There are many reasons you might find yourself cleaning vomit off your hardwood floors in the early hours of the morning.
You may have a sick pet or a sick child, and you may have had a slightly raucous party last night.
Whatever happened, realizing you need to clean vomit off of your hardwood floors is enough to turn anybody’s stomach.
You may be worried about the vomit permanently ruining your floors.
Luckily, we’ve done the research, and cleaning up vomit from your hardwood floors is easy.
All you need are a few household cleaning items to remove the mess and get back to taking care of your sick loved one.
Continue reading to find out exactly what items you will need to clean up vomit on hardwood.
What You’ll Need
You’ll need a few cleaning items to clean up vomit from your hardwood floors.
Now that you have everything you need, read on for step-by-step instructions on how to clean up vomit from hardwood.
1. Remove the vomit from your hardwood floors
You should first remove as much of the vomit from your hardwood floors as possible.
The faster you can remove it, the easier it will be to clean the affected area thoroughly.
Doing this will also minimize any potential staining.
We highly recommend wearing a great pair of cleaning gloves such as these Reusable Kitchen Cleaning Gloves With Latex Free,Cotton Lining.
Feel free to use any other personal protective equipment you feel necessary while cleaning up vomit.
Using a cleaning cloth, sponge, or paper towel, wipe away as many solid vomit pieces as possible.
Doing this may seem gross, but it is essential to complete the following stages.
2. Dispose of the vomit in trash can or toilet
Pro tip: You can also use this clean-up stage to remove as much of the liquid as possible, but you should be careful about how you remove it.
You are wiping or scrubbing the liquid to seep into joints in the hardwood, which will cause even more problems later.
Instead, use your sponge or paper towel to soak up as much of the vomit liquid as possible.
Continue to dab at the vomit until the liquid is gone.
3. Pour hydrogen peroxide on a rag, lift the stain
Once you have entirely removed the vomit from your hardwood floors, examine the area carefully.
You may notice that the vomit has left a stain on your hardwood floors.
Hardwood floors stain relatively quickly, so don’t be alarmed.
Place a fresh cleaning cloth over the affected area and pour some hydrogen peroxide onto the rag if you find a stain.
As the hydrogen peroxide soaks through the rag and interacts with the stain on your hardwood floor, it will pull the stain out of the floor and onto your rag.
Pro tip: Test this hydrogen peroxide method on a nondescript floor area before using it on the vomit stain.
Make sure that it does not discolor your wood or damage the finish of your floors.
4. Clean Affected Area With Enzyme Floor Cleaner
Once the hydrogen peroxide has pulled the vomit stain out of the floor, use an enzyme cleaner mixed with water or your favorite floor cleaner to clean the affected area thoroughly.
This enzyme cleaner is plant-based and gets excellent Amazon reviews.
Doing this will help remove any traces of vomit that have been left behind and provide some sanitation to the affected area.
The enzyme remover can also fight against any lingering stains that the hydrogen peroxide did not altogether remove.
5. Dry the affected area thoroughly
Once you have cleaned the affected area, dry it with paper towels or a cleaning cloth.
At this point, there should be no sign of vomit on your hardwood floors, but if you notice that a stain remains, repeat steps 2 and 3 again.
If the stain is old and deep, though, you may need to schedule a professional cleaner to remove the vomit stain from your hardwood floors altogether.
Here is a video demonstrating how to remove stains from your hardwood floors.
0:25—After removing anything that may be causing the stain, place a cleaning cloth over the stain.
0:28—Pour some hydrogen peroxide on the rag and allow the hydrogen peroxide to soak through the cloth to the stain below.
0:31—Allow the hydrogen peroxide to lift the stain.
0:40—Clean the affected area with the floor cleaner to further remove the stain.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you get rid of the smell of vomit on hardwood floors?
Although you have cleaned up the vomit and removed the stain, you might notice that the smell of vomit lingers on your hardwood floors.
One of the best ways to get rid of any unpleasant smells is to use baking soda.
Baking soda is a natural odor eliminator, and it is safe to use around pets and children.
To eliminate the vomit smell on your wooden floors:
- Mix your baking soda with just enough water to form a thick paste.
- Apply this paste to the affected area of your hardwood floors.
- Cover the affected area with paper towels and allow it to sit overnight. The baking soda will draw the vomit odor out of the wood and absorb it.
- In the morning, remove the paper towel and vacuum up the dry baking soda.
Is there a way to clean up vomit without using hydrogen peroxide or an enzyme cleaner?
If you do not have hydrogen peroxide or an enzyme cleaner, you can also use distilled white vinegar to clean up vomit on your hardwood floors.
After cleaning up as much of the vomit as possible, mix a cup of white vinegar with a quart of warm water.
Using a damp cleaning cloth, blot and wipe the vomit residue off the floor.
Soak and wash the cleaning cloth in the water and vinegar mixture as many times as necessary, but don’t be tempted to use a wet rag.
It can be dangerous to clean wooden floors with a damp rag because you could slip.
Finally, use a fresh cleaning cloth to rinse the area with clean water, and then dry the area thoroughly to remove all traces of vomit from your hardwood floors.
