DIY Carpet Cleaning Hacks

DIY Carpet Cleaning

We try our best to keep our carpets clean and looking new, but as time goes by your rug is going to collect dirt and accidents resulting in unsightly stains are bound to happen. Check out these tips on how to safely clean your carpet using household products.
1. Test Drive!
Find a small area that is easy to hide where you can test a new product before using it on the entire floor. Some cleaning solutions aren’t made for certain types of carpets and may leave stains behind. Test in an area that can be hidden with furniture, or a small corner nobody is going to notice.

2. Vacuum First
Dirt gets compacted into our rugs from daily traffic. In order to make steam cleaning the most effective vacuum first to help loosen up dirt.

3. Use Baking Soda
Steam cleaning removes stains and kills bacteria. Despite popular belief chemicals are not necessary for killing bacteria. The heat of the steam is enough to kill off any bacteria that might be living in your carpet. Baking soda mixed with water can be used to remove any stains and leave your carpet smelling fresh.

4. Blot, Don’t Rub!
Its hard to resist rubbing when you’re trying to remove a stubborn stain. Rubbing will only push the stain deeper into the carpet. Blotting will help lift the stain, removing more.

5. Club Soda
Beer and wine stains can be difficult to remove, club soda can be an effective way to eradicate these stains, but it’s a process that requires a little patience. Start by blotting the area with club soda and a dry cloth. That might not work right away in which case you should spray the area with a mixture of one part water and one part vinegar. Let that soak for 10-15 min. Once you’ve allowed the mixture to soak, press a clean sponge into the area to soak up the solution. You may need to repeat this process a few times to completely remove the stain.

6. Shaving Cream to the Rescue!
Who knew shaving cream could be so useful? Apply shaving cream to a stain and let it sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, blot the stain away with a dry cloth. It’s that simple!

7. Freeze Gum Away!
Stepped in gum and tracked it onto your carpet? Grab some ice cubes from your freezer and hold them against the trapped gum until its frozen. Use a sponge to scoop it off the carpet. There may be a small amount of gum stuck to the carpet fibers, but you will be able to trim those pieces without it being noticeable.

8. Cut Through Grease Stains
Mix a solution of dishwashing detergent and water and spray it onto the affected area. Blot the spot with a dry cloth. The detergent will cut through the grease in your carpet just like it would cut through grease on your dishes.

9. Wax Catastrophe
Burning candles is a lovely way to set a romantic mood, but they aren’t as lovely when the wax ends up embedded in your carpet. To remove wax from your carpet place a towel over the area and heat it up with an iron. Once it’s been heated use a butter knife to scrape up the wax. Once that’s been done place a paper towel over the area and run the iron over that. Any remaining wax will bind to the paper making it easy to lift from your carpet.

10. Hydrogen Peroxide
Blood stains are unsightly and unsanitary. Nothing works better to remove blood than hydrogen peroxide. Start by loosening the stain with a mixture of warm water and dish detergent. Blot up as much as you can then apply hydrogen peroxide directly to the stain. Dab at the stain to dry the carpet and the stain should be removed!

Don’t let carpet stains ruin your day. Small stains can easily be removed at home using products you probably already have on hand. For bigger stains that are trickier to remove you can call in the professionals from Octagon Cleaning and Restoration to help!