The best way to clean carpets: what’s the secret?
Do you have a carpet? Has it been there for a while and looks like it needs a full-fledged cleaning despite the care you took to keep away all dirty stuff away from it? If the answer is yes, then you need to know some ways through which you can keep your carpets spotless.
If you have pets or kids, there is less than zero percent chance for your carpet to stay clean, but you can always look for different ways that can help you clean it every once in a while.
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Best Ways to Clean Carpet
Let’s be honest, whatever you do, you can’t protect the carpet from spills, drops and accidents such as stepping on it with your shoes and getting whatever is stuck to them on your carpets. However, some of the tips, tricks and methods described below will come in handy when you decide it’s the right time to clean your carpet of all the gunk and dirt.
Always Blot, Never Rub
Did you just drop a glass of wine on your carpet? Or maybe you accidently assumed your carpet was your burger and dripped some ketchup on it? What we usually do in these circumstances is to rub the stain with a cloth. Don’t do that AT ALL. Instead of this, take a paper towel or a clean cloth and put some cleaning solution on it. Dab the stain with this cloth.
Always remember that the magic is in blotting through which you can apply enough pressure that allows the cloth to soak up the stain. What rubbing ends up doing is smashing the particles further into the fibers of the carpet, making it difficult to clean as well as making the fibers break down prematurely. Always remember that blotting should be done inward from the outer side of the stain rather than doing it outward, which usually leads to further spreading of the stain on the carpet.
Club Soda Is the Perfect Remedy
I’m sure most people know that club soda is a very effective cleaner when it comes to cleaning stains caused by an alcohol spill. This is quite true as long as it is used correctly.
Just pour some club soda on a cloth and blot the carpet with it. It is most certainly going to work. However, on the off chance that it doesn’t work, follow the steps given below:
- Pour white vinegar and water in equal quantities into a sprayer.
- Use the sprayer to sprinkle the solution over the stain. Be generous with the sprinkling, but don’t pour too much either.
- Keep the solution there for 10-15 minutes so that it can be properly soaked up.
- Use a clean sponge or washcloth and dab the area. This would allow the cloth to soak up both the liquid solution and the stain.
- You would be required to repeat the process a few times to get the stain out completely.
- Once the stain is completely out of the carpet, you have to wash the spot on the carpet with lukewarm water to get the remaining solution out. Use your hand to brush the fibers of the carpet in their natural direction. Try not to use a brush as it might damage the fibers.
- Finally, to absorb all the excess liquid, put some paper towels on the wet area and weigh them down with something like a book. It would take about a day for all the dampness to be absorbed by the towels.
Shaving Cream Is for More Than Shaving
If you have an ordinary stain, you can easily clean it with a shaving cream. This is easy not only because it would clean the carpet quickly but also because shaving cream is usually available in the house. Using the shaving cream to clean your carpet is pretty simple.
- Apply some shaving cream on the area that has been affected. Let the cream set for around half an hour.
- Take a dry cloth and blot out the shaving cream from the carpet.
- Make the solution described above by mixing white vinegar and water.
- Spray the solution onto the affected area.
- Use a dry cloth to wipe away all the liquid solution.
Some professionals say that shaving cream can work on almost any stain.
Freeze the Gum to Death
You went out and when you came back, you brought some gum with you. Not in your pocket but stuck to your shoe. This gum then gets stuck to your carpet. Disgusting, no? However, the bigger problem is, how can you get out of this sticky situation? The answer is to freeze it.
The second you see a gum stuck on your carpet, run to your refrigerator and grab a couple of ice cubes. Put it on the gum for about half a minute to a minute. Once the gum is frozen, you can scrape it out with a spoon. You might need to cut a small section of the strands of the carpet that are close to the gum. This way you would be able to get rid of the gum completely, and the strands cut would also be almost negligible.
Horrible Grease Not a Problem with Dishwater Detergent
You see a grease mark on your carpet, and you gasp! Grease is one stain that is quite difficult to get out of the carpet, and it is sure to make the hair on your arm stand up due to the fear of not being able to get it out easily. Just follow the given steps, and the grease mark would go away like magic.
- Mix a few drops of grease-cutting detergent in a cup of water.
- Pour the solution in a sprayer and spray on the affected area.
- Finally, blot the solution with a paper towel.