Carpet may look nice in some homes, but it is a type of flooring which requires much more regular maintenance and since fabric of all kinds tends to retain moisture absorbed through spills or even through trapping humid air between its fibers, something many of us don’t think about.

This tendency to retain moisture makes carpet an ideal place for mold to grow unless it is regularly cared for and cleaned thoroughly; it’s not easy to remove mold from carpet once it has a chance to become established, at least if you were hoping to keep the carpet. Read further for a little more about when you can get out the mold and when you’re best off letting that carpet go.

If you’ve had your carpet completely soaked as a result of flooding, something which is most common in basements, you’re going to have to get rid of the carpet and padding immediately. You’ll also want to mop the flooring underneath with plenty of bleach and water (cold or room temperature, bleach is less effective when mixed with hot water) to kill any remaining mold and spores. In general, carpeting basements and bathrooms is not the way to go.

If the carpet is elsewhere in the home, there may be hope. If it is confined to a small area of the carpet, it can be possible to remove mold from carpet using one part bleach to four parts water and a splash of ammonia-free detergent (dish soap works well, just make sure it’s free of ammonia).

1) Make sure the room is adequately ventilated
2) Remember to wear rubber gloves. Bleach is an effective mold killer and disinfectant, but undiluted bleach can cause irritation and even burns.
3) Douse the area where mold is present with bleach; you want to soak it, so don’t be stingy. Allow the bleach to sit for ten to fifteen minutes. Step three is the rub: bleach will kill the mold, but it may also ruin the carpet – it’s a tradeoff you’ll have to evaluate for yourself.
4) Scrub the bleach soaked area thoroughly with your mixture of bleach, water and detergent. Repeat if necessary.

Allow to dry thoroughly, using fans and dehumidifiers to assist in quick drying. This method works best with area rugs rather than with wall to wall carpeting, since area rugs can be hung out to dry in the sun.

As a general rule, if you want to remove mold from carpet which has become home to a large growth of mold, you’ll have to hire a service which specializes in this sort of work (which can be exorbitantly expensive) or simply call it ruined and consider going with another type of flooring or being extra vigilant in the future to keep your home at a low humidity level to deny mold the conditions it needs to invade your home and establish a home there in your carpeting.