How to Remove Oil Stains from a Sofa- 4 Effective Steps

As long as you clean after it immediately, oil stain on your sofa can be easier to clean. Just like any other form of dirt, an oil stain on your couch is likely to ruin its aesthetic if not eliminated immediately.

In this article, we will learn 3 simple and effective ways that you can apply to eliminate oil stains on your couch. Plus, the ingredients you need are mostly available with you at home or can be bought at an affordable price at a store near you.

To remove an oil stain from your sofa, first, begin by soaking up as much oil with kitchen towels. Make sure you dab so that you don’t put too much pressure that will make the oil penetrate into the cushioning. Thereafter, sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda on the area with the stain and let it sit for about 30 minutes (the longer the baking soda sits, the more effective it will work). Use a vacuum cleaner to vacuum up the excess powder, then mix a solution of warm water and dish soap and use a microfiber cloth to wipe out the oil stain.

Here are the steps to removing mild oil stain on your sofa

• Begin by soaking up as much oil using kitchen towels. Be sure to replace the towels to prevent spreading it to other clean areas of the couch.
• Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda over the stain and let it sit for about 3ominutes. You can even sprinkle it and let it sit overnight as the longer the baking soda sits the more effective it will be
• Use a vacuum cleaner to vacuum up all the excess baking soda
• Mix a gallon of water and mild dish soap in a bucket.
• Dip a microfiber cloth in the water solution then rub it over the oil stain gently and in a circular motion to prevent soaking and spreading to other clean areas
• Let the couch air dry before using it again.

Using a simple solution of water and dish soap to remove oil stain from a sofa is the safest as it is unlikely to cause any discoloration to your sofas fabric. plus, these are ingredients that we usually have at home hence will help us save on a lot of time.

How to Remove Old Oil Stains from a Sofa

Eliminating old oil stain from your sofa may not be as simple as it is with a fresh oil stain. It might take a bit longer and may require at least 3 attempts to get rid of the stain completely.

But before anything, you might want to make sure that the cleaner you are going to use is friendly to your sofas fabric. make sure you test the cleaner in a small area of the couch before going ahead to use it.

If your sofas fabric is delicate like velvet and you are afraid it might get ruined, I would advise seeking professional cleaning services. Plus, sensitive fabric colors like white also need maximum care and you would not want to risk ruining its aesthetic.

Here is a detailed, simple, and effective step to take when you want to remove old oil stains from your sofa:

• You will need a blunt knife or a credit card to scrap off dried oil stain from sofas fiber. Make sure you do this gently to prevent ruining your fabrics aesthetic.
• Confirm that all the dried oil has lift
• Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda over the area. If possible, do this overnight for the baking soda to break down the oil stain and make it easier to clean the next day.
• Use a vacuum to eliminate excess baking soda
• If your fabric is safe water based cleaners, mix water and dish soap and use a microfiber cloth to clean the area.
• If your sofas fabric is safe for solvent cleaners, use rubbing alcohol to remove the oil stain
• Make sure to use clean microfiber cloth to rinse the cleaner you have used
• Let the sofa air dry before subjecting it to use

How to Remove Oil Stains from a Leather Sofa

It is much easier to remove oil from a leather sofa than to remove oil from a microfiber sofa. Generally, it is easier to care for a leather sofa regardless of its color as you would mostly be required to wipe out dust with a damp cloth.

If you happen to spill oil on your leather sofa, make sure you soak as much of it as you can with paper towels, sprinkle some baby powder or cornstarch over it, vacuum the excess powder, then dip a microfiber cloth in a solution of warm water and dish soap and gently and in a circular motion wipe the excess oil. 

However, if the oil on our leather couch has overstayed, you might have to do a lot more than just soak up the excess oil. Follow these instructions to get rid of old oil stains from your leather couch.

• Use a blunt knife or even a credit card to scrap out the sticky oil stain. You will need to be very careful so as not to scratch the fabric
• Confirm that all the sticky oil has lifted
• Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda, baby powder, or cornstarch over the area and let it sit for a while
• Use a vacuum to suck up the excess powder
• Take a cotton ball and dub it in some rubbing alcohol then gently massage it over the area with oil stain.
• Repeat the process with afresh cotton ball dubbed in rubbing alcohol until all the oil stain lifts
• Rinse a microfiber cloth in clean water and wipe the area with it to remove excess rubbing alcohol
• Apply some leather conditioner to restore the leather look and to prevent it from cracking and fading
• Let the leather couch air dry before subjecting it to use.

Conclusion

Removing stains from a couch is very easy. It is even much easier if you get to handle the mess immediately after it happens. Although it’s fast and straightforward to clean a stain on a leather couch, cleaning microfiber couches has been simplified in this article, be sure to read more on it if you are struggling with cleaning your microfiber couch.