Spilled chocolate on your couch? This quick guide walks you through foolproof steps to remove chocolate stains from upholstery without damaging the fabric. Whether it’s fresh or dried, dark or milk, you’ll learn how to lift the mess and save your sofa with simple household items.
Act fast! Remove any excess chocolate from the affected area using a spoon or a blunt option. Scrub the stain with a dish soap solution, starting from the edge of the stain and working into the middle.
Rinse the dish soap solution off by wiping it clean with a damp cloth. Once the stained area has air dried, apply a dry cleaning solvent onto the stain.
Using a clean cloth, blot the chocolate stain until it has been removed. Repeat the steps again if the are still some remnants left.
There are also some other cleaning products that can be used. Read on to find out more on how you can get rid of those sticky chocolate stains!
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Why Does Chocolate Stain?
Chocolate is made up of various components that can get challenging to remove from fabrics. It is made from proteins in milk, fat from butter and tannins found in cocoa.
Tannin is a natural substance that gives cocoa its rich dark brown color. It is a type of dark pigment, and can therefore also be used as a natural dye. Due to this reason, tannin transfers onto the fabric quickly, subsequently making chocolate stains difficult to remove.
Ever wondered why it is so challenging to remove red wine, tea and coffee stains from your clothes and furniture? It may be interesting to note, tannin is the same natural substance which is found in red wine, tea and coffee!
Furthermore, animal derived products, such as milk, contain proteins which also make the stains difficult to remove from fabric. Whilst fat from butter leaves greasy residue once stained.
Combined, all these ingredients are tough to remove from clothes and upholstered furniture.
Are Chocolate Stains Permanent?
As with anything containing pigments, heat should never be applied as the color from the stain will set into the fabric. The heat can even cause the stain to become permanently embedded into your couch.
Therefore, this means do not use warm or hot water whilst cleaning the chocolate stains on your upholstered couch. It is also advised that you do not use direct heat, such as a hairdryer until you are certain the stain has been removed.
As soon as you spot the stain, start working to remove it as quickly as you can. This is so that you can prevent it from setting further into the fabric and hardening.
So don’t forget, the longer you leave the stain, the harder it will become to remove it and can even become permanent.
Easy Steps To Remove Chocolate Stains From Your Upholstery
What you will need
- Dish Soap
- Blunt Tools
- Clean Cloths
- Dry Cleaning Solvent / Stain Remover
1) Remove excess chocolate residue
Using a blunt tool such as spatula, top of a spoon or a butter knife lift up and remove whatever chocolate residue might still be on your couch. If the chocolate has dried then try to scrape off what you can gently.
Be careful not to push the stain further into your couch or to spread it further out from the stained area. It is important to remove as much of the chocolate as you can at this stage, so that when you apply your cleaning agent onto your couch, it can reach the stain quickly.
2) Apply your cleaning agent and work the stain
At this stage make a dish soap solution using one tablespoon dish soap and mixing it with two cups cold water. It is imperative to use cool water to make this solution because if you use warm or hot water then it can set the dark pigment into your couch causing the stain to become permanent.
Dip a clean cloth into the solution and scrub the stain until it starts to lift. Work from the outer edge of the stain and slowly work towards the middle.
The more you scrub, the more you should see the stain becoming lighter, as it is being lifted from the fabric.
3) Remove your cleaning agent and let the effected area air dry
Using a clean damp cloth, soaked in cold water, wipe clean the dish soap solution from your upholstery. After removing the dish soap solution, take a dry paper towel or a towel cloth and press down on the stained area to absorb any excess dampness out of your couch.
Try to remove as much moisture from your coach as your can before leaving it to air dry.
4) Apply a stain removing solvent on to the stain and scrub
Finally, apply a stain remover spray or a dry cleaning solvent, directly on to the stained area. Using a clean cloth blot the stain until you can no longer see the chocolate stain.
Other Cleaning Products You Can Use
Your chocolate stain might be a stubborn one therefore after completing the steps above, you may find the stain has not completed been lifted from your couch. In such a case, continue reading for some other products you can use to remove the stain.
It is advisable to use natural products such as baking soda, vinegar and lemon juice before you turn to the more harsher products, such has hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol and oxygen bleach.
Vinegar, Baking Soda And Dish Detergent
After removing any excess chocolate with a blunt tool, apply some vinegar on to your couch. Useful to note, vinegar is a brilliant cleaning agent with its acidic qualities making it a popular household item for removing stains.
You can either apply vinegar directly on to the stain or choose to dilute it first. To create a solution, mix one part vinegar and two parts cold water.
Once you are ready, you can either pour the vinegar into a spray bottle and spray it onto the affected area or dampen a cloth with it to blot out the stain. Alternatively, use a soft bristled brush instead of a cloth to scrub the vinegar into the stain.
Let the vinegar sit for up to 15 minutes. At this point you can sprinkle some baking soda on to the effected area.
Gently rub the baking soda with your fingertips in a circular motion to lift the stain from the fabric. Be prepared fro it to fizz up after reacting with the vinegar.
Alternatively, you can make a baking soda paste, mixing two parts baking soda with one part cold water. Apply the paste onto the stained area,
Rub it in, either using your fingertips or a clean cloth. Let the baking soda sit for up to 15 minutes together with the vinegar.
Taking a clean cloth, dampen it with cold water in order to wash off the baking soda and vinegar from your couch. Rub the cloth on the stain to scrub and lift off the stain.
After you have removed the vinegar and the baking soda from the couch, apply the dish soap solution and complete the cleaning process using the steps stated above.
Lemon juice has a natural whitening action, which is why it is often used to remove tough stains. The whitening action is further enhanced, if you leave your fabric exposed to sunlight to air dry, after scrubbing it with lemon juice.
Lemon also cuts through grease. Mix a solution with one part lemon juice and two parts cold water. Alternatively, you can make a paste with one part baking soda and two parts lemon juice.
Apply the paste or solution on to the stain and let the ingredients do its job for up to 15 minutes. Wash off with a damp cloth and let the effected stained area air dry.
If the stain is an old stain or a particularly stubborn one, then you may need to use a grease dissolving solvent in order for it to be tougher on the stain. Use this instead of a dish soap solution, following the same instructions as stated above.
Using a soft bristled brush scrub the detergent into the stain so the fabric can work through the fibers of the upholstery. Let the detergent sit on the stain for up to 15 minutes.
At this point you can also add the vinegar solution on top of the detergent, as well as sprinkling some baking soda into the stain. Rub in using either your fingers, a soft bristled brush or a cloth.
Wipe clean with a damp cold cloth, until all the products are removed. Let the stained area air dry.
Hydrogen Peroxide and Dish Soap
Hydrogen peroxide works wonders as a cleaning agent for stubborn stains. Mix one part dish soap with two parts of hydrogen peroxide.
Apply this solution directly onto your couch after scrapping off any excessive chocolate. You can apply the solution using a cloth or spray bottle and using a soft bristle brush, scrub it into the fibers of your couch.
This solution will help to cut through the oil and grease from the chocolate, as well as the lighten the brown pigment. Leave the solution on for ten minutes.
Since it is acidic, hydrogen peroxide may bleach your upholstery. It might be useful to test out a small spot on your couch first, before applying it onto a wider stain.
Once ready, wipe the solution off the stain using a damp cloth as indicated above.
Oxygen bleach is a non chlorine based bleach which is gentle and color safe. The enzymes in this bleach helps to remove tough stains more easily.
Mix a solution with two tablespoons oxygen bleach powder and one cup of cold water. Keep mixing until the powder has dissolved.
Using a spray bottle or a cloth submerged in solution, apply onto the stain. You can also use a soft bristled brush to scrub the solution further into the fibers of the couch.
You can also spray a stain remover on to the chocolate stain to boost the cleaning power, scrubbing it into the stain. Leave the solution on the stain for as long as you can, but for a minimum of an hour at least.
Once you are ready, using a damp cloth, wipe the stain to remove the oxygen bleach solution. Leave the effected area to air dry.
Remember to read the manufactures instructions for all cleaning products before you use it on your upholstered coach. For example, oxygen bleach wouldn’t be suitable to use on a coach which is made using wool or silk blends, or made from leather.
If the chocolate stain has hardened or has been left for too long on your couch, you can try using rubbing alcohol to remove it. Alcohol is a degreasing cleaning agent, which means it can effectively cut through stains containing oil/grease.
You may wish to try an inconspicuous area on the couch first to make sure it doesn’t discolor the fabric. If you are worried about using undiluted alcohol, then you can mix a solution with one part alcohol and two parts cold water.
Apply the rubbing alcohol on top of the stain using a cloth or a spray. Make sure the stain is submerged and dampened with the alcohol.
Leave the alcohol on the stain for up to five minutes then start scrubbing the stain. For this stage you can use an old toothbrush, a soft bristled brush or a cloth.
As with oxygen bleach, do not use alcohol on delicate fabrics which are not suitable such as wool, silk and rayon.
Finally
As you read from the article, chocolate stains are not impossible to remove. Even the stains that have been embedded into your upholstery over time, can come out using the various techniques mentioned above.
It is important to remember to try the more harsher products on a small area on your couch before using it on a wider area. Follow the manufactures instructions as much as you can, to avoid permanent damage to your furniture.
Furthermore, remember not to apply direct heat or hot water when working on the stain, as it can further set the dark pigmentation from the chocolate. Finally, when using acidic cleaning products its always safer to dilute it first instead of applying directly on to the fabric.
