Many people rely on homemade carpet cleaning tricks to remove common stains off the surface of their carpets.
Homemade carpet cleaning refers to the use of materials or ingredients commonly found in one’s own kitchen which can be used for cleaning carpets as well as other upholstery and home furniture.
Some of the more popular homemade carpet cleaning tricks include the use of vinegar, ammonia, baking soda, salt, milk, ice cubes, and even shaving cream.
These are normally applied on the stained or soiled area using a toothbrush, baby wipes, or a clean piece of cloth.
What Are Some Examples Of Homemade Carpet Cleaning Techniques?
Sponging a soiled portion of carpet or any upholstery (like sofas and beds) with ammonia mixed with warm water is said to lift out the stains.
If your child spilled juice on the carpet, blotting the area with a clean piece of cloth or paper towel, and then, applying shaving cream is said to clean the juice and remove possible stains. After applying the shaving cream, wipe the area clean with a sponge and leave to dry.
Vinegar mixed with baking soda or salt is said to remove common stains like spilled tea or coffee.
For stains that have seeped deep into the carpet fibre, using a soft bristle toothbrush is said to reach and clean the stains away.
When Should You Stop Trying DIY Carpet Cleaning And Start Calling For Help?
While these homemade carpet cleaning tricks may work on some occasions, the common challenge with doing a DIY carpet cleaning lies in the fact that you will have to wait for some time before the solution would dry up to see if it has in fact cleaned the stain off your carpet.
What if the DIY way failed to clean your carpet thoroughly? Most people would repeat the process or increase the amount of the ingredients in the mixture.
How much time do you have in your hands to do the job twice over? How much vinegar, baking soda, ammonia, and salt do you have to use to achieve the immaculate clean you desire for your carpets?
How Many Times Should You Try Before Finally Deciding That Homemade Carpet Cleaning Isn’t Working?
It would be good to consider some signs homemade carpet cleaning is no longer doing a decent job removing your carpet stains, and that it’s time to call the professionals. Here are some of those signs:
Sign #1 : The Carpet Stain Is Still Visible
It’s not hard to tell the difference between a clean carpet and a stained one. Evidence of whether your homemade carpet cleaning is working or not can be easily seen. If the stain is still visible despite several attempts to clean it off, then that is an irrefutable sign doing it yourself isn’t getting the job done right.
Sign #2 : There Is Unpleasant Odour In The Carpet
A spotty, soiled carpet is already an eye sore, what more, if you have a carpet that has unpleasant odour. This is a possible evidence of the carpet not drying up thoroughly. If you use too much ammonia to clean your carpet stain and yet fail to completely dry it up, then you might end up inhaling a strong scent of a chemical. Vinegar does not smell as strong as ammonia, but still, you would not want to bring the smell of the kitchen to your living room or bedroom, would you?
Unpleasant odour in your carpet could also be the result of the original stain, and the homemade cleaning agents you used to clean it off, not washing away completely.
Because homemade carpet cleaning techniques normally don’t come with exact measurements, there’s always a chance of putting too much or too little of the cleaning solution. This could result in your carpet being poorly cleaned, if not damaged, from too much of the wrong mixture applied to it.
Sign #3 : The Carpet Shows Signs Of Damage
Do you notice that the colour of the stained portion of your carpet is fading? Touch your carpet. Do you feel that the surface where there is a stain seems to be thinning out? These could be signs of damage on your carpet.
Homemade cleaning agents are supposed to be safer and gentler on carpets, but if you put too much, then it still can cause more harm than good.
Carpets are an important feature of your home, not to mention, they can keep for years with proper care. Too much rubbing, brushing, wiping, too much applying of cleaning agents – whether homemade or chemical ones – can all lead to the carpet’s shorter life span.
Sign #4: You’re Tired Of It!
The last sign that tells you homemade carpet cleaning isn’t working for you is when you’ve tried it all, and you’re tired of it!
When all you want is to deal with the task in practical ways, if homemade carpet cleaning is already taking too much of your time and energy, then that is not being practical at all.
There could be a lot of reasons why doing it yourself isn’t working. Perhaps the stained area is too big, or the stain has dried up on the carpet for a long time now before you noticed it.
Before you end up blaming yourself, or giving up on a good roll of carpet altogether just because you think restoring it to an immaculate clean is hopeless, stop and reconsider your options.
Call A Professional Carpet Cleaning Team
Carpet cleaning professionals can pick up from where you left off, and they can do the job fast, efficient, and with satisfactory results.
Trained to handle the toughest stain, and to use cleaning techniques that won’t damage your carpet, professional carpet cleaners would first analyse the carpet cleaning job by asking you questions like what is the fibre of your carpet, is it made from natural fibre, wool or synthetic fibre? You will also be asked about the condition of the carpet. What stained it? How long has the stain been there? Is it heavily soiled? Is it placed on an area where there is high traffic, making it susceptible to scratches or damages?
You might think that a carpet cleaning job is too small to require the professionals to be called in. No job is too small if you want proper care for your carpet. In fact, you can choose for a light clean for regular maintenance purposes or for a periodic thorough clean.
Some carpet cleaning jobs may take anywhere from two hours to a few days’ time depending on the results you would like to achieve.
By hiring a professional carpet cleaning team, you get exactly the results you want, without having to break your own sweat having to do it on your own.
If at first your attempt for homemade carpet cleaning doesn’t work, engage professionals to do the job. They will take care of your carpet, taking dirt and stains away and making them last a long time.