How to Get Wax out of Carpet: 6 Most Effective Methods & Pro Tips

Removing candle wax from your beloved rug or carpet is easy.  I’ve compiled several tried-and-true methods you can try depending on the situation.

So keep reading as I share my carpet cleaning tips for how to get wax out of carpet without spending a fortune.

How to Get Dried Wax out of a Carpet

Most people only notice spilled candle wax after it has dried. Even a dried wax stain is relatively easy to remove, though. Here’s how to get dried wax out of carpet:

1. Use a blunt object like a butter knife to chip away at the wax in chunks.
2. Use a vacuum or small hand broom to remove all the wax pieces.
3. Check for any remaining large wax pieces and remove them with the knife.
4. Remove the pieces of spilled wax with the vacuum or broom.
5. Dilute one part clear dishwashing liquid with 12 parts water.
6. Using a clean terry cloth towel (or clean white cloth) and the dishwashing solution, remove the candle wax by wiping from the outside of the stain inwards. If you clean in the opposite direction, you may spread the wax.

This technique is usually sufficient to remove candle wax from carpet. I’ll discuss ways to remove stubborn wax stains later on.

How to Get Hot Wax out of Carpet

Removing hot candle wax from carpet is almost as easy as removing dried wax.

1. Take an ice pack from your freezer, or grab a plastic bag and fill it with ice cubes.
2. Apply the ice pack to the hot wax so it solidifies. The hardened wax may also crack from the cold temperature and thus make it easier to remove.
3. Follow the directions for removing dried wax, starting with step one.

How to Get Wax out of Carpet With a Hair Dryer

Sometimes stubborn stains or wax residue in your carpet fibers can leave you wondering how to get candle wax out of carpet. In these cases, the best way to remove the wax is by using heat. Here’s how to get wax out of carpet with a hair dryer:

1. Use a dull knife, like a butter knife, to scrape away as much of the spilled wax as possible.
2. Vacuum to remove all the pieces of wax.
3. Place a piece of paper towel, a damp towel or a brown paper bag over the remaining wax.
4. Use a hair dryer or blow dryer on high heat to heat the paper towel or brown paper bag.
5. Keep the hair dryer around three inches away from the bag, and heat it for about ten seconds. You can heat it longer if the wax is stubborn. Move the hair dryer backwards and forwards to evenly heat all the remaining wax chunks.
6. Carefully peel away the paper towel. Most of the remaining residue will be sticking to it.
7. If it was wax from a colored candle, there may be a stain or some waxy residue. Use rubbing alcohol or carpet cleaning detergent to blot the affected area with a clean cloth. Doing so should remove any wax remnants.

How to Get a Wax Stain out of a Carpet With an Iron

Once you know how to get candle wax out of a carpet with a blow dryer, it’s easy to replace the dryer with an iron. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to get melted wax out of carpet with an iron:

1. Scrape off as much wax as you can with a blunt knife.
2. Vacuum to remove all the loose pieces of wax.
3. Place a brown paper bag or paper towel over the wax.
4. Use an iron on medium heat to heat the wax by moving it backward and forwards over the paper. Be careful not to set the paper on fire or melt your carpet by heating it too much.
5. Peel back the paper and discard.
6. Remove any remaining residue by using rubbing alcohol or carpet cleaning solution and a clean towel or cloth.

How to Get Candle Wax out of a Carpet With Greaseproof Paper

Greaseproof paper is a staple among carpet cleaning tips. Some people believe that it’s easier to remove wax from carpet using greaseproof paper than paper towels. While there’s no proof that either one works better than the other, you might find you prefer using greaseproof paper. To get candle wax out of your carpet using greaseproof paper, simply follow the instructions in the previous sections for using an iron or blow dryer, but with greaseproof paper instead of a paper towel or paper bag.

How to Remove Candle Wax From Carpet With Ice

Ice doesn’t remove wax from a carpet, but it does help set it and prevent it from spreading. Here’s how to get hot wax out of carpet using ice:

1. Place a paper towel or clean terry towel on the molten wax.
2. Use an ice pack or plastic bag full of ice cubes to cool down and solidify the wax.
3. Freeze the wax for around ten minutes, but don’t allow it to get wet from the ice.
4. Chip away as much of the wax as you can.
5. Vacuum the solidified wax chunks.
6. Place a paper towel on the wax and heat it with a blow dryer or iron.
7. Peel away the paper, with the wax attached.
8. Clean up any residue using a cloth with rubbing alcohol or carpet cleaning detergent.

What to Do With Your Carpet After Removing Wax

Once you’ve gone through the intensive process of removing the wax, you need to allow your carpet to rest. After all the scraping, scrubbing, and chemicals, continuing with your usual daily cleaning regime could be disastrous. Give your carpet at least 5-7 days of rest before you clean it again. Leave the whole carpet alone for that period—not just the area where the wax was. If you clean everything except one small area, that small area might never quite blend in with the rest of the carpet again. When the week has passed, vacuum the entire carpet, and give it a light wash if you have a carpet washer. In some cases, none of the home wax-removal remedies are entirely effective. In these cases, the wisest choice is to bring in a carpet cleaning service. They’ll have the tools and experience needed to deal with the problem. I hope that you’ve enjoyed this guide to removing wax from carpets. I’ve written many other articles about cleaning carpets and my guides can help you face almost any carpet cleaning difficulty. You might enjoy my guide to cleaning Berber carpets or the best carpet cleaner for pets. If you need a vacuum before removing wax stains, my guide to the best American vacuums might come in handy. Which method are you using to remove the wax from your carpet? Let us know in the comments.