into a spray bottle. Blot up any fresh blood with a clean cloth before spraying the stain with the mix. Leave for around 30 minutes, then blot dry with a clean cloth.

To get older bloodstains off a mattress that has sat for a while, you can use a meat tenderiser powder! Simply make a paste with a tablespoon of meat tenderiser mixed with two teaspoons of cold water and brush it onto the stain. When it’s dry, vacuum away any residue.

Cleaning urine stains out of a mattress

Removing a fresh urine stain from your mattress will involve using 50/50 cold water and white vinegar applied from a spray bottle after blotting up excess liquid with a clean cloth. Remember to blot, not rub, as rubbing simply causes the urine to penetrate deeper into the mattress fibres.

Getting a dried urine stain out of a mattress can be achieved by making a simple solution of 8oz of hydrogen peroxide mixed with three tablespoons of baking soda and a couple drops of washing up liquid. You can add essential oil if the urine smell is strong. Spray over the stain and wait for it to dry before vacuuming off any residue.

Cleaning poo stains from mattress

Not exactly the most pleasant job, but life happens — especially if you’ve got little ones or pets around. The trick here is speed: the quicker you deal with it, the easier it’ll be.

Put on the rubber gloves first. Use paper towels to gently remove any solids. Then, dab the poo stain with a combination of warm water and mild detergent, moving from its outer edges inward to prevent it from spreading.

Once it looks lighter, disinfect with white vinegar or an enzyme cleaner, which works wonders at removing such messes.

Lastly, apply bicarbonate of soda to the moist area and let it do its job. After it has dried, hoover it up to give your mattress a brand-new appearance.

Removing vomit stains

Cleaning a vomit-stained mattress requires the same 50/50 solution of water and white vinegar sprayed directly onto the stain. Remember to get rid of any excess sick by carefully scraping it off with a plastic knife before you apply the mix. When the stain has disappeared, finish with a sprinkling of baking soda to neutralise any smell, vacuuming up any residue after about an hour.

Getting rid of food and drink stains from the mattress

Breakfast in bed always sounds lovely… until your tea takes a tumble or that sneaky slice of pizza slides off the plate. Food and drink stains can be annoying, but the good news is that they are rarely a cause for concern.

If there is a spill of coffee, tea, or wine, get a kitchen roll immediately and wipe it up before it soaks in. Then, combine a few drops of dish soap and cold water, dip a cloth in it, and gently rub the stain until it begins to lift.

Apply a thick layer of bicarbonate of soda on greasy stains and leave it on for several hours. Once its job is done, just hoover it up.

Are you still picking up on a faint odour? It should be fixed with a quick spray of water and vinegar. Simply allow the mattress to air dry completely to maintain its cleanliness, freshness, and absence of mildew.

Basic mattress care and maintenance

When you discover a stained mattress, you’ll need to clean the spot as soon as possible. The best way to clean a mattress is to strip the bed, taking off all the linen before you start. Making this part of your regular cleaning routine will help keep mattresses fresh and hygienic all year round.

Then, you can deodorise before you clean the mattress stains. Baking soda doesn’t contain fragrances that irritate allergies, so it’s an ideal natural deodoriser. Sprinkle liberally onto the mattress and gently rub it in before leaving it for at least 15 minutes. This helps it bond with surface moisture and eliminate any smells.

The next step is to vacuum off any residue using the upholstery and crevice attachments to make sure you get into all the edges and seams. Afterwards, you’re ready to clean the stains off your mattress (read on to learn how).

When the stains have been removed and your mattress is clean and dry, you can flip it over and clean underneath. This side probably won’t need stain treatment, but a thorough vacuum will eliminate any dust and pet dander. Airing your mattress for a few hours before you re-make the bed will let the fabric breathe.

After you remove the stains from your mattress, you can protect it by investing in a waterproof mattress cover. You can wash this every month to keep it fresh and ensure that you never have to get stains out of your mattress again!

Book a professional mattress cleaning with Fantastic Services!

If you’d rather let somebody else deal with this chore, we provide a mattress cleaning service that eliminates all bacteria and allergens, giving you a quality night’s sleep. You can schedule your booking any day of the week for a professional clean of any mattress type.

Proven mattress cleaning methods include hot water extraction – spraying hot water into the mattress under high pressure and extracting 95% of the moisture alongside the grime and bacteria. The dry cleaning method uses a chemical-free solvent applied to the mattress that attracts and absorbs the dirt and is then vacuumed off.

Dry UV light cleaning is another option where intensive ultraviolet light is used to kill mites and bacteria.

Your experienced technician will use chemical-free cleaning products that are kind to the environment and safe for children and pets. These specially chosen detergents also contain deodorising agents that get rid of any unpleasant smells.

The fresh look of your mattress will quickly be restored following high-filtration vacuuming and pre-treating of any stains. And at the end of the cleaning service, a special solution for fabric protection will be applied that serves as a barrier against further spillages and staining.

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Have you got any tried and tested home remedies for getting rid of mattress stains? Please share them with us!

Image source: Shutterstock / Oleksii Bilyk