How to Remove Toner From Carpet

How do you remove toner from carpet?  As professional carpet cleaners we get this question from time to time.  This usually happens in a business that has copiers or printers that use lots of toner because occasionally they bust or leak.  When this happens you will need to know how to remove toner from carpet properly so that you will not permanently stain the fibers. 

Toner is not a liquid and should not be treated as one or you could set the stain permanently. Toner is actually a very fine powder.  Since it is a powder the most important thing you can do is to keep it dry and vacuum, vacuum, vacuum.  Choose a vacuum that has suction and no brush bar or beater bar.  If you were to use a vacuum with a brush or beater bar it could push some of the powder further down into the fibers or the backing causing it to be more difficult to remove.  When vacuuming, make sure to do an extremely thorough job.  Spend way more time on this then you might otherwise to insure that all the loose powder is removed. 

Some of the powder residue may still be left in the fibers and further cleaning may be necessary.  If this is the case, then use some dry cleaning fluid or rubbing alcohol to flush out any remaining residue.  This can then be followed with some clean fresh water and vacuuming.  Make sure to leave the carpet as dry as possible when you are finished with the spot removal.