Printer ink stains on carpet

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ron Martell
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Ron Martell

I moved an HP DeskJet printer from one room to another in our house
today and it appears that the black ink cartridge somehow leaked ink,
resulting in several ink stains on the carpet.

Does anyone have information as to how best to remove this type of ink
stain from a carpet?

Thanks.

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

In memory of a dear friend Alex Nichol MVP
http://aumha.org/alex.htm
 
A lot depends upon the type of material the carpet is made of. I've tested
doing ink removal on some scrap carpeting and had good results. I started
with plain water and used a wet/dry vac to extract the water and ink but
that didn't remove it completely. I then used non sudsy ammonia straight
from the bottle - no dilution - and rubbed the area with a scrap cloth and
used clean rags to blot up the excess. I got 100% removal with this method
and no color loss in the carpet. I also tried it on another ink spot but
without the water and only using ammonia. That also worked. Once the stain
was out, I used plain water to rinse the area. Sam's Club sells a product
called ProForce in the janitorial supplies area. The bottle doesn't say
anything about using it for carpet cleaning, but it's strong stuff and
doesn't seem to harm my carpets. I use it on our carpets along with an old
Hoover steam vac machine. I spray a diluted mixture of it on my carpets with
a small tank sprayer and then use the steam vac to both scrub it in and
extract the cleaning solution. I haven't tried it on ink, but it cleans
everything else I've tried it on.
 
It depends on the type and color of the carpet, and...

It depends on if the ink is pigment or dye. HP black in could be
either, depending on the cartridge number and model.

With a pigment ink, I would suggest a clean rag dampened with just cool
water, and blot up as much ink as possible, rinsing out the rag often.

Once all the ink that will come up has been removed, using again a clean
rag, use a small amount of household dish liquid detergent and rub
gently to lift more pigment, and again, blot and clean and rinse rag
until the stain lifts.

Dye ink is more problematic since it is made up of more than one color,
and it tends to enter the fibre of the carpet more.

I would try the same basic things as for the pigment ink. Once most of
it was up, you may be able to use a non chlorine fabric bleach, but test
an area where it is not visible (like in a closet) to make sure the
bleach doesn't harm the colorant used in the carpet.

Do not allow the stain to sit too long, do not use heat or hot water.,
as it will tend to set the stain.

Art
 
Paper towels and water.
Soak the stain with water, use paper towels
just to blot, no rubbing, repeat the process
and the stain will eventually go.
 
Measkite said: Something stupid

Actually from what he described... it sounds like a printer with a full
diaper.
 
Once most of it was up, you may be able to use a non chlorine fabric bleach, but test
an area where it is not visible (like in a closet) to make sure the
bleach doesn't harm the colorant used in the carpet.
Click to expand...

Probably your best bet: where "non-chlorine fabric bleach = oxi-x?x?".

Stuff like Oxi-Clean or whatever, tends to provide the best bleaching
power, without destroying the underlying medium. Seems to work well on
synthetic carpets such as nylon carpets, which utilize heavy-duty dyes
designed to invade/adhere to plastics.

Where normal Javex (sodium hypochorite) will bleach the underlying
carpet as well, oxi-clean type of products seem to be able to remove
stains without destroying the carpet in the process.
 
OH BOY
WHOA GIRL
REFILLING IS A MESS

Stan said:
Probably your best bet: where "non-chlorine fabric bleach = oxi-x?x?".

Stuff like Oxi-Clean or whatever, tends to provide the best bleaching
power, without destroying the underlying medium. Seems to work well on
synthetic carpets such as nylon carpets, which utilize heavy-duty dyes
designed to invade/adhere to plastics.

Where normal Javex (sodium hypochorite) will bleach the underlying
carpet as well, oxi-clean type of products seem to be able to remove
stains without destroying the carpet in the process.
Click to expand...
 
I moved an HP DeskJet printer from one room to another in our house
today and it appears that the black ink cartridge somehow leaked ink,
resulting in several ink stains on the carpet.

Does anyone have information as to how best to remove this type of ink
stain from a carpet?

Thanks.

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
Click to expand...
Oxyclean designed for carpets is probably your best bet.
 
I have used OXYCLEAN diluted with water, care should be taken with a small
patch first. I found it reoved all the ink stain.
 
Shooter said:
I have used OXYCLEAN diluted with water, care should be taken with a small
patch first. I found it reoved all the ink stain.
Click to expand...
IF YOU BOUGHT CANON OEM PREFILLED INK CARTS THEN YOU WOULD NOT NEED TO
CLEAN YOUR CARPETS. LIKE I SAID MANY TIMES REFILLING IS A REAL MESS.
 
Ron Martell said:
I moved an HP DeskJet printer from one room to another in our house
today and it appears that the black ink cartridge somehow leaked ink,
resulting in several ink stains on the carpet.

Does anyone have information as to how best to remove this type of ink
stain from a carpet?
Click to expand...

I've used bathroom mold killer before. It's a mild bleach though so try a
hidden spot first.
 
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