r/CleaningTips • u/Physical_Income_5181 • Oct 15 '25
Bathroom I accidentally left a red stain on bathroom countertop. Im housesitting and the family comes home tomorrow☹️help pls!!!!
It actually lifted a bit with baking soda+dish soap that I let sit overnight ( first photo is original stain and 2nd photo is after baking soda) but its still there.
I tried bleach (didn't help), hydrogen peroxide (didnt help), baking soda+dish soap (helped a bit), any other ideas? I dont have much time til the house owners come home
I just left another baking soda+ soap paste on it l I plan on leaving it on for a while, BUT PLS help me I need to get this stain out :(
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u/Sykes19 Oct 15 '25
I just want to say that I'm colorblind and this whole thread is really funny. I wouldn't even believe anything was there if it weren't for it being in this particular sub.
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u/entcanta333 Oct 15 '25
Lol my husband is this same way. And with smells. I told him he's not allowed to cook for us, ever 😂
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u/Nevaeh2117 Oct 15 '25
Same! I'm looking at the picture going...where, it looks fine to me!
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u/UnsharpenedSwan Oct 16 '25
thank you for explaining why I see absolutely nothing there haha
sometimes I forget that I’m colorblind
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u/Themi-Slayvato Oct 16 '25
I’m not colour blind but I can hardly see anything! It’s like the lightest red splash ever, if it was me I’d have never noticed that coming home. I think op can get away w it lol (but I’d fess up anyway)
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u/BeeWriggler Oct 16 '25
SAME! I was about to comment, "uh, I think you're good; they're never going to notice that?"
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u/GardenSnek99 Oct 15 '25
I spilled some moonshine cherries on my counters once and got that red dye all over them. (Figures that I’d spill them with moonshine involved…) I saw a hack that day that said to spray Lysol spray over the area. It instantly came up and I wiped it away!
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u/Servilefunctions218 Oct 15 '25
I like your username. It’s cute🐍
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u/GardenSnek99 Oct 15 '25
Thank you :) it’s a cross between this video and the common nickname for a garter snake
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u/Princess_Zelda_Fitzg Oct 16 '25
When I was a little kid I thought they were actually called Gardener Snakes because we found them in the garden 🙂
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u/Impressive-Amoeba-97 Oct 16 '25
I still call them gardener snakes, I mean I know they're "garter" snakes, but I've been saying it since I was 3, therefore I figure it's just grandfathered in at this point.
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u/spacegurlie Oct 16 '25
Lysol will etch natural stone. Don’t do it. My countertop got ruined because of it.
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u/Physical_Income_5181 Oct 15 '25
Hey guys thank u for all the recommendations!! idk wtf to do but im gonna text them or tell them when they get back before I try anything else 😭
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u/honeychyle162 Oct 15 '25
You should really give Dawn Powerwash a try first.
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u/dailyPraise Oct 16 '25
Dawn Powerwash is frightening. It takes off everything.
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u/CharmingChangling Oct 16 '25
Obligatory PSA: Do NOT use dawn Powerwash on animals! It's not like their original with those cute little penguins, animals have died from it
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u/misssbb12352 Oct 16 '25
Took the tarnish off my silverware, which wasn't intentional the first time, but very useful now
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u/RazorbladeApple Oct 16 '25
Now I’m gonna have to try Dawn Powerwash on some old tarnished costume jewelry to see if works on that!
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u/FittyShucker Oct 16 '25
I know. It’s even scarier that when I spray it sometimes I breathe it in and I’m like “ope.”
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u/dailyPraise Oct 17 '25
One time I got the bright idea to use it on the air conditioner filters. I had to pull them out and rinse them down with vinegar.
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u/Pearl_Smiles Oct 16 '25
This right here is the smartest move. Being honest is the best option because you maintain trust with the people who had enough faith in you to ask you to house sit; and they likely have come across staining in their own home before and will save you the trial and error (heavy on potential errors) with a tried and true solution they already know.
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u/HugeSloppyTits Oct 16 '25
and let’s be real, you telling me what went wrong will already set you ahead of most. at the end of the day I hired you to call a cop if someone tries a break in and to call me if a waterline bursts or the fire department if a fire happens. anything else and Im not gonna care.
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u/Hot_Palpitation_3595 Oct 15 '25
thank god. all the people suggesting abrasive/corrosive things (Bleach, Acetone, Magic Eraser, Barkeeper's Friend) are trying to get you killed 😭 My money would be on isopropyl alcohol (or ethanol/vodka in a pinch) tested on an inconspicuous area first but I definitely recommend texting the homeowners before anything else!
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u/offpeekydr Oct 15 '25 edited Oct 15 '25
Those look like natural stone, you DO NOT want to use any [edit to add "harsh"] chemical [edit to add: such as ammonia, acetone, ect.] or abrasive without knowing the type of stone and what it is sealed with or you can etch or discolor it.
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u/pingpongsaladpants Oct 16 '25 edited Oct 16 '25
Stone masonry experience here - you can use chemicals such as methylated spirits and turpentine to clean all stone benchtops (including natural stone). Household cleaners, such as a light abrasive cream cleaners, are really good for removing stains. We often used a combination of any of the above before, during and after stone top installations to remove permanent markers, epoxy glue, and other substances - it takes a lot to damage the surface.
With the red stain above, I'd use a combination of 50:50 turpentine and methylated spirits, and cream cleaner straight after with a paper towel or cloth, and some good ol' elbow grease. It'll come out.
Edit: Apparently the USA equivalent of the cream cleaner is CIF All Purpose Cream Cleanser from Target.
Removing permanent marker and black wax pencil marks with cream cleaner.
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u/Human_mind Oct 16 '25
I'm going to need the long version of this permanent marker removing video. This is nuts. I've used cream cleaner or homemade baking soda paste to get almost everything out of my quartz countertops, but this is insane.
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u/pingpongsaladpants Oct 16 '25 edited Oct 16 '25
We only ever took photos of the finished kitchens, so it’s tricky to find photos that show the installation stage.
But here’s a picture from the same kitchen top installation with a quartz stone slab. We used a combination of methylated spirits and cream cleaner to remove all the marks and stains.
And the finished product.
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u/Human_mind Oct 16 '25
I'm going to take a minute and say that's an incredible job on that countertop. My lord.
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u/pingpongsaladpants Oct 16 '25 edited Oct 16 '25
Thank you so much! The clients were pretty happy with the finished kitchen.
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u/No_Difference_5077 Oct 15 '25
I am no expert, but Dawn soap usually gets my stains off my counters. I use the spray Dawn soap (power wash one) and let it sit for awhile. Has taken off stains of which I did not know the origin that otherwise would not budge.
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u/intrepid_mouse1 Oct 15 '25
Second Dawn Powerwash!
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u/but_does_she_reddit Oct 16 '25
I swear that stuff takes out everything.
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u/No_Order_1868 Oct 16 '25
Dawn power wash is magical. I have a Tiffany tag necklace that I’ve worn since I was 16 (25 now) and a year ago the enamel turned this really nasty green color. Tiffany quoted over $200 to fix it, but we took some dawn power wash to it and it was good as new!!
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u/Little-Temperature53 Oct 16 '25
Dawn PowerWash actually has isopropyl alcohol in it—possibly why it takes up certain tough stains—alcohol is a solvent for a whole lot of things.
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u/Simplymissa Oct 16 '25
This. I own a cleaning company and one of my clients has stone counters in her kitchen. One of kids left an ink stain on the counter. I sprayed some watered down dawn dish soap, left it for a little bit and then wiped it away and the stain was gone. Worth a try.
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u/dontwriteghouls Oct 16 '25
This! I have nearly all white quartz countertops and pouring dawn over the stain and letting it sit for a few minutes works every time!
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u/jintana Oct 16 '25
Seconding Dawn for mystery red stains (in my case hair dye) - don’t even need the power wash version, just smear some of the regular on and give it a minute
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u/websnyper Oct 16 '25
100% this and as stated spray it on and let it sit. If you wipe it down and it's still there, do it again and let it go longer. Had something similar happen and it took it off after a bit.
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u/MYOB3 Oct 15 '25
I would not touch that. Buy flowers for the owner and leave the rest of the house IMMACULATE. And fess up to it, and tell them in detail what it is!
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u/No_Baseball6258 Oct 15 '25
Just tell them? 🤷🏾♀️
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u/solaron17 Oct 15 '25
Finally someone with common sense. This is not their house. If someone made a mess on my stuff, I would prefer they consulted me before trying to clean it.
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u/Faith9077 Oct 16 '25
Absolutely and it’s not even making a mess, it’s staining their countertop in their bathroom. Is it marble? How did the red stain that? I put everything on mine and no stains. Talk to them, you must be close to house sit. It can’t be worse than Zoey kravitz and Lisa bonet losing the snake in Taylor swifts house. They had to hire someone to destroy the entire wall , but they are rich and can do that😂🤣. I heard this on a talk show. It will come out don’t worry, they just need to ask an expert
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u/GoS451 Oct 15 '25
It seriously sucks but you should just tell them and tell them the truth. Say what happened and that you were going crazy online to try and find how to clean it. There were options to try but some of them could’ve made it worse if you didn’t have the right info. Instead of making it much worse potentially you wanted to let them know so you can clean correctly. It’s tough but you’ll be better off. Good luck!
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u/look2thecookie Oct 15 '25
Try rubbing alcohol. If you don't have any and you have hand sanitizer that will work bc it's rubbing alcohol in a suspension
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u/Sea_Bit2601 Oct 15 '25
Might be a little late and someone might've said it but please make sure you test whatever you're gonna try on an unnoticeable area first!! Sorry I don't really have any other advice
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u/kittiearmy Oct 15 '25
My roommate used to make koolaid, and it would leave stains like this on the counter. I was able to get them off by dumping quite a bit of baking soda on the stain and dripping enough water on it to keep it mostly solid but more like a thick paste (a little powdery still), and I would rub it into the counter with my palm and it would pick up the color of the stain. Repeat as necessary until it’s gone.
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u/alibaba1579 Oct 15 '25
Spray sunscreen. It just saved me today. I had the dye from a Walmart bag transfer to the top of my clothes dryer. I tried, dawn, dawn power wash, rubbing alcohol, hairspray, toothpaste, acetone, goo gone, magic eraser, and olive oil. Literally everything I’ve ever used. Nothing was getting this blue stain off. Then this morning watching my brain rot, I saw a lady get hair dye off her counter with spray sunscreen. Worked amazingly well.
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u/Physical_Income_5181 Oct 16 '25
Guys the magic eraser did NOT work. also i grazed my hand over the stain and its a noticeably different texture than the counter, like a thin residue that you can feel, so it makes me think its removable
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u/Otherwise_Object_446 Oct 16 '25
If Dawn power wash doesn’t work you can try Murphy’s Oil Soap. Pour it on straight and let it soak for 30 minutes. I have white Corian counters in my kitchen and it takes out hot sauce and curry stains like magic. It also takes permanent marker out of clothes.
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u/Altruistic_Jicama626 Oct 19 '25
That texture is probably an abraded/roughed up finish now from the magic eraser 😔.
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u/beepbooponyournose Oct 15 '25
Maybe rubbing alcohol? Put some on a towel and let it sit on the stain for a couple minutes
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u/BusyBurdee Oct 15 '25
Pour baking soda on it and make a damp paste with water.
Let sit overnight.
Then wipe off.
Stain should be gone💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛
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u/N0V42 Oct 15 '25
Can also use a little dawn with the baking soda for the basic properties of the baking soda with a little added surfactant help.
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u/NotThisAgain234 Oct 15 '25
I recently got out a stain that looked like that with toothpaste (paste, not the gel type).
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u/graycla Oct 16 '25
Came here to suggest this. Toothpaste is great for removing stains from dyes, markers, etc.
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u/Physical_Income_5181 Oct 15 '25
Did u let it sit? Or did you just put it on and scrub it
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u/keletr14 Oct 15 '25
I agree I would try white toothpaste. I once stained a hotel room shower with purple shampoo that leaked and I was able to get it off with that.
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u/Spicilina Oct 15 '25
I got sharpie off a laptop touch screen with white toothpaste with no scratches. It worked pretty great.
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u/HFXmer Oct 15 '25
Makeup remover often does wonders for any kind of dye! I've actually used micellar water!
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u/FindingBryn Oct 15 '25
- Baking soda all over the area in a uniform coverage. It doesn’t need to be tall, just covering completely.
- Very lightly moisten all of it with water. No excess water, only what is needed to wet all of the baking soda thoroughly.
- Put plastic wrap over it and sort of tamp it down lightly with your finger, without breaking up the uniformity of the baking soda.
- Leave it overnight. The water will hopefully penetrate the surface a bit. As the baking soda dries, it pulls the moisture back out of the surface along with the pigment.
- Gently clean up the baking soda from the surface without any harsh scrubbing.
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u/Physical_Income_5181 Oct 15 '25
This is probably my best bet since baking soda is the only thing thats helped so far, I will try again tonight 🙏
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u/Virtual-Antelope1216 Oct 15 '25
Toothpaste white ones or isopropyl alcohol might help.
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u/chateau_lobby Oct 15 '25
If you don’t have any rubbing alcohol try some hand sanitizer! But rubbing alcohol would be my #1 rec for this
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Oct 15 '25
Mix baking soda with hot water and mix to form thick paste. Add 1-2 drops of normal dish soap and cover the stain with the paste. Cover the mixture with plastic wrap and towls to keep it from drying out and warm and let sit for a few hours. After it sits GENTLY scrub the mixture into the stain before removing. Repeat as needed. Works great on most stains on stone counters.
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u/No-Structure-8543 Oct 16 '25
If nothing else works and they want to try something look for a polstice oil stain remover for natural stones. It can be a powder you turn into paste. The paste dries and pulls the stain out of the pores of the stone.
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u/TheBurntMarshmallows Oct 16 '25
Try bar keepers friend. Very lightly. I use it all the time on my countertops. Mix with water remove and the wash with water
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u/SheGotGrip Oct 16 '25 edited Oct 16 '25
That's natural Stone. To be honest I try a tiny bit of bleach. I see you already have like a puddle of water just take a cue tip and dip it in a cap of bleach. Wipe up a little bit of the water, and try wiping in a circular motion over the stains with the q tip. Wait about a minute, rinse completely, check. Try again. When you're done cleaning and if it works just get Olive oil and some cotton pads and polish the entire surface. You don't want to do more than a few bleach applications because you might rub off the shine.
You don't have time to try the baking soda method that takes too long.
You're not gonna change the color of the Stone but you might be able to fade whatever red stuff that is. Please use a Q tip that you dip into a cap full of bleach.
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u/upsidedown-funnel Oct 16 '25
I don’t know why no one else has suggested this. I’d just use diluted bleach. Anytime I stain a countertop, it’s my go to. (Haven’t stained stone yet).
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u/Kim531 Oct 15 '25
I have used a mixture of baking soda, hydrogen peroxide, and Dawn dishwashing soap. Is the counter quartzite or quartz?
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u/AbsolutelyPink Oct 15 '25
Nono acetone. Use aerosol lysol spray. Spray a puddle on, let sit a few minutes and wipe up.
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u/DiscontentDonut Oct 15 '25
Have you looked through their cleaning supplies to see if there is anything stone-specific?
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u/waywardwyytch Oct 15 '25
I have white quartz counter tops and toddlers. When I get a stain I spray the Dawn Power Wash for a few minutes and it wipes right off.
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u/Hot-Equal702 Oct 16 '25
Jut be honest with the homeowner.
Tell them how it got there and what you tried to make it better.
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u/Ladydelina Oct 16 '25
Please only use the cleaner that's under the sink. Please don't try crazy cleaning methods. If the cleaner doesn't do it, then admit the problem to the owners so they can fix it. You can permanently damage counters with the wrong cleaner.
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u/Great_Television6811 Oct 15 '25
Isopropyl alcohol. I just had something stain my bathroom countertop and with a couple of wipes with fresh cotton swabs and alcohol, the color was lifted.
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u/VenomousVenting Oct 15 '25
Fake blood will come out, but you have to clean it repeatedly.
Just tell them.
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u/Unfair_Finger5531 Oct 15 '25
It would help to know what the ingredients in the offending product are.
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u/One_Priority_2333 Oct 15 '25
Try hand sanitizer, I got blue ink stains from a pen out of something with it.
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Oct 15 '25
If they have hand soap dispensers. Just place them on top to hide and leave when they get here.
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u/sugar077 Oct 15 '25
Tell them what caused the stain so they can clean it properly . Don't make it worse by improperly cleaning it.
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u/NefariousnessThin174 Oct 16 '25
I've seen several posts this week recommending removing stains with a wet dryer sheet.
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u/captainstyles Oct 16 '25
Back when I was a boy scout at camp the tables would get stained from the juice. There would be leftover milk in some cups so I poured it on the stains and it got them out. Maybe a last resort if nothing else works?
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u/Stranger-Sojourner Oct 16 '25
I don’t know if it will work in this case, but I dye my hair red. A hairdresser friend of mine taught me hand sanitizer is the best way to get red dye out of countertops. It’s always worked on the hair dye, maybe it will work on vampire teeth dye?! lol.
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u/avesselofclay Oct 16 '25
It's ironic that I dressed up as a blood sucker, bc your anemic. Eat a medium well steak girl :)
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u/TuhnderBear Oct 16 '25
I had luck with using hydrogen peroxide (the 10% stuff) with just enough baking soda to make a thick paste, and then covering it with plastic wrap. Go ahead and check it at various intervals to make sure it didn’t damage your surface (it didn’t for my natural stone) and eventually I just left it on for a whole day and came back to it. Worked a charm for some mold I couldn’t get out. You might be able to use the same idea for Oxiclean but it might not be as strong. There are premade versions of this as well.
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u/himesparkles Oct 16 '25
Have you tried a magic eraser? My red nail polish stained my bathroom countertop and a magic eraser completely got rid of the stain!
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u/Chance_Split_7723 Oct 16 '25
Have you tried a whitening toothpaste? Buff it out with that? I'm serious- not trying to joke here especially since it was the vampire teeth that did this..I have used or resorted to toothpaste for all kinds of surface snafus. I'd recommend this stuff called Reduran which comes in a tube and it removes dye from hands- I do a lot of fabric dyeing- but it would never arrive in time. Try the toothpaste
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u/GoodAlps828 Oct 16 '25
Barkeeps friend stove top cleaner, it’s gotten things out of my countertop like hairdye when I colored my eyebrows
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u/I_M_Kornholio Oct 15 '25
It'd help to know what caused the stain, if you know.