Children are a blessing, pets bring joy to your life and everyone enjoys a good party. Unfortunately, these can all leave stains on your carpet. Whether it’s spilled red wine during a party, muddy paws or a creative concoction that the child made while you were working on the laundry, you should have a secret arsenal of carpet cleaning supplies ready to go.
Water Soluble Stains
Alcohol, berries, colas, gravy and even food dyes are all examples of water-soluble stains. If they were on a hard surface, you would easily wipe them away using a little water and soap. In your carpet, you can clean them with a household mixture featuring 32-ounces of water and a quarter-teaspoon of household detergent or white vinegar. Start by blotting up as much of the stain as you can. Then pour a little of the mixture over it and start blotting it up again to remove the stain and leave the carpet looking great.
Tougher Water-Soluble Stains
Blood, chocolate, coffee, tea, vomit, wine and mustard are a little tougher to remove. These stains are water-soluble, but they are also more resistant to treatment. Mix a tablespoon of ammonia with a cup of water to clean these stains and restore the carpet. You can also use a hand blender to beat dish detergent mixed with a few drops of water into a foamy cleanser. Gently rub this into the carpet, let it sit for a few minutes and then rinse it out of the carpet with warm water.
Ink Stains
You picked up your child’s blanket and discovered a ball point pen had ruptured all over your beige carpet. Your first thought may be that all is lost and it’s time for new carpet anyway. Before you spend the money on new carpet, get out the bottle of rubbing alcohol and a collection of paper towels. Pour a small amount of straight rubbing alcohol over the stain and immediately start blotting it with the paper towel. The ink will transfer to the paper towel. Repeat the process until you have removed as much of the ink as possible.
Oil and Wax
Did your sweet daughter accidentally tip over her hot wax pedicure kit? Maybe your son was playing and sent wax flying when he knocked into a candle. Perhaps some greasy fried food fell on the floor during a party. When oil and wax mar your beautiful rugs, the answer is actually in your laundry room. Use an iron set on a low, warm setting and paper towels to remove these stains. Simply put the paper towels over the stain and rub the iron over it to heat the wax and transfer it to the towel.
Gum
Kids love chewing gum, but mothers everywhere despair when they find it ground into the new carpet. This is also easier to fix than you think. Heat removes oil and wax, but freezing temperatures are the right choice for gum. Use an ice cube to freeze the gum, and then break it apart and pull it out of the carpet using a blunt object like a credit card or the dull side of a butter knife.
Regardless of the stains you have on your carpet, there is hope for removing them. Fast treatment is necessary to prevent the stains from setting, but we can remove most stains even if they have dried and resisted other treatments. Keep this arsenal ready to go when accidents happen, but contact our team of professionals at High Quality Carpet when a stain has you stumped and refuses to fade.