Three Common Carpet Stains & How to Remove Them

You love your home’s carpet.  You created the beautiful room design that you always envisioned yet, unfortunately; accidents happen! There is nothing worse than a stain on your beautiful floors.  If you do not treat spills and accidents quickly, they can deeply penetrate your carpet fibers and become harder to remove.  Time is of the essence.  Knowing what stain you have will help you determine how to treat your carpet.  Here are three of the most common spills and accidents that happen to carpets.  Use these tricks to help clean your floors and having them looking new:

Urine

Grab a paper towel and let it absorb as much urine as possible.  Next, if possible, use a shop-vac to absorb any remaining liquid.  You can use clear dishwashing detergent and warm water to put on the stain.  Just make sure your dishwashing detergent does not contain harsh chemicals.  If you have any urine stain-remover spray, use this on the stain as well.  Soak up all the liquid with a paper towel by patting and not scrubbing.  You may need to repeat this process several times.  When finished, add a bit of diluted ammonia, and warm water-this can help kill any lingering smells left behind in the padding.

Wine

Blot the stain with a paper towel immediately.  You will need to dilute the stain to help break it down in order to remove it.  Add warm water to the stain to help you pat up more with a fresh paper towel.  You can use a shop-vac again to help pull remaining liquid.  Next, create a baking soda paste by adding a little bit of water to your baking soda.  Add this onto your stain and let sit to help absorb the stain.  You can then remove baking soda with shop-vac.  Repeat again if the stain persists.

Nail Polish

Add cold water to the stain and let it sit to absorb.  Then add hair spray and rubbing alcohol to your carpet.  You will use just enough hair spray to just begin to soak all the fibers. Grab a sponge and gently pat the spray out of the rug.  Repeat the process until the stain is gone. Try to avoid using acetone because it is a very aggressive solvent.  If you do choose to go this route, test it on your carpet in an unnoticeable area of your room because this may damage your carpet. Proceed with caution.

All stains need to be treated as quickly as they are noticed.  The longer they sit, the deeper they can penetrate.  If they get deep into the pad, you may have lingering smells in your home.  Also, do not scrub aggressively-this can also help the stain break into the fibers.  It is better to pat dry with a white paper towel and let cleaning agents do their magic. 

*Disclaimer: Please consult with your manufacturer’s website before attempting any stain removal. The carpet may react differently to the mentioned methods. It is always a good idea to test the method out on an unseen area of the room.