How to Remove Carpet Stains, Part 2
by Midland Marble • September 19, 2011 • Carpet • 5 Comments
This is the second of several posts dedicated to carpet stain removal.
Coffee – Use a wet/dry vacuum first, if you can, because it will pick up the liquid without spreading the stain. Then mix a teaspoon of dish detergent in a quart of warm water. Apply a little at a time using a spray bottle. Work it in gently, then blot it up using a clean white cloth or white paper towels. Repeat as necessary. Now mix 3 ounces of white vinegar in 6 ounces of water and apply/blot several times, as necessary. Drying the carpet quickly with a fan or weighted paper towels will help prevent deep rooted coffee stains from migrating to the surface.
Soft Drinks – Use a wet/dry vacuum first, if you can, because it will pick up the liquid without spreading the stain. Rinse the area with water using a spray bottle and blot. Mix a tablespoon of ammonia in a cup of water and spray on the stain. Repeat spraying/blotting but do not soak the carpet heavily that the solution reaches the padding or damage could result.
Ketchup – Rinse and blot using water to remove as much as possible, then mix a tablespoon of ammonia in a half cup of water and apply with a spray bottle. Blot and repeat as necessary. Mix a few drops of dishwashing detergent with a cup of warm water and apply it to the stain. Blot and repeat as necessary. Repeat spraying/blotting but do not soak the carpet heavily that the solution reaches the padding or damage could result.
Nail Polish – Apply nail polish remover to the corner of a clean white cloth and dab the stain with the cloth. Work it gently. Do not spread the stain deeper into the fibers. Do not pour polish remover on the stain because it can reach the backing of the carpet and cause delamination, damaging the carpet. Be patient and repeat until the stain is gone. Then you have to remove the polish remover from the carpet using a mixture of a few drops of dishwashing detergent in a cup of water and spraying it on the area, then blotting. Then you have to remove the detergent from the carpet, or it will attract dirt. So rinse and blot with plain water.
Pet Poop – Pick up large pieces. Scrape dried remains using the edge of a spoon or dull knife. Flush the spot with water and use a wet/dry vacuum to recover the water. Repeat as necessary. Mix a tablespoon of ammonia with 4 ounces of water to neutralize odor. Don’t let it soak too deep into the carpet. Spray and blot repeatedly. Mix four to five drops of dishwashing detergent in a cup of warm water. Spray this and work it in gently. Blot and dry.
Urine – Act quickly and use a wet/dry vacuum to get it out of the carpet. Then mix ¼ teaspoon dishwashing detergent with one cup of warm water and spray over the area. Extract the solution using a wet/dry vacuum or blot it up with cloths. Then mix two tablespoons ammonia in a cup of water, rinse, extract and repeat as necessary. Lightly apply a solution of one cup white vinegar in two cups of water, rinse and extract. Then dry the carpet.
Great info! I might recommend updating the urine removal measurements to 1/4 teaspoon rather than a 1/4 cup of dish soap. I’m sure that’s what you meant. Also, being a professional carpet cleaning company, remember the solution to pollution is dilution. Any soda spills that contain salt – like urine- can re-wick to the surface. If the soda or urine has reached the padding, you might want to recommend having a carpet cleaning company use a flood extractor for full removal. Just a thought. I see these spill resurface over-and-over because it was never removed properly from the pad. all in all, great post and helpful!
Brandon B
EverClean Carpet Cleaning
515 Anderson Lane
Nashville TN 37115
615-810-8430
615-Dry-Fast! (379-3278)
http://www.evercleantn.com
There are many stain removal techniques for those accidents that happen just from living in your home and having a family. It is important to know how to deal with them when they happen to avoid having to have a carpet spot and stain removal company come out to your home. Things like red wine and grease might seem impossible to remove from your carpet but they actually are something any homeowner can do with the right techniques.
First let us look into the matter of bleach. Bleach stains aren’t really stains at all. It is actually where the dye has been removed from the carpet. There is not really a technique to get a bleach stain off since it really is not a stain at all. You must actually have the section of ruined carpet dyed back to match the rest of the carpet. You can either have the carpet dyed or have that section replaced depending on the size of the area affected by bleach.
You will laugh when I give my next suggestion but I have tested this and it really works. I have frieze carpet with beige and gray so when I spilled Merlot it did not really go to well with the motif in place already. I began by blotting up as much red wine as I could with a white clean rag. This absorbed the majority of wine before it reached deep into the carpet. I then let the area dry and pour white wine onto the affected area. This actually negates the effect of the red wine and the satin is removed. The old saying, “If you don’t succeed try, try again” is true here. It may take more than one time to completely remove the stain.
Most carpet cleaners are wary about ink spots or stains. Many of them have experienced limited success in removing them from carpet. Ink stains are particularly difficult to deal with when found on light colored high density plush pile carpets.
One of the peculiar characteristics of ink spots, is the ease with which it spreads in the carpet after an initial application of a solvent. That is why extra care must be taken to avoid rubbing the stain. Blotting, or extraction with a wet vac is the recommended method for its removal.
The type and degree of carpet cleaning that will be necessary to remove urine odors and stains depends on an individual’s personal level of tolerance to odors in particular. Each individual has different and unique levels of sensitivity to odors. Each situation is also unique. The urine contamination may have been caused by a one-time piddling accident by a small pet, or some dribbling around the toilet by a small child, or it may have accumulated over time from the activities of a Great Dane who has claimed that territory.
The extent of carpet cleaning must therefore be related to how completely you want the odor to be removed and how much you are willing to spend to do this. Someone who lives with a pet in the home would naturally be more tolerant of a malodorous condition, than someone who has just moved into an apartment that was recently vacated by the owner of an untrained pet.
Before you attempt to remove that awful stain on your carpet, stop and think, what made that stain? Having this information will help you to remove the stain from your carpet instead of just making a bigger mess.
Thinking back you remember now that it occurred last night while entertaining some friends. It’s best to learn exactly what will work on that type of spot before trying to remove it from your carpet. Different things work on different spots and you need to be sure that what you use will remove it as it should.
Going about taking the spot out in the wrong way will only make things worse or even set the spot in your carpet forever. I’ve seen many customers make a real problem of a spot before they finally give up and ask me to remove it. I always hate having to tell these people that the spot will never come out because they tried so hard.