When you find a sticky, gunky mess of gum stuck in your carpet, you’ll want to get it out as soon as possible. But how? You may have heard that freezing the gum with ice does the trick. While freezing is a helpful start, it may not be enough to complete the task. It all depends on how stuck into the carpet fibers the gum is. But don’t fret! There are ways to get chewing gum out of carpet. Just follow the steps below.

1. Freeze the gum. Put a few ice cubes in a plastic baggy and place it on top of the gum. Leave it there for a few minutes, long enough for the gum to freeze and harden. Once it is hardened, try to pull the gum off of the carpet. If you succeed, great! You can stop here. But if there are still bits of gum ground into the carpet fibers that won’t come off, continue on to the next step.
2. Apply WD-40. Please perform a spot test first to ensure that no discoloration will result! WD-40 is great for dissolving chewing gum, enabling you to easily lift it from the carpet. Spray the solution from close to the gum stain, and with a butter knife, scrape at the gum, picking up the bits as they separate from the mass. You may need to reapply the WD-40 if there is a lot of gum, or if it is ground deeply into the carpet.
3. Quick clean-up. Finally, once the gum is completely removed, spray the area with your favorite non-toxic carpet spot cleaner, or a small amount of dish detergent and water. Wipe it with a clean cloth, and allow to air dry.

And that’s it! By following these three steps, you should be able to get chewing gum out of carpet without a big hassle. If you live in the Asheville, NC area and you need some help with carpet cleaning, give Five Step a call at 828.327.7233 or use our contact form.