The secret to spot cleaning is to act immediately and accordingly.
To ensure this happens, make sure you always have these easy DIY solutions handy:
- Dry cleaning solvent, eg. white spirits
- Detergent solution made of a teaspoon on non-bleach powder in a cup of water
- Baking soda solution to neutralise acid spillages made with a teaspoon of baking soda in a cup of water
- Vinegar solution to neutralise alkaline spillages, use 1/3 white vinegar and 2/3 water
- White absorbent cloths or paper towels.
Tips:
- Scoop up as much of the spill as possible, with a towel or a knife/spoon.
- Blot the spot, don’t rub or scrub.
- Gently press clean cloths into the stained area to remove moisture. Scrubbing can damage the fibre and set the stain into the carpet.
- Work from the outside of the spill inward, to avoid spreading.
- Blot liquid spills using white absorbent cloths or paper towel.
- Apply warm, not hot, water to the stained area and blot until the stain stops transferring to the cloth.
- Do not rub.
- If you can still see the stain, make a Detergent Solution by adding 1/4 teaspoon dishwashing liquid to one cup warm water. Don’t use too much soap, because it’s difficult to rinse out of the carpet.
- Apply the detergent solution, let sit five minutes, then rinse with clear warm water. Repeat until all the detergent is removed.
- Place layers of white paper towels on the spill to absorb the liquid. Weight down the towels with a non-staining glass or ceramic object. You can let them sit overnight.
- When the carpet is dry, vacuum to restore the texture.
- If you can see the stain after all this, repeat steps 3 through 7. It means the stain penetrated deep into the pile and has wicked up to the surface.
Happy flooring! 🙂
Paula
