Raise your hand if you’ve felt victorious in getting your seven year old to clean up his room only to realize the random stack of books was hiding a mysterious stain certain to be from slime or perhaps a marker.   Anyone ever had a showing scheduled because you are ready to sell your home in Locust Grove only to have spaghetti sauce spill on the carpet the night prior?  Carpet stains are a nuisance especially when you’ve worked hard to clean up your home, but they don’t have to be the problem that defeats you.  Here is a guide to tackling those stains.

Stain Removal When You Witness the Crime

Although your first instinct may be to confront the stain creator, time is really of the essence when trying to prevent a stain from becoming permanent.  No matter the type, here are the first things you can to do remove the stain.

  • Blot the Spot  Using a plain white paper towel or white cloth, blot the stain to pick up as much liquid as possible.  Do not rub the stain further into the carpet and avoid colored cloths or paper towels with colorful designs as they can transfer the dye into your carpet.
  • Spoon and Vacuum  If the stain has some solid bits to it, use a spoon to scrape the bits off the carpet. Then use a vacuum to rid the carpet of the pieces.
  • Act Fast  The sooner you address the stain the easier it will be to clean.

Treating the Stains

Stain removers can be useful tools in removing unsightly marks from your carpet, but it is first important to do a test spot since some removers can damage the carpet.  Pick a less noticeable spot on the carpet and add a few drops of the cleaner.  Put a white cloth over your test spot for twenty seconds and look at the cloth to see if any color from the carpet has transferred to the cloth or if there is discoloration on the carpet.  If you don’t notice anything then you are good to go! Remember to rinse the test stop with some warm water to remove the carpet cleaner from the carpet.

Apply the stain remover to the stain and wait patiently for ten minutes or whatever is recommended on the bottle.  Starting from the outside of the stain and working inwards, gently blot the stain.  Switch out your rags when they become discolored.  Remember patience is a virtue so practice this as you repeat this process several times until the stain is gone.  Then, with a clean cloth, rinse the area with warm water from a spray bottle and blot dry.

To ensure that all the moisture makes it out of the carpet, stack a bunch of paper towels over the stain and weigh it down with a heavy object.  Switch out the paper towels when wet. With a little patience the stain will be no more at your home in Locust Grove.

Specific Stain Solutions

Here are some tips for ridding your home in Locust Grove of stains.

Blood

Don’t use warm water on this type of stain.  Instead apply cold water or club soda and blot with a clean cloth.  Another method is to mix a half of cup of cold water with one tablespoon of ammonia.  Apply to the stain and blot.  Then dip a sponge in cold water and blot until dry.

Candle wax

Head to the freezer first to remove candle wax from a carpet.  Place an ice pack on the wax for a few minutes until it hardens.  Then break up the wax using a butter knife and vacuum.  If wax remains, heat your clothes iron on low and place a paper bag or white cloth over the wax.  Move the iron over the stain; the heat should cause the wax to be absorbed into the cloth or paper bag.

Chocolate

Use a butter knife to scrape away the solid pieces and vacuum.  If the pieces are in a melted state try putting an ice pack on the spot and freezing them and then scraping.  Proceed with a stain remover of your choice.

Coffee or tea

Mix two tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide with one tablespoon of dish soap.  After blotting the stain, apply the mixture.  Blot the carpet with a white cloth and then rinse.

Tomato Sauce

Use a spoon to gently remove as much of the spilled sauce as possible.  Then add a generous amount of club soda to the stain and start blotting.  Dry the area with a paper towel and then use a stain remover to treat the stain.

Marker

When you are ready to sell your home in Locust Grove, nothing can give you a moment’s pause like seeing a toddler run past with a market in hand. To treat market stains, pull out some hairspray or rubbing alcohol.  Blot the stain with the rubbing alcohol or hairspray and repeat as necessary.

Gum

Sticky gum isn’t easy to work with so harden the gum by placing an ice pack over it. Once frozen, chip gum away with a spoon or butter knife.  Vacuum and clean the lingering stain with a stain remover.

Urine

When pets have accidents inside your home in Locust Grove, it can be hard to remove the odor and prevent the area from becoming a bathroom spot.  A key tool in removing the odor is to use an enzymatic cleaner like one of these. To remove urine stains on carpet, start by blotting up as much of the liquid as possible. Then apply an enzymatic cleaner and follow the instructions on the bottle.