Pale carpets look beautiful in any home. Classic and elegant, they serve to show the room  at its best. Unfortunately, life often isn’t kind to a pale carpet. From time to time, it can be subjected to the harsh treatment of people and pets.

Spills from dropped wine and food, dirt from muddy shoes or grubby footprints from cats and dogs mean that your stunning pale carpet can quickly be transformed into a stained mess. If you fitted your carpet before any of these little critters came along, you might be wondering if it’s time to replace it with a nice, sensible brown.

But there are ways though to bring a soiled carpet back to its former glory, so don’t be too dismayed. Here are some top tips to removing the stains from your home pride and joy.

Remember: you’ll be using them at your own risk.

The aftermath of a great party

A party is fun at the time, but the clear-up operation the next day can be painful. Alcohol has a habit of leaving a heavy smell behind, and red wine leaves a nasty stain that will make your heart sink.

But first, the easier stuff. If beer or cider have stained your pale carpet, pour a little more beer onto the stain and gently rub it in. It should raise the existing stain so you can soak it up into a cloth.

For red wine, pour salt over the stain (if it is still wet) and blot with damp paper towels. If it’s dry, dampen the area with cold water and cover with bicarbonate of soda. Don’t rub! Let the bicarbonate of soda soak up the mess, then dab with kitchen towel.

The wonders of vinegar

For professional cleaners, vinegar is a kind of super hero. It has properties that make it a very powerful, chemical-free cleaner, and it can be combined with lemons or bicarb to improve its effectiveness.

For a stained carpet, mix 100ml of white vinegar with a tablespoon of salt and rub into the carpet. Let it dry, then vacuum it out. It won’t smell that nice, but it should lift the stain up.

For tough stains, mix a tablespoon of vinegar and a tablespoon of cornflour into a paste. Rub into the stain, leave for two days and vacuum.

The wonders of WD40

You may think that WD40 is only for squeaky hinges, but we’ve got another use for this marvellous product. It removes ink like a dream. If your printer cartridge has leaked all over your shag pile, don’t despair: whip out the WD. Spray onto the ink, let the WD40 soak into the fibres for 5 minutes, then wash with a wet, soapy sponge. Repeat if necessary.

Still got a stain? Time to call in the professionals

If the stain refuses to budge, you need to talk to Efficient Cleaning about a proper carpet clean and a maintenance regime for you carpets. We can help you treat marks as soon as they appear so you prolong the life of the carpet. If you are concerned about how the carpet pile will react to any of these techniques, call us today and take advantage of our home cleaning know-how.

Image Credit: Diego Da Silva via Flickr