How To Remove Gum From Upholstery

Download Article

If you've discovered sticky gum on your couch or favorite sweater, you may feel equally though you'll never go it off. Fortunately, you can remove gum from article of clothing, fabric (like blankets, sheets, or fabric covers), and leather using just a few items. Try freezing and picking the mucilage off of fabrics before trying domicile remedies. You may exist able to remove gum using lemon juice, hair spray or oil. Always check the intendance characterization on the fabric to make up one's mind what treatments are safe to use.

1
Place the article of clothing in the freezer. If you've gotten gum on your favorite blouse or sweater, advisedly fold the clothing so the gum is facing the outside. Clear a space in your freezer and then you tin can set the folded wearable in it. Leave the habiliment in the freezer until the mucilage hardens. Depending on how thick the gum is, you may need to freeze the clothing for an hour or 2.^[1]
- Avoid roofing the article of clothing with something that the gum may stick to. You tin only put it on a shelf of the freezer.
2

Freeze the gum with ice cubes. If yous can't fit the fabric in the freezer or tin't get it wet, identify an water ice cube straight on the gum. If you shouldn't get the material moisture, place an ice pack or bag filled with ice over the gum. Go out the gum on the ice for ten to 15 minutes or until the gum becomes firm.

Advertisement
iii
Choice off the hardened mucilage. Once the glue has hardened from the freezer or water ice cubes, employ your fingers to pick away as much of the gum as you can. Then you can take a butter knife or spatula to scrape away the little bits of gum that might still be on the vesture.^[2]
- Avoid scraping the cloth with anything that might damage the fibers.
iv

Remove balance with dry-cleaning solvent or mineral spirits. Eject a dry out-cleaning solvent onto a sponge and blot the area of fabric where the glue was. Keep blotting with the sponge until the surface area isn't viscous anymore. If yous don't take dry out-cleaning solvent, y'all tin use a sponge dipped in mineral spirits.^[3]
5
Clean the fabric according to the intendance instructions. Read the care label inside the clothing or cloth and so you know how to clean it correctly. You can normally spot make clean the expanse if there'southward residue or a stain left from the gum. Absorb the stain with a clean cloth and rub a little soapy h2o into it with a sponge. Use another wet sponge to wipe the soap out of the stain. Wash the textile as usual, but check it before you dry it. If there'south still a stain, treat the stain once again.^[four]
- If you dry the textile while there's yet a stain, yous may prepare the stain. This will go far harder to remove.
Advertising

1
Soak the gum in lemon juice or hot vinegar. Oestrus a bowl of vinegar until it'south hot or fill the bowl with fresh lemon juice. Place the role of the textile with the glue in the hot vinegar or lemon juice. Get out the mucilage to soak. Depending on how hard the gum is, you'll need to soak it for a few hours or up to overnight. You should exist able to easily scrape or brush the mucilage off. Wash the fabric equally before long as you've removed the mucilage.^[5]
- Always examination a small area of fabric before y'all soak the mucilage. This will let you know if the textile will be damaged by the hot vinegar or lemon juice.
2
Harden the mucilage with hairspray. If you can't freeze the glue off with a freezer or water ice cube, spray it with hair spray. This should harden the gum so y'all tin simply pop it off. Y'all can also accept a blunt tool and gently pry off the gum.^[6]
- Ensure that the hairspray won't damage the textile past testing a pocket-size area of the cloth before you brainstorm.
3
Use oil to soften the gum. Consider spreading a cooking oil, peanut butter, or mayonnaise over the glue. You'll demand to massage the oil or mayo into the gum a little. This will make it easier to scrape off. Immediately launder the fabric to foreclose the oil from staining the cloth.
- Keep in mind that you may have trouble removing oil stains from delicate fabrics. Only utilise oil if yous know y'all can launder information technology out of the fabric.
Ad

1

Pull off the bulk of the gum. As soon as you detect the gum on the leather, utilise your fingers to gently pull as much of the gum off as you can. Ensure that you don't spread the mucilage over the leather as you're pulling.^[7]
two
Employ record to elevator off the gum. Take a piece of articulate tape and lay it over the glue. Press on the gum and so it sticks to the tape. Pull the tape off and some of the gum should come off with information technology. Keep laying fresh pieces of tape and lifting the gum until all of the gum is removed.^[8]
- Yous may go through a whole scroll of tape depending on how strong the tape is.
iii
Wash the area with a cleaning product or soapy water. The leather might be dirty once you've removed the gum. To clean the leather, yous can apply a commercial leather cleaning production or use a mild dish soap and warm water. Just moisture a sponge in soapy water and gently rub it over the leather. Avert pulling or scrubbing on the leather.^[9]
- You may exist able to wash away any tiny bits of mucilage that are still stuck to the leather.
4
Remove gummy residue with mineral spirits. Dip a clean cloth into a little dish of mineral spirits. Slowly wipe the cloth over the sticky area on the leather. One time yous've removed the sticky residue, use a clean, dry out fabric to wipe over the surface area. This should thoroughly make clean the leather and remove the last of the gum.^[10]
- Mineral spirits are also chosen white spirit and mineral turpentine. Utilise the mineral spirits in a well ventilated area and avoid touching the soaked cloth with your bare hands since mineral spirits can irritate your skin.
- Don't throw away the cloth that you dipped in mineral spirits. Instead, place it in a container with water and take information technology to a local hazardous waste facility.
five

Status the leather. Use the manufacturer's instructions for protecting the leather or use a commercial leather conditioner. This will moisturize the leather since y'all've probably stripped away some of the protective oils in the fabric.^[11]

Advert

Add New Question

Question

How exercise you remove chewing mucilage from dress at home?

Michelle Driscoll is the Owner of Mulberry Maids based in northern Colorado. Driscoll received her Masters in Public Wellness from the Colorado School of Public Health in 2022.

Founder, Mulberry Maids

Skilful Answer

Support wikiHow by unlocking this expert answer.

Yous can showtime try to freeze the gum for virtually x-fifteen minutes earlier trying to pry it off with a knife and a spatula. Small items can easily fit in the freezer, but large items will require ice cubes. You tin besides attempt to soak the item in a hot vinegar and lemon juice bath. In add-on, you lot can try items such as peanut butter, or mineral spirits.
Question

How do you get gum out of upholstery?

Michelle Driscoll is the Owner of Mulberry Maids based in northern Colorado. Driscoll received her Masters in Public Health from the Colorado School of Public Health in 2022.

Founder, Mulberry Maids

Expert Answer

Back up wikiHow by unlocking this skilful answer.

Since upholstery is rather large and bulky, you should first try using ice cubes to freeze the gum. If you can lay the detail on the flooring and rest a purse of ice cubes on information technology, that would exist easiest. If not, y'all can effort to hold a handbag of ice cubes with a towel in your hand until the gum has hardened. Then, try to pry the gum off with a butter knife and spatula. If that does not piece of work, yous can try to harden the gum with hairspray. Exist sure to check that the hairspray will non damage your item.
Question

What should I practise if my sheets are white?

Michelle Driscoll is the Owner of Mulberry Maids based in northern Colorado. Driscoll received her Masters in Public Health from the Colorado Schoolhouse of Public Health in 2022.

Founder, Mulberry Maids

Expert Reply

Support wikiHow by unlocking this skillful respond.

Regardless of color, you should be able to freeze the gum on your sheets. You can effort to put the entire sail in the freezer by folding it up with the gum stain on pinnacle. Subsequently the glue has hardened, you lot can pick off or scrape the gum away. If that does non work, it is recommended to try some of the other options recommended in the article.
Question

How do I remove mucilage from a mesh top?

Michelle Driscoll is the Owner of Mulberry Maids based in northern Colorado. Driscoll received her Masters in Public Wellness from the Colorado Schoolhouse of Public Health in 2022.

Founder, Mulberry Maids

Expert Reply

Support wikiHow by unlocking this expert reply.

Mesh may be a bit trickier, equally the gum virtually likely worked its mode into the tiny holes. You tin can still attempt to above options, starting with freezing the gum. If it does not all come off later y'all freeze it, yous tin effort to soak it in lemon juice or use the record method as mentioned in the above commodity. Expert luck!
Question

How exercise I become gum off a mattress?

Generally, it should come up off pretty hands once it dries. If non, try place an ice cube over the gum to harden information technology. The gum should pop off one time information technology'due south firm.
Question

I got it on a pillow. Will these methods help?

It depends on the material of your pillow. I recommend rubbing alcohol, every bit that worked for me, only if that doesn't do information technology, try 1 of the other methods.
Question

How do I remove gum when information technology has spread similar butter onto vinyl?

Apply an ice cube so the gum becomes more than solid, then gently pry it away from the vinyl.
Question

How tin can I remove ironed in gum from a shirt pocket?

Fold and place the whole shirt in the freezer for a few hours. This should harden the mucilage and so you tin scrape information technology off.
Question

Volition this work on shoe fabric?

It should work, depending on the textile of the shoe.
Question

How practice I become mucilage off a blanket?

The suggestions above are all worth trying. Start with the freezing or hairspray method.

See more answers

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Video

Avoid heating the glue using a pilus dryer. This volition work the gum into the fibers of the cloth which will actually arrive harder to remove.
Avoid using peanut butter on leather because it can leave oily remainder that amercement the fabric. If y'all want to use peanut butter on fabrics, check the fabric for stains afterwards you've removed the gum.

Things You'll Need

Dry out-cleaning solvent
Sponge
Freezer
Butter pocketknife or spatula
Clear tape
Clean cloths
Modest dish
Mineral spirits
Leather conditioner
Mild dish lather

About This Article

Article Summary X

To remove glue from fabrics, fold the fabric then the gum is on the outside and place the fabric in your freezer for 1-two hours until the gum hardens. If you can't fit the textile in the freezer, put an ice cube or ice pack direct on the gum for 10-fifteen minutes. Next, use your fingers to pick off as much hardened gum equally yous can, then use a butter knife or spatula to scrape away the remaining bits. Remove whatever residual with mineral spirits before cleaning the fabric according to the normal care instructions. To larn more, like how to get gum out of leather fabrics, continue reading the article!

Did this summary help you?

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 445,541 times.