Keeping your carpet clean and spotless is not usually a realistic expectation. Accidents happen and when they do we need to be prepared to tackle them as soon as possible.
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Imagine you are sitting down for a short break with your hot cup of tea. You take your favorite mug and gently place it down on the coffee table while checking your phone messages and oops! Your mug tips over since you didn’t notice the pen on the table and your tea is spilling all over the table and onto your light-colored beautiful carpet!
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This unfortunate accident is not the end of your carpet, luckily there are a number of ways you can clean your carpet and get it back to its original state. Let’s discuss a few different options of how you can clean your rug without panicking.
The number one rule when anything spills onto your rug is to take immediate action. Never leave the fresh stain to dry and set on the carpet, your chances of removing the nasty stain will be much slimmer. Get to the stain immediately and don’t ignore it saying “I’ll get to it later”.
- The first method you can do in this situation requires a few simple ingredients that you most likely will find in your kitchen. You will need:
- baking soda
- water
- a damp cloth
- The first method you can do in this situation requires a few simple ingredients that you most likely will find in your kitchen. You will need:
Before you start cleaning the area using this method, first try to dry up the area using a clean cloth absorbing as much of the liquid as you can. After doing the initial clean up then pour one cup of baking soda into a bowl.
Using a damp cloth, coat the surface of the cloth very generously with the baking soda. Place the baking soda cloth directly onto the stained area on your carpet and wipe gently.
Then after a few minutes use cold water to rinse the area thoroughly but do not drench the carpet with too much water. Repeat these steps a few times until you see the stain has been eliminated.
At this point, you can dry the area with a clean dry towel and allow it to dry completely over the next couple of hours. You’ll be left with no sign that any tea spilled in the first place.
- If you are out of baking soda then there is another household carpet cleaner that you most likely have in your pantry and that is vinegar. Vinegar is acidic which makes it a fantastic general household cleaner. It can be used in a spray bottle mixed with water for quick surface wipes or as a general household gentle cleaner. Best of all, it can also come to the rescue when you get an offensive tea stain on your living room carpet.
- Using 4 tablespoons of plain white vinegar mixed with 2 cups of lukewarm water in a spray bottle is all you need to make your cleaning solution. Spray this homemade solution generously on the affected area and clean very well by blotting the area with a clean cloth.
- Continue spraying and cleaning until you see the stain disappear. It will only take a few minutes of hard work but the results will be satisfying since your carpet will look sparkling clean again.
- It’s also possible to make a paste with vinegar and baking soda together as a cleaning agent for your stain.
- In order to do this, you will need to make a paste using 3 parts white vinegar to 1 part baking soda.
- For a small stain for example you can use 3 tablespoons of vinegar and 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Spread the paste onto the stain very gently, do not rub it in at all. The consistency shouldn’t be too thick or too runny.
- You can use the back of the spoon to spread the paste evenly. Let the paste sit on the stain for approximately 2 minutes.
- After that time, use a clean cloth and press down onto the area without scrubbing at all. Use pressure to press down on the cloth a few times on the affected area.
- The stain will lift onto the cloth slowly.
- Once you see that the area is cleaner use a clean dry cloth to remove any leftover paste on the carpet. Use a dull knife to scrape any leftover paste toward the center of the area and then using the clean cloth or a paper towel pinch the small pile and discard. This may take a few times to completely remove the excess paste on the carpet.
- Once this is done spray the area with a mixture of 1 cup lukewarm water and 1 cup distilled white vinegar. Spray just a little at a time and the area should fizz up from the leftover baking soda paste.
- Use a clean cloth to gently dab the area and keep blotting until the area is clean at last.
- Flush the area with cold water and pat dry. Keep patting dry until most of the wetness is soaked up.
- Allow the area to continue drying for a few hours with the windows open if you can or using a fan to do so
- You can also make another simple cleaning solution using dish soap, vinegar, and water:
- Dissolve 1 tablespoon of dish soap in 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar.
- Then add 2 cups of cold water and mix.
- Use a plastic or glass container and make sure to mix thoroughly.
- Using a dry clean cloth dip it into the cleaning solution and then lightly press on the stained area to saturate completely.
- Use the other side of your cloth that is dry to then blot the wet area and soak up the liquid and the stain.
- Repeat this process using only clean parts of the cloth so as not to spread the stain anywhere else.
- Once the stain is gone clean the area with cold water and then dry using another clean cloth.
- Dry the area as much as you can and after that allow it air dry
- Once everything is dry and clean, vacuum the area as well.
- Another idea you can try to clean your tea-stained rug requires using plain old table salt:
- Pour the salt generously over the stain and once you do that grab a bottle of club soda and pour some of it on top of the salt and let sit for a couple of minutes.
- Then using a damp clean cloth begin to scrub the area clean.
- You can repeat the first steps and add more salt and club soda scrubbing it clean until the stained area is long gone.
- If you are out of baking soda then there is another household carpet cleaner that you most likely have in your pantry and that is vinegar. Vinegar is acidic which makes it a fantastic general household cleaner. It can be used in a spray bottle mixed with water for quick surface wipes or as a general household gentle cleaner. Best of all, it can also come to the rescue when you get an offensive tea stain on your living room carpet.
- If you prefer to buy a carpet stain remover there are plenty of them to choose from at your local supermarket.
- Before using the stain remover, first, blot the area with a damp and clean cloth.
- After blotting the area a few times add some water and continue blotting so that most of the tea stain can be diluted into the water. Blot as much as possible before going onto the next step. Make sure to blot the area and not rub the area. Rubbing the stain could cause it to spread into a bigger stain making it harder to clean.
- Once the cloth comes up clean after blotting and the area is pretty dry then use the carpet stain according to the directions on the package. Make sure to try the carpet stain remover first on an inconspicuous area of your carpet to make sure your carpet isn’t damaged by it at all. Some carpets may have their color affected by chemical cleaners.
As you can see there are quite a few options for removing a tea stain from your carpet and depending on what you have available in your house you can make a cleaning solution that works for you.
There is also the option of buying a carpet stain cleaner as we mentioned above. It’s important to remember to always test any cleaner you use whether store-bought or homemade on a far off unnoticeable corner of your carpet. You never know if the cleaner will affect the color of your carpet or damage the fabric and so it’s worth taking an extra few minutes to check and see if it does.
It’s also worthwhile to make sure to try and avoid accidentally spilling your cup of tea by first clearing your coffee table or side table so that your cup has a level spot to be placed down on. Make sure to keep your cup out of reach from any toddlers or kids playing in the area.
Last but not least, remember to attend to the stain immediately. Leaving the stain on the carpet will only allow it to dry and have the stain set making it much harder to deal with. You don’t need to give yourself any extra work so get to the stain right away for the best results.