General Tips for Carpet Stain Removal

There are plenty of things that hit the floor and we all have to remove carpet stains.

Removing carpet stains is not always an easy task. You need to invest a bit of time in learning the proper way to get rid of these stains.

To effectively clean the carpeting in your home, follow these important first tips.

• Always get to the stain as quickly as possible. If you want to remove a stain from a carpet, you really do need to get to it before it sets in your carpet pile. If you do not get to it right away, make sure to take the right actions to get the stain out the first time you try.
• Always blot stains rather than scrub them. It is tempting to get in there and scrub the carpet pile, but this can actually do more damage by forcing the stain farther into the carpet. Blotting is simple to do and effective. Use clean terry cloths or dry, white paper towels. Apply just enough pressure so that the liquid is absorbed. Turn the towel and do it again.
• Always test cleaning solutions in a hidden location of your carpet. You need to do this to insure that they will not further ruin your carpet for you. Test all products like this.
• Use quality products for treating your carpets. The old saying is true, if you apply a poor quality product to the carpet stain, you will get a poor result. Instead, look for a high quality result with a high quality product. You get what you pay for.
• Always follow the product’s instructions when you are applying them. Do not use a product unless you do so in the right direction.

Tools and Supplies You Need To Clean Carpet Stains

There are several products that you should have on hand to clean any of your carpet stains.

You will find these are necessary based on the various types of stains that you may have. Also, most of them are things you probably already have in your home!

• White paper towels or white terry cloths.
• Dish washing detergent.
• Ammonia.
• Isopropyl alcohol
• 3% hydrogen peroxide
• Vinegar
• A dull knife

How To Clean The Stains

Step One: Remove all that you can from the stain in the form of debris. Once you do this, then use white paper towels or terry cloth to blot the stain up. You want to remove as much as you can from the stain in the form of liquid before it sets into the carpet pile.

Step Two: If the stain is stuck into the pile, you can use a dull knife to scrape some of it out. Insure that you do not push the stain or debris into the carpet more so.

Step Three: Apply a cleaning solution to the area. You can do this by spraying the solution right onto the carpet stain or you can apply it to a sponge or a cloth and then apply to the stain. Blot the stain with a clean terry cloth or sponge to remove any and all of the stain from the pile. You can repeat this several times as long as you see the stain coming off the carpet onto the towel. Constantly change the cloth so that it remains dry.

Possible cleaning solutions;

• 1/4 of a teaspoon of dish detergent
• 1 cup of water

or

• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 teaspoon of ammonia

or

• 1/3 cup of white vinegar
• 2/3 cup of water

Step Four: If this does not work, you can apply hydrogen peroxide to the stain. Allow the peroxide to sit for about an hour or so. Go back to the stain and blot out the stain with a clean terry cloth. You do not need to rinse it off.

Step Five: When the stain has been mostly absorbed, place clean paper towels on top of the stain and apply something heavy to it. This will help the product to absorb into the paper towels to dry.