Let’s face it, we’ve all been faced with the dilemma of spilling spaghetti on the floor. But don’t worry, we’ve got an easy guide for you to follow depending on what type of flooring you have to get rid of it quickly and easily.
The general rule of thumb with spilt spaghetti is to blot the sauce, leaving the spaghetti itself and any other residue. The solids can then be removed and if there is any stain left this can be cleaned using a solution depending on the type of floor.
Let’s learn how to remove spaghetti from a floor no matter the type in a couple of easy steps.
1. Blot The Sauce
The first step does not depend on what type of floor you have and revolves around removing the excess sauce using a blotting technique.
This can either be done using paper towels or a dry, clean cloth. To blot the sauce work in circles using a blotting technique to gently absorb the sauce.
The aim of this is to leave the rest of the spillage dry, where possible, to prepare for removing the solids that are left behind such as the spaghetti itself and any meat or other ingredients that were used. Once you have removed as much sauce as possible then it’s time to move on to the next step.
2. Remove The Solids
After the sauce has been removed you should hopefully be left with just the solid components left.
There are a few options for removing the solids that work well. The first is simply using a vacuum to remove them, but this requires a vacuum that is able to process foods.
Vacuuming is also the best option for carpets. If you’ve ever attempted to clean up food spills in a carpet before without a vacuum, you’ll understand just how difficult this can be.
Another option is to use a dustpan and brush or simply a damp cloth. This works well on solid floors, such as hardwood, laminate or vinyl as the residue will sit on top of the floor, making it easy to identify and remove.
3. Stain Removal
After the liquid and solids have been removed you might be left with a bright orange stain, depending on the type of flooring that you have.
The key to removing the stain depends on the type of flooring, so let’s take a look at the methods you can use to lift the stain depending on your floor type.
Carpet
Getting a spaghetti stain out of a carpet is a little bit more difficult than other floor types such as laminate or hardwood because the fibres in the carpet will absorb the liquid.
To get around this you will need to use a cleaning solution made from 1/4 teaspoon of non-bleach detergent mixed with 1 to 2 cups of warm water. Place a clean cloth into the solution and wring it out until it is damp.
Use the cloth to work the stain out of the carpet, using circular motions with a light force to do so. Regularly rinse the cloth in the solution to keep it clean and repeat this until you have worked the stain out of the carpet.
Hardwood
In some cases, the tomato sauce in spaghetti can cause a stain on hardwood floors due to its pH.
In order to combat this, you need to be as fast as you can to clean up the stain. The solution required in this case is a 50-50 solution made from white vinegar and water, which is applied using a clean cloth.
Simply wipe the area thoroughly using a cloth that has been soaked in the solution until the stain starts to fade and eventually it should be completely removed. Once you have removed all of the stain then use some paper towels to dry the area or let it air dry for an hour or two.
You can also use this for laminate and vinyl flooring as well.
Tiles
Tiles will deal with the spaghetti spillage better than just about any other type of flooring, and likely won’t get stained at all.
To ensure that no stain is left, you can use the detergent mixture as mentioned before (1/4 teaspoon of non-bleach detergent with 1 to 2 cups of warm water) applied with a mop to wash the area. Scrub the area using the mop and then rinse the entire area with just water.
Afterwards, you can leave the tile to air dry for an hour or two and the stain (if there even was one) will be completely gone.
Final Thoughts
Spaghetti spills can look a lot worse than what they actually are. By following the 3 steps above, you should be able to tackle any spaghetti spillage no matter the type of floor that you have.
If you have any other tips for removing spaghetti on the floor then please let us know here.