Carpets and rugs are bound to get stains sometime or another. Incidents happen and stains need to be cleaned before they set in permanently. The longer you let a stain stay in the carpet, the more difficult it is to remove. There are several home remedies you can use but first try them out in one obscure area to be sure it won’t take out the color.
To get rid of blood in rugs and carpets, soak up as much of the wetness as you can with a mixture of a teaspoon of white vinegar, one quart of warm water, and one teaspoon of mild laundry powder. After you blot up moisture, allow to dry. Apply some dry cleaning liquid and let it dry. Follow up with a gentle vacuum. If gum gets stuck in the carpet, apply some ice cubes to harden. The hard gum will come right off. For acid stains, dilute them with baking soda mixed with water or club soda. When chocolate is dropped on carpets, scrape it off right away. Mix one quart of water, on teaspoon of detergent, and one teaspoon of white vinegar. Spray it on the spot.
Vacuum after the spot has dried. For ketchup stains, use two cups of water and one cup of white vinegar. Rub the mixture on the area with a sponge. Wring out the sponge often to get rid of the ketchup. To get rid of red wine stains, dilute them with white wine and then clean. Rinse with cold water and cover with table salt. After ten minutes, vacuum the salt.
One note of caution. You must be very careful when cleaning natural rugs, especially those with vegetal dyes such as gabbeh rugs. These rugs are not only delicate, they are expensive! Cleaning these rugs is a task best left to professionals.
These are only a few remedies for stains on rugs and carpets. You will find plenty of other tips online or from reading books. There is no need to panic over a stained carpet. If home remedies aren’t helpful, you may need to rent a steam cleaner.