How to Get Chewing Gum out of Carpet: 3 Methods

The worst has happened; there’s a blob of chewing gum stuck in your carpet. Gah! What on Earth do you do now? Surely it’s stuck there forever?

Thankfully not; there is a way to salvage the situation without resorting to hacking it out with scissors (don’t do that!). All you need are a few basic household items and a steady nerve. So take a deep breath and simply follow our simple guides on how to remove chewing gum from carpet; we’ll have it out in a sticky jiffy.

#1 – How to Get Chewing Gum out of Carpet: The Freezing Method

If you’ve ever got chewing gum on your clothes you’ll no doubt have heard advice to put the clothing in the freezer before trying to remove it. The same principle works when trying to remove chewing gum from carpets; here’s how.

You will need:

• Ice cubes
• A small plastic sandwich bag
• Spoon or butter knife with dull edge

Step 1: Freeze the Gum

Fill your sandwich bag with ice cubes and seal it. Make sure there are no holes for moisture to escape. Apply the bag to the chewing gum to freeze it solid; you may need to leave the bag on top of the gum for a while to get the best results, depending on the temperature of the room.

Step 2: Scrape the Gum

Remove the ice pack and immediately use your spoon or dull knife to gently scrape the gum off the carpet fibres. This should be much easier to do now the gum is solid. Be sure to remove any pieces of removed gum from the area immediately before they soften and become sticky again.

Step 3: Repeat if Necessary

Re-freeze and repeat the process as many times as it takes to remove the gum from the carpet. Once you’ve removed as much gum as possible from the carpet, move on to #3 to see how to remove any chewing gum residue.

# 2 – How to Get Chewing Gum out of Carpet: The Hair Dryer Method

If freezing doesn’t work or if you’re short on ice, heating up the gum can be just as effective in preparing it for removal. The heat will make solidified gum more pliable, allowing you to remove it bit by bit. Here’s how:

You will need:

• A hair dryer
• Small plastic sandwich bags or rubber gloves

Step 1: Heat up the Gum

Aim your hair dryer at the gum and heat for a few seconds at a time to soften the gum. Don’t maintain the heat for too long or overheat the area as this could burn your carpet fibres. If your hair dryer has a medium heat setting, use this instead of the full heat setting.

Step 2: Scrape Away the Gum

Start gently pulling the gum out of the fibres. Use your plastic bags as covers for your hands or wear a pair of rubber gloves to help you remove the gum with your fingers without getting all sticky yourself. Once you’ve removed as much gum as possible from the carpet, move on to the next step to remove any residue.

#3 – Removing Chewing Gum Residue

Even when you’ve removed all the chewing gum from the carpet, it has a nasty habit of leaving behind a sticky residue which can attract dirt and form more stains. Here’s how to remove chewing gum residue from your carpet:

You will need:

• WD-40
• Soft cloths
• Washing up liquid
• Bicarbonate of soda
• Water

NOTE: Use caution when applying any products to your carpet. Check your carpet care guide thoroughly and always test on an inconspicuous area before applying fully.

Step 1: Treat the Residue Area

Apply a small amount of WD-40 to the residue. The WD-40 acts as a lubricant which will loosen the gum’s grip on your carpet fibres. Work it in gently with your fingers.

Step 2: Remove the Residue

Use your soft cloth to gently pull at the fibres to remove the residue. You can also try gently scraping with your fingers if this is easier.

Step 3: Clean the Fibres

Now you’ll need to remove any WD-40 residue from your carpet fibres. Mix a small squirt of washing up liquid with some warm water and dip a clean cloth into the solution. Blot the area with your cloth until the area is clean and then blot with a dry cloth to remove excess moisture. If you’re worried about odours, sprinkle the area with a little bicarbonate of soda and leave for a few hours before vacuuming the area to restore the carpet’s original appearance.

And that’s how to get chewing gum out of carpet. It’s a bit of a faff, but it’s worth it to avoid more drastic measures. Have you found another way to remove chewing gum from carpet? Send us your clever tips via our social media pages below and we’ll try them out!