How To Get Vomit Smell Out Of Carpet, Couch, Mattress & Clothes

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Vomit smell is probably one of the most dreadful odors that anyone can think of. Whether we had too much at dinner because it was delicious, or it’s a food poison because we can’t resist fast food; vomiting is not uncommon in many similar cases.

It’s alright to puke in the toilet or even in the sink. But vomit on the carpet, on your lovely couch in the living room, mattress, or on your clothes can be disgusting. And even after you clean and wash them, they are likely to leave an odor that might make you want to puke again.

So how to get rid of it and remove the vomit smell once and for all? We are here with the solution. In this article, we’re going to share the methods and techniques to get the vomit smell out of carpet, couch, and clothes. Once you know the ways, there will be nothing left to stop you from removing the vomit smell from anything.

Contents

How to Get Vomit Smell Out of Carpet

The vomit smell on the carpet can be generated mostly from accidental vomiting. Your friend (or maybe it was you!) may have had too much to drink and it was spinning too much to find the bathroom door.

Either way, you have to get rid of that vomit on your carpet or rug and remove the smell afterward. There are several techniques to do that and we’re going to lay out the most effective methods one by one.

Method 1: Use a Baking Soda Paste

Using a baking soda paste is one of the most popular methods to remove the vomit smell from the carpet. Let’s make a list of the things you’re going to need.

  • Baking soda
  • Water
  • Scrub brush
  • Rubber gloves
  • Paper towels
  • A blunt-edged knife
  • Vacuum cleaner

If it is a fresh vomiting accident, the first thing to do is to wipe off the vomit as much as possible. You can use paper towels, a piece of cloth, or similar things to scrub off the excess puke. Wear rubber gloves while you clean vomit off the carpet and throw the soiled towels inside a plastic bin bag.

After you’ve taken off excess vomit, you have to apply the baking soda paste. Take ¾ of baking soda and ¼ of water, and mix them together to create the paste. It should turn out to be a toothpaste-like, slimy kind of substance. Make the paste as much as possible and make sure that it will cover all of the vomit areas.

After that, brush that perfect paste you’ve just made over the vomit areas. You can use a regular scrub brush, or even a toothbrush to get all the zones correctly and smooth out the corners. You don’t have to put a thick layer of the baking soda paste and try to soak the carpet with it; just apply a thin layer and flatten the entire puke area of the carpet.

Remember to cover the surface, as well as the carpets inside to take off all the smell because a tiny bit of vomit can still stink very much.

Give the layer of baking soda paste to work for approximately 24 hours. Once it has done its work and got all hardened on the carpet, take a blunt-edged knife or a spoon. Gently scrape away the dried baking soda paste from the carpet.

You have to be careful at this part because taking off dried paste can damage the carpet’s fiber if not treated correctly. Once you have scratched away the substance as much as possible (you should be able to take off most of it), use a vacuum cleaner to clean the rest. It should successfully remove the vomit smell from the carpet.

Method 2: Remove Vomit Smell from Carpet Using Vinegar

Vinegar can also be an effective cleaning solution to get the vomit smell out of the carpet easily. You’ll need more or less the same materials from method 1, except replace the baking soda with vinegar.

Mix vinegar with warm water to create a common DIY cleaning agent. You should use one part of vinegar and two parts of water to create the mixture. Once you’re done making it, use a brush to gently scrub the vomit-affected area with the substance.

As before, cover the whole puke territory with your solution to make sure the smell doesn’t get a chance to remain. Scrub a sufficient amount of the vinegar solution on the carpet and leave the place for a few hours.

After the vinegar mixture has done its work and nearly dried, vacuum the area to clean off and dry the carpet. If any fragment of the vinegar still remains, use a dry towel or a piece of cloth to soak it up. Apply pressure to take it all in the towel and leave the carpet dry. While you may still feel it for some time, the smell will definitely get off eventually.

How to Get Vomit Smell Out of Couch

We know. Your couch is one of the things in your home that you love, use, and spend the most time. Surely you don’t want this thing to have any vomit smell but the truth is, your upholstery is one of the probable places to get affected by accidental vomiting.

So what do you do if someone pukes on your couch which potentially has a chance of leaving a long-term vomit smell?

Don’t panic, because taking off the vomit smell from the couch is relatively similar to removing it from the carpet. Follow us through the easiest way to get the vomit smell out of the couch.

You will need:

  • Rubber gloves
  • Paper towels
  • Vinegar
  • Water
  • Scrub brush
  • Dry towel or a piece of cloth
  • Spray bottle
  • Baking soda
  • Vacuum cleaner

Step 1:

We start by wiping off the excess vomit as much as possible. If it’s an accidental vomit and still fresh, it should be easier to just use paper towels to scrub away the vomit mostly.

Remember to wear rubber gloves while you’re on it to make things easier. Once you’re done with primarily cleaning the couch and unable to remove any more, throw all of the used towels to the garbage and get ready for step two.

Step 2:

Create a mixture of vinegar and warm water to produce an effective DIY cleaning solution. Use one part of vinegar and one part of warm water to create the substance, and put the mixture into a spray bottle for convenient use.

If the vomit has left stains on your couch after you’ve scrubbed off the excess portion, add a few drops of detergent in your mixture to take care of it. Afterward, gently spray the vomit area of the couch with the solution.

Step 3:

Use a scrub brush to wipe and scrub the surface clean. The mixture will have removed the leftover vomit and possible stains if you have applied it correctly. Rinse the surface with water and blot the area with a towel or a clean cloth. Repeat the process if anything still remains, then vacuum the place and let it dry completely.

Step 4:

To further remove the vomit smell, apply baking soda to the puke area and cover it. Don’t overflow the place, just put a layer of baking soda and let it work for at least 12 hours.

Step 5:

Vacuum the surface afterward and make sure there is no leftover portion of the baking soda. The smell from your couch should be gone by now. But if not, repeat the process as necessary. Once it is completely removed, you can use a soft brush of quick vacuuming to return the couch fibers and surface to their previous phase. That’s it, enjoy your couch!

How to Get Vomit Smell Out of Mattress

If you ever had stomach flu, food poisoning, gone to bed drunk, or even had kids; you might have faced this situation. There’s vomit in your bed that potentially has the ability to leave stains and an awful smell even after washing.

So how do you clean that up and get the vomit smell out of the mattress, so that you won’t have to sleep on the floor? Tag along with us for an effective solution.

First off, gather the necessities.

  • Rubber gloves
  • Dry towel or cloths
  • Baking soda
  • Vinegar
  • Warm water
  • Vacuum cleaner

The first thing you should do before anything is get the sheet off for cleaning. Remember to wear gloves always when you are handling vomit. Get your sheet, put it in the washing machine, and make sure it gets clean thoroughly.

Now let’s get down to the mattress. Take a dry towel or a cloth, and soak up the area where vomit may have reached. Try to be gentle so that you don’t rub vomit over the mattress even more. Use multiple cloths if needed and absorb the liquid vomit as much as you can.

Once you are done with getting off the excess vomit from the mattress, sprinkle some baking soda over the surface. This will help in soaking up the puke more and removing the odor alongside.

Give the baking soda around 10-12 hours to work its way through the vomit and the mattress. After that, vacuum the place to remove the remaining baking soda and the leftovers. You can see that the stains and smells are mostly gone and your mattress is on its way to being new again.

To improve further, take half of vinegar and half of warm water to create a very common and effective DIY cleaning agent. Combine them together in a spray bottle and shake well to produce the mixture.

Afterward, spray the solution over the surface where you have worked so far. Spread over the whole vomit area and carefully blot it with a dry towel. Repeat this process as many times as needed until the vomit smell is gone and there are no stains left as well.

After you’re done cleaning your mattress completely, it’s important to let it dry. Make sure the room gets enough air and light. Once it’s done, well, there you go. Your mattress will turn out to be all clean and fresh.

How to Get Vomit Smell Out of Clothes

Vomiting, accidental or not, can easily affect your clothes since they are the closest materials when you are throwing up. Even if someone else did it on your clothes, vomit can leave stains and an incredibly repelling odor that may never allow you to wear that cloth again.

Since we can’t have that, in the following, we have shared a useful method to remove vomit smell from clothes.

Step 1:

First off, know that it’s comparatively easier to get the vomit smell out of clothes since they are washable. But washing them off immediately will not give you the solution and it will certainly not help the stench.

So before anything, scrape and wipe away the vomit from the fabric as much as possible. You can use paper towels or a piece of cloth to clean the area.

Step 2:

After you have completed the first step, your clothes will likely have stains and of course, the smell. Soak the area with warm water and apply baking soda over the surface. Put a substantial layer of baking soda so that it covers the vomit-affected place completely.

Leave it for some time to work. It will help remove the stain and smell altogether.

Step 3:

Use vinegar for the next step of your venture. Spray vinegar over the surface and as the baking soda begins to react, scrub the fabric with a toothbrush. Rub out the stains, smells, and all of it as much as possible.

Step 4:

Wash the fabric area with warm water to clean off the vinegar mixture, baking soda, and everything. Afterward, machine-wash the cloth or use laundry detergent to clean it normally.

Your clothes should be vomit-smell and stains-free. If anything remains, repeat step 3 and wash the cloth again, it shouldn’t take more than two tries.


An effective & practically proven tip:

Consider using Shaving foam after you’re done with the methods to clean and remove vomit smell from the carpet, couch, mattress, clothes, or anything. It’s a practical solution and an effective odor removal system.

Apply shaving foam over the vomit-affected area once you have finished cleaning using our guidelines. Leave the foam for about an hour to work, then scrape the place using a brush to clean off the shaving foam.

After that, just rinse the area (in case it’s non-washable, clean it with a cloth). If any of the vomit smell was leftover, now there aren’t any.


Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How do you get the puke smell out of a couch?

Hydrogen peroxide is an awesome solution to get rid of the vomit smell. You can mix it with

baking soda, and liquid dish soap to treat the couch. Using a spray bottle, spray the mixture on the puke-containing areas. Leave it for 30 minutes and then wipe the area to get rid of the smell.

What kills the smell of vomit?

White vinegar is a good item to kill the vomit smell. Combine the vinegar with dish soap and warm water to make it more effective. However, baking soda and lemon can also be a good mixture to deal with the puke smell.

How long does it take for the vomit smell to go away?

The vomit smell is too stubborn to go away instantly. So, even if you deal with the area instantly, it may take a day or two to leave.

Does vomit smell go away on its own?

No, it doesn’t go away on its own. You have to treat the area as soon as you can. Even after treating the area promptly, the smell can last for a day or two. However, ensuring enough ventilation may help with the smell.

Wrapping up

Occasional vomiting is not a very uncommon and surprising event. It’s important to clean it right away if you have the chance because then there’s less possibility to sit in and get dipper into your materials.

We have shared some of the most effective ways to get the vomit smell out of carpet, couch, and clothes. While there can be other places for the puke to happen, these methods can be applied in almost any vomiting situation you have to deal with.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

  1. […] Vomit Smell Out Of Carpet, Couch, And Clothes […]

  2. […] Learn more about carpet cleaning in the following articles: How To Clean Carpet At Home By Hand How to get wax out of carpet Get slime out of carpet easily How to get vomit smell out of carpet, couch, mattress & clothes […]

  3. […] it to remove vomit smell, urine smell, or musty smell in the […]

  4. […] You can also use shaving cream to remove the vomit smell in the house. […]

Cleaning Insider
Logo