The best time to clean out a stain from your carpet is as soon as the spill occurs. But, it’s not always possible. Sometimes you’re busy. Sometimes you just forget. A few weeks pass by, even months, and before you know it, you’re stuck with an old stain that is clinging to your carpet like a leech. Don’t worry though, not everything’s lost. With a few simple tricks, you can get rid of those pesky stains, whether they’re a few weeks old or a few years.
To help you remove old stains from your carpets, we have compiled a list of 7 general cleaning tricks that would work for most stains and 2 specific removal methods for specific types of stains.
For all kinds of stains:
The following 7 cleaning methods should remove most stains from your carpets.
1. Baking soda paste
Things you’ll need:
- Baking soda
- Water
- Bowl
- Vacuum cleaner
- Few clean white sheets of towel
- A couple of heavy books
What to do:
- Vacuum the carpet to remove loose dirt.
- In a bowl, add a cup of baking soda and two tablespoons of water. Stir and add water as required.
- Keep going until you get a thick white paste (similar to toothpaste or face mask cream).
- Now pour the paste generously over the stain.
- Use your fingers to gently rub the paste into the carpet fibers.
- Leave the paste over the stain for some time.
- Fold some sheets of towels and stack them over the stain.
- Use a few heavy books to weigh the towel sheets down.
- Wait from 30 minutes to an hour, and then remove the books and the sheets. The stain should have transferred onto them.
Use a powerful vacuum to remove the leftover paste from the carpet.
2. Vinegar
Things you’ll need:
- Vinegar
- Hot water
- Spray bottle
- Steam iron
- Clean white sheets of cloth
What to do:
- Take one part vinegar and 3 parts hot water, mix and pour the solution into a spray bottle.
- Spray the entire stained area with the vinegar-water mixture.
- Place a clean white piece of cloth over the stain and run a steam iron over it. The stain will get transferred to the cloth.
- Change the cloth when necessary.
- Repeat until the stain is removed completely.
3. Hydrogen peroxide
Things you’ll need:
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Spray bottle
- Brush
- Steam Vacuum ( or clean sheets of towel)
What to do:
- Pour hydrogen peroxide into a spray bottle.
- Spray the chemical onto the stain until it is completely saturated.
- Wait for 15 minutes.
- Use a brush on the carpet to loosen up the stain.
- Suck up the peroxide from the carpet using a steam vacuum. Or, you could blot the stain with clean sheets of towels.
- Repeat if necessary.
- Use salt or baking soda to remove leftover moisture.
4. Vinegar and baking soda
Things you’ll need:
- Baking soda
- Vinegar
- Water
- Spray bottle
- Brush
- Vacuum cleaner
What to do:
- Spray some baking soda over the stain.
- Mix one part vinegar with one part water and pour into a spray bottle.
- Spray the vinegar water solution over the layer of baking soda.
- Let the mixture stay on the carpet for a few hours
- Scrub the carpet with a brush.
- Use a vacuum cleaner to scoop up the vinegar baking soda paste.
5. Club soda
Things you’ll need:
- Club soda
- Spray bottle
- Brush
- Steam Vacuum ( or clean sheets of towel)
What to do:
Spray club soda onto the stain using a spray bottle until the stain is completely saturated.
- Leave it be for 15-30 minutes.
- Brush the carpet to loosen up the stain.
- Vacuum with a steam vacuum or blot with clean sheets of towel to remove the club soda.
- Repeat until the stain is completely removed.
- Get rid of the remaining moisture using baking soda or salt.
5. Ammonia
Things you’ll need:
- Ammonia
- Hot water
- Spray bottle
- Steam iron
- Clean white sheets of cloth
What to do:
- Mix ammonia and hot water in a ratio of 1:1 and pour it into a spray bottle
- Spray the mixture over the stain generously. Make sure the entire stain is covered.
- Place a clean white sheet of cloth over the stain and use a steam iron to iron it.
- When the cloth gets stained, change it.
- Keep changing the sheets and continue ironing the stain until it is completely removed.
7. Baking soda with vinegar and dishwashing liquid
Things you’ll need:
- Vinegar
- Baking soda
- Dishwashing detergent
- Bowl
- Brush
- Clean sheets of cloth
What to do:
- First, sprinkle baking soda over the stain generously.
- Take a bowl. Pour 4 cups of warm water. Now, mix 2 tablespoons of dish detergent and 2 tablespoons of white vinegar with it.
- Pour some solution over the stain. The mixture should start to bubble, upon contact with the baking soda.
- Let the mixture stay for a while.
- Use a clean sheet of cloth to slowly blot away the stain.
- Keep blotting until the stain is completely removed
- Use more baking soda to get rid of excess moisture.
For specific stains
Some types of stains require a little more effort than others. Read on to find out how to remove urine and blood stains from carpet:
1. Urine Stain
Things you’ll need:
- Vinegar
- Baking soda
- Dish soap
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Spray bottle
- Vacuum
- Brush
- Clean rags
What to do:
- Mix equal amounts of white vinegar and lukewarm water in a spray bottle.
Warning: Never use hot water for urine stains as it sets the stain into the carpet.
- Generously spray the mixture over the stain until it is completely saturated.
- Spread the vinegar on the carpet with a soft bristled brush.
- Leave the mixture on the carpet for half an hour.
- Blot the solution from the carpet with clean rags.
- Allow the carpet to air dry.
- Once it’s dry, sprinkle generous amounts of baking soda over the stained area.
- In a bowl, mix half a cup of hydrogen peroxide with 1 tablespoon of dish soap.
- Pour the mixture on top of the baking soda powder.
- Rub the mixture gently onto the carpet fibers, first using your fingers and then with a soft-bristled brush.
- Let the mixture dry.
- Vacuum the carpet to remove the cleaning ingredients used.
2. Dried blood stain
Things you’ll need:
- Dishwashing liquid
- Ammonia
- White vinegar
- Brush
- Vacuum
- Few sheets of Paper towel
- Clean rags
- Bowls
- Heavy books
What to do:
- Brush as much dried blood off the carpet as possible.
- Vacuum the carpet.
- Mix one teaspoon of dishwashing liquid with 2 cups of cold water.
- Soak a clean rag into the mix and wet the stain with it.
- Blot the liquid with a clean towel.
- Repeat as long as the towel absorbs the stain.
- Next, mix one tablespoon of ammonia with half a cup of water.
- Wet the stain with the mixture until it is saturated.
- Cover the stain with a thick layer of paper towel and weigh it down with a heavy book.
- Remove the towels after half an hour.
- Let the carpet dry for a day.
- If the stain reappears, mix one part white vinegar with two parts water in a bowl.
- Wet the stain with the mixture until it is saturated.
- Blot the stain.
- Cover the stain with a thick layer of paper towel and place a heavy book over it.
- Remove after 30 minutes and let the carpet dry.
Additional tips:
Here are a few other tips to keep in mind while removing old stains from the carpet:
Use Gloves
Use gloves to protect your hands while handling harsh chemicals like ammonia and hydrogen peroxide. It will prevent chemical burns and other accidental injuries.
Try to avoid harsh cleaners if possible
Harsh cleaners like ammonia and hydrogen peroxide may be very effective in getting rid of stains, but they can easily harm your skin or your carpet if handled improperly. Treat them like a necessary evil and try to use natural cleaners like vinegar as far as possible.
Move from the outer edge of the stain to the center.
While blotting stains off the carpet, your blotting motion should move from the outer edge of the stain toward the center of the stain. It will prevent the stain from spreading out and make your cleaning process smoother.
Test-patch
Before applying any cleaner on your carpet, run a test patch over an inconspicuous area (like the carpet under the couch). Make sure the cleaner doesn’t damage the color or texture of the carpet in any way.
Dry afterward
Wet patches on carpets are perfect breeding spots for mold and mildew. So, after cleaning out the stain from your carpet, be sure to dry it properly. For small patches, use a hair dryer to get rid of the moisture. You can also sprinkle salt or baking soda over the wet patch and let it absorb the moisture.
Deep clean regularly
Deep clean your carpets at least once a year. Deep cleaning removes dirt and grime that regular cleaning does not. It will get rid of leftover stains that did not get completely cleaned out and leave your carpets looking fresh and sparkling clean.
Try these methods and get rid of even the most stubborn stains on your carpets.