Rug Cleaning Solution
Have a stain in your carpet or rug that you can't get out? Try this simple solution to hopefully get your carpet clean again.
Here is reason #1 I do not have a "nice" area rug under my dining table. Sure, I would love something with some color and pattern but I have 4 very messy kids that drop something on the floor every meal we eat...I bought a bound piece of 9x12 carpet at Lowes for $80 and put it under my table and maybe one day when we get out of the slippery hand stage, we can upgrade to the rug I really want under there.
Dinnertime, one of the kids dropped their plate of ketchup all over the rug...
Here is a quick mixture that will pull up mostly anything out of your carpet.
- 1 C warm water
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
- 1 Tbsp dawn dish soap
Put your water in a bowl and add your other two ingredients and mix. Get a rag and get ready to blot.
Get your rag wet and start blotting at the stain (it will pull it up out of the fibers) Never scrub out a stain it only rubs it further into fibers.
After a couple blots the stain will start to pull up.
After I initially blotted it, I did leave the remaining solution on the stain to soak for about 10 minutes.
Come back with a dry, clean rag and apply pressure (stepping on it works great).
Once you got most of the water soaked up, let it air dry.
Stain is gone! (For now!) On the opposite side of the rug red gaterade spilled all over but this mixture pulled it up. I hope this helps! Adding some hydrogen peroxide will definitely help too on those stubborn bright stains.
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If you read the post...she said - On the opposite side of the rug, red Gaterade spilled all over, but this pulled it up. Don't know about Gaterade being "toxic" but it sure can stain! LOL Personally, I'll try this on a red wine stain.
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I use this all the time. Anything with red liquid ( kool-aid, beet juice, etc )will stain carpet, countertops, wood floors, clothes etc. and is extremely difficult to remove if not cleaned up immediately. I have used this spot remover on several occasions (with peroxide) and it works great on new and older stains. Even a formal dress I really liked with a large grease spot that professional cleaners couldn’t get out. ( After a couple of years in the back of my closet I decided to try one more time with this solution.) It worked! I think Dawn dish soap is used as it seems to work better on greasy spots. (Ex. Ring around the collar ( body oils) cooking oils and grease, oil from cars and tools etc) It’s my all purpose stain cleaner.
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
Why Dawn?? Is it really so special (for everything!)??
Call me lazy, but wouldn't it be easier cleanup to not have a carpet under the table while the kids are young?
Doesn't the soap residue need to be rinsed out? Seems like it would look great for a while and then redidue would start grabbing dirt.
Also, I was told by a carpet expert never to use baking soda on carpet because the dried crystals will cut the fibers.
Don't know which is worse, living with a stain or possible future ramifications from clean-up.