How To Remove Carpet Stains
The Up-To-Date Stain Removal Guide!
As the summer months approach, so do the late night gatherings, and an increase of spilled late night food and drink. We thought now would be the best time to update our deep clean stain removal guide!
Just a quick FYI – we use the word “blot” a lot here, so much so that it’s stopped looking like a word to us. When you blot, you push down. No side to side, not on a carpet!
You’re trying to push water and washing up liquid/vinegar etc. in to the carpet to dilute the spill before you absorb it back up with a clean cloth or towel.
Now that the men know what blotting is, let’s get cracking on those spills! We’ve got two recipes for you as you scroll a little, and then spill specific techniques further down. Enjoy!
Basic Carpet Spot Cleaner Recipes
Many household carpet stains can be cleaned with products that you’ll probably already have like dishwashing soap, vinegar, and baking soda.
You’ve got a glass cleaner under the sink that you haven’t used in 3 months, why not have a spot cleaner ready to go?
If your stain is water soluble (disperses with water) such as kids drinks, adults drinks, some food (not oil!) then it’ll go well with a detergent-based cleaner.
For this, just grab your dish soap whether it’s Fairy or Tesco’s own (we prefer Fairy’s non-drip bottles with Tesco’s own topped up in there) and add it to a bucket of water.
This one is all in the technique, you’re going to blot the area. Get a cloth (sponge will work too but it takes a little longer) and get it damp with the mix, not soaking!
Press the cloth down and you’re just going to dilute the stain with your mix. Don’t scrub, you can damage the carpet.
Grab a clean, dry cloth/towel/kitchen roll and soak up the water on the floor – again blot, don’t scrub.
Now rinse and repeat (pun semi-intended). Blot, Dry, Blot, Dry. The stain will lift on its own.
For More Stubborn Stains
For a little more serious stains, using ammonia (but who has that lying around) or vinegar is best. These are both effective cleaning agents that break down grease, while the acid dissolves many other stains like wine.
If you have pets or children, or you don’t have good ventilation, then we would recommend trying vinegar first as it is less hazardous and you’re also more likely to have it on hand.
Vinegar will often need to be diluted to use a cleaner, but how much will depend on the type of vinegar used and how bad the stain is. If you’ve got white vinegar you’re golden.
If you’re using the vinegar you’d stick on chips then maybe keep it more diluted or replace it with fresh water when the initial stain’s gone, to remove the smell of the vinegar.
Common Carpet Stains and How To Remove Them
Coffee and Tea
Act fast and blot with either kitchen roll or a cotton towel. When it stops transferring to the kitchen roll or towel, pour a small amount of cold water on to the area. Keep blotting until it stops transferring again. If the stain is persisting, dilute some white vinegar 1:1 with cold water, and add a small amount onto the stain. Then blot, and rinse and repeat until it’s gone.
(Vinegar can stain a carpet itself, make sure you dilute it and try it on an unseen area first!)
Chocolate stains
If the chocolate’s dry, take a butter knife and gently scrape at it to remove as much as possible. If it’s melted then blot the chocolate with cold water to help it solidify. This stops the spread and makes it easier to remove. Use small circular motions to remove the stain, and brush with a soft brush if needed. Let it dry and try then hoover any last little bits that might remain.
Wine stains
Act very fast – grab a cloth, paper towel or anything absorbent thing you can quickly get your hands on and blot it as much as you can. Any wine you can get up is wine you don’t have to remove later. When you’ve got as much as you can from blotting, pour some cold water on to dilute it and blot away again. Remember, do not rub the carpet, only blot!
Next make a paste of baking soda by mixing 3:1 water to soda. Apply this to the stain. Once the paste is dry, vacuum it.
If the paste doesn’t work, try using two cups of warm water mixed with one tablespoon of white vinegar and one tablespoon of washing up liquid.
Mud Stains
Give the mud time to dry. It’s easier to remove dry mud than wet, and removing wet mud can just make the stained area bigger or worse.
Vacuum the area thoroughly, then apply a carpet shampoo to a white cloth and blog the area. Keep going until it stops transferring to the cloth.
Apply a spot remover using one of the recipes above, and blot the carpet. Repeat this til the stain’s gone. Dry the area with a cloth or paper towel and then use a soft brush over the carpet to align the pile again!
Candle Wax Stains
An ice pack can be used to remove candle wax from carpet. Use it to freeze the wax which will then make it brittle. In order to remove the pieces of wax, gently break them up and then vacuum them up. In order to remove the stain, use a carpet cleaner, following the manufacturer’s instructions, or you can use a white cloth dampened with rubbing alcohol. The area should be blotted to ensure that it is dry.
Gum
It is important that you peel away as much gum as possible. Place a resealable plastic bag containing ice cubes over the remaining gum and allow it to harden like you can with candle wax. With a dull knife or spoon, you can chip away the gum with ease. Following the instructions on the label of your carpet cleaner, vacuum the carpet and clean any lingering stains with a dry-solvent carpet cleaner.
Blood
We’re going to look past the reason you need this information. Accidents happen to people too, and the last thing you want to be dealing with when you have an injury is worrying about the carpet.
Here’s how to get blood out of a carpet:
Start with COLD water. Using warm makes the blood coagulate (go goopy, you don’t want that).
Blot up as much fluid as you can. If the blood has dried, use a brush to break it up and remove as much dry deposit as you can.
Mix one tablespoon of dish soap with two cups of cold water.
Blot the mixture onto the stain with a clean cloth, taking care not to rub the stain into the carpet. You can also use a spray bottle to wet the stain before blotting it.
Keep sponging the stain until it disappears.
If there is still residue left, you can try using ammonia (do not mix with bleach!) diluted with water or a stronger carpet stain remover.
In Conclusion:
We hope you never should have to use these methods, but if a time comes where you’ve got a spill on your hands, we hope it helps!
If your carpets are past repair and these methods won’t work, how about splitting the cost of a new carpet over months from just £10 per week?
At Easipay Carpets, we don’t charge interest and our prices are highly competitive. You’ll also get free underlay as well as carpet grippers and under door trims and we have a wide range to pick from. You can pay weekly, fortnightly or monthly and we design the plans to fit around you and your budget. Want to enquire? Fill out the form below and join the thousands of happy customers who’ve left 5 star reviews across Trustpilot and Google!
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About The Author
Matt
Matt is a master at gathering relevant information and rolling it into a ball of digestibility. Fuelled by caffeine and metal bands, you'll usually find him in the office either writing blog posts with verification from our most experienced flooring fitters, creating new ad designs, working on our social media and website or finding ways to improve our customer's whole experience with us. Matt is part of the background force that keeps the Pay Weekly side of Easipay Carpets growing.
Updated: 05/04/2024
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