Holiday Carpet Catastrophe: Thanksgiving Gravy

Throughout the holiday season, we’ll be running a series of posts on this blog about various holiday messes that could put a kink in your festivities.

This week, we’re looking at a Thanksgiving favorite: gravy. Gravy goes well with lots of stuff on the Thanksgiving menu such as turkey, mashed potatoes and freshly baked dinner rolls. Gravy doesn’t have such a happy relationship with your carpet, however.

Most gravy spills happen when someone’s walking over to the table with the gravy bowl.

Scenario One: Someone carrying the gravy bowl trips over the dog and gravy sloshes onto the carpet.

Scenario Two: Tony Romo throws another interception on the television screen and your uncle Fred (you know the one we’re talking about) flings his hands into the air while carrying the bowl.

Either way, you’ve got a mess to clean up quickly before it stains the carpet.

  1. The first step is to scrape as much of the excess gravy as you can off the carpet. The less you have on the carpet to begin with, the less you’ll have to deep clean.
  2. Next, apply a stain remover and an absorbent, such as cornmeal or baking soda. Allow some time for the gravy to absorb, then vacuum.
  3. If you still have a bad stain, find a white cloth and blot the stain with a dry-cleaning solvent. Blot until the solvent is absorbed and repeat until the stain is no longer absorbed onto the cloth.
  4. If you’re still seeing a faint brown stain, mix one tablespoon of liquid hand dishwashing detergent and a tablespoon of white vinegar with two cups of water. Sponge the stain with this mixture then blot until the liquid is absorbed.

Unfortunately, some stains and messes won’t come out of carpet no matter how hard you try. That’s where we come in.

After your extended family has left, give Steamer’s Carpet Care a call. At your appointment, we’ll treat any stains you may be worried about with a powerful cleaning solution that will keep your carpets clean and bright for years to come.