Whether you had a cut or scab, your child jumped on the bed with a bloody nose, or Aunt Flo showed up when you weren’t expecting her, knowing how to remove blood stains from your mattress is a useful trick to have.
Here, we’ll go over some quick techniques for getting blood stains out of a mattress as well as some pointers on how to keep your mattress spotless to prevent future accidents.
Table of Contents
How to Get Fresh Blood Out of a Mattress
If you can get to the stain right away, we suggest starting with a gentle approach. As blood dissolves in cold water, you may want to start with this. Make sure not to soak or oversaturate the mattress while doing this; simply dab the blood stain with a cloth dipped in cold water until the stain is completely gone.
If the stain is stubborn, use baking soda. Here’s how to use baking soda to remove blood stains from a mattress:
1. As we mentioned above, dab the stain with cold water to begin. The key is to try to remove as much moisture as you can from the stain before you start any cleaning.
2. The stain should then be liberally sprinkled with baking soda, and you should let it sit for at least 30 minutes. Baking soda works wonders for naturally removing moisture.
3. Finally, wipe off the baking soda by dabbing your (cold) wet cloth over the surface once more.
4. Follow these instructions again and again until the stain is gone.
How to Get Dried Blood Out of a Mattress
Even though it might be more challenging, dried blood can still be removed from mattresses. For particularly tough blood stains, we suggest combining table salt and hydrogen peroxide.
Although it is technically possible to use hydrogen peroxide at full strength, pouring it directly onto the mattress will simply cause the memory foam layers to soak up the liquid and take a very long time to dry. Instead, combine two recipes to create a paste that will remove stains. Here’s how:
1. A paste should be created by combining corn starch, hydrogen peroxide, and about a tablespoon of salt. The mixture can be adjusted as necessary, but it should roughly resemble toothpaste in consistency.
2. Before putting the paste on the bloodstain, dampen it with cold water.
3. The paste should be applied evenly to the stain using a spoon, spatula, or toothbrush with soft bristles.
4. Spend about 30 minutes letting it sit. The hydrogen peroxide will start to bubble after the paste dries.
5. When the hydrogen peroxide bubbles stop, dab the area once more with a clean, damp cloth to remove both the stain and the solution.
6. The mattress should be given time to air dry completely before any new bedding is added.
How to Get Period Blood Out of a Mattress
Having a mattress stain from your period is not embarrassing; it is one of the most common stains. The good news is that cleaning it is easy; just make sure you do it quickly before it has a chance to dry. To get rid of an old stain, mix about ½ cup cornstarch with ½ cup hydrogen peroxide and about a tablespoon of salt. Once the stain has been dampened with cold water, apply the paste. Give it about 30 minutes to sit once it starts to bubble. Dab the area once more with a clean, damp cloth after the hydrogen peroxide bubbles have subsided to remove the stain and the solution.
Other Options to Get Blood Stains Out of Your Mattress
Cold Water
In cold water, fresh enough blood should dissolve. Run a white rag or paper towel under cold water (colored objects could stain your mattress cover). Begin dabbing the blood stain after that; do not rub as this could spread the stain deeper into the bed.
Stay away from overwetting the mattress; you want it to dry out quickly to prevent the growth of mold or mildew. Make sure the water is ice cold as well. Hot water will somewhat “cook” the blood and can make the stain set in.
Baking Soda
One part baking soda and two parts cold water can be applied to the mattress with a white paper towel or rag. Rinse it with a clean cloth or towel after about 30 minutes has passed. Once more, dab, don’t rub!) the area dries with a clean rag and then let it air dry some more with a fan or open windows.
Salt, Cornstarch, and Hydrogen Peroxide
Salt, hydrogen peroxide, and cornstarch are mixed in a mixture of ½, ¼, and ½ cups. Salt and hydrogen peroxide works wonders for removing protein stains, including blood stains.
Bring all the ingredients together to form a paste-like mixture. Apply the mixture evenly over the entire stained area, and then wait for it to dry completely. Once it has completely dried, just scrape it up with a spatula or knife and vacuum the area. Repeat this cleaning process a few times for the best results.
Meat Tenderizer
If you’ve tried all of these suggestions and nothing is working, remove the meat tenderizer from your pantry. Meat tenderizer works by breaking down the proteins in your meat to “tenderize” it, but it also can work on the proteins in a blood stain. Two teaspoons of cold water and one tablespoon of meat tenderizing powder can be combined to make a paste to use. Allow the paste to dry for about an hour after covering the entire blood stain with it. When the paste has dried, scrape it off with a cloth dampened with cold water before blotting the area dry with an additional dry cloth.
If your mattress is made of latex or another unusual material, like a Purple bed, make sure to treat a small test spot first before tackling a bigger stain. Although it should generally be fine, meat tenderizer does break down proteins; therefore, you want to be careful that it doesn’t break down and ruin your best mattress.
Protecting Your Mattress from Blood and Other Stains
You can take some steps to keep your mattress secure and spotless, but stains won’t always show up on your mattress.
One of your top priorities should be investing in a high-quality mattress protector. A mattress protector provides an additional line of defense against spills, stains, and mishaps.
Another choice is a mattress topper, which is an additional layer that sits on top of your mattress. Despite the fact that they are not waterproof or as protective as mattress protectors, conventional mattress toppers can be used in conjunction with them.
The Conclusion: Full Dry
Blood contains a lot of proteins, making it difficult to remove blood stains. You must first remove as much of the excess blood as you can before carefully cleaning the area if you want to get blood stains out of a mattress. Another essential step in the process is letting the mattress fully dry because a wet mattress can quickly grow mold.