How to clean your carpet – Carpet cleaning made easy

Just vacuuming the carpet has the same effect as just airing dirty laundry instead of washing it – we were once told in an advertisement. However, it is easy to see when you take a closer look at your carpet. How did it look when you bought it, and how does it look today? Evident traces of soiling can probably be found. So from time to time, you can’t avoid a thorough carpet cleaning. 

You can, of course, give your carpet to a professional at any time if you want a deep cleaning. Special carpet cleaners know precisely what is important for which material or which type of carpet in relation to the best cleaning or the ideal agent. However, such professional carpet cleaning is often not exactly cheap and is usually less worthwhile when rugs are bought at a low price.

We deal intensively with cleaning carpets in this article and give you a lot of hints and tips on how you can maintain and thoroughly clean your carpet yourself.

Introduction: Carpet Cleaning

In many countries, it’s pretty standard for carpets to be carried to a river for washing. Basically, this type of wet carpet cleaning is also conceivable in this country. Still, very few of us live in the immediate vicinity of the river, and the entire handling would then be extremely time-consuming and cumbersome.

Before you start a thorough cleaning of your carpet, you should first see what material the carpet is made of. Not all materials can be treated with every cleaning agent.

In general, it is advisable to first try a cleaner or a care product in an inconspicuous area. 

Carpet care

Caring for your carpet or carpets begins as soon as you step into the apartment or the room in which the carpet is located. Taking off your shoes is highly recommended here if you want to enjoy your carpet/rugs for a long time. 

Disinfect and clean runners, carpets and carpets – Instructions

You can make yourself an effective means of cleaning and disinfecting your rugs, rugs and carpeting relatively quickly. For doing this, you need the following ingredients:

• 200 g baking soda
• 4 ml Lemon essential oil
• 3 ml of orange essential oil
• 2 ml patchouli essential oil

Mix all the ingredients and let the mixture stand for 24 hours. Then spread the mixture over your carpets and rugs. After 15 minutes of exposure, you can vacuum carpets or rugs with a vacuum cleaner.

Note: Before using the essential oils, please read the instructions and the instructions for use carefully and adhere to them.

Remove dust and dirt from carpets.

Sometimes proven solutions are still the best: Use a carpet beater to remove dust and dirt from your carpets, rugs or bridges. To knock out the carpet, go outside and always knock carpets from the left (back). It is very easy to knock out carpets if you hang them over a tightly stretched clothesline.

Damp cleaning of carpets

Carpets should be cleaned thoroughly with a damp cloth once or twice a year to remove deep-seated dirt. To do this, you usually work with special carpet shampoo and a wet vacuum cleaner/vacuum cleaner/carpet cleaner. Such a device does not necessarily have to be purchased but can also be borrowed. Sometimes you even get the device free of charge if you buy the appropriate carpet cleaner.

Read More: Grout cleaning in the Bathroom

Special carpets and their cleaning

There are different carpets, and not every cleaning agent or cleaning agent is equally suitable for every rug. For this reason, we’ll discuss the most popular types of carpets and give brief instructions on which form of cleaning is recommended and what should be taken into account when cleaning.

Cleaning knotted carpets

The oriental carpets and the Berbers are among the knotted carpets.

Knotted carpets are best cleaned with a vacuum cleaner, whereby you should only select the lowest setting on your device for, particularly valuable carpets.

You can also clean knotted carpets with the carpet brush or carpet beater. You can use a mild detergent solution to clean the carpet with a damp cloth. Carefully apply the lye with a brush and then brush with clean water. Make sure the rug is not too wet.

Cleaning woven carpets

The woven carpets include flokati rugs, kilim rugs, rag rugs, and sheep’s wool rugs.

Colourfast rag rugs can often simply be washed in the washing machine. If you are unsure whether your rag rug is colourfast, check it in an inconspicuous place with a little washing-up liquid. After the wash cycle, you should rinse with sufficient clear water. Ideally, hang the rag rug outside to dry. In addition to the rag rugs, the flokatis from the group of woven rugs are often machine washable.

You can also just vacuum woven carpets. Caution is advised herewith flokati. – Do not use a brush attachment for vacuuming the flokatis, which can lead to unsightly matting. As a rule, woven carpets such as knotted carpets can also be cleaned dry with a carpet beater or carpet brush and with a damp cloth using a mild detergent solution.

Clean machine carpets

Machine carpets include velour carpets and bouclé carpets.You can use a vacuum cleaner, carpet brush or carpet beater to clean machine carpets.

Clean carpet floor coverings

When it comes to carpet floor coverings, a distinction is made between loop, velour, needle felt, and needle felt.Carpet floor coverings or carpets should be vacuumed once or twice a week. You can also use so-called knocking brushes (rotating motor brushes) to remove the dirt more thoroughly.

For damp cleaning, we recommend using a special device with carpet powder or carpet shampoo. Here you should follow the respective instructions for use. Always make sure the carpet is not completely dampened during cleaning.

Read More: How to Send a Parcel Abroad

Tips for Carpet Cleaning: Home Remedies

Cleaning carpet with potatoes

A great way to clean up stains on your carpet is by using a potato. Grate an uncooked potato and pour boiling water over it. The potato-water mixture should be left for three hours before the mixture is strained. You can now brush the carpet, wait for a little. You can now vacuum the carpet and remove any leftover debris.

Cleaning the carpet with vinegar essence 

For a thorough cleaning of your carpet, you can also mix vinegar essence in a ratio of 1: 3 with water. Brush the vinegar-water mixture over the rug or carpeting in the direction of the stroke.

Cleaning and brightening Carpets with damp salt 

If there is extensive soiling on your carpets or carpeting, you can move them onto your body with damp salt. Work the damp salt into the carpet with a brush and let it work in a little. Then you can simply vacuum off the dirt with the vacuum cleaner. The treatment with damp salt simultaneously brightens the carpet.

Refreshing the colours of carpets 

To refresh the colours of your carpets, make a mixture of vinegar and lukewarm water in a ratio of 1:10. Work the vinegar water into the carpet with a soft sponge and then let it dry well.

Removing stains from carpets with glycerine 

Glycerine is a great solution for removing stains from carpets. To remove stains, apply a dab of glycerine where the stain is and wait for it to take effect. It is best to use a cloth and wet it to clean these stains off of your carpet.

Removing Pet Leftovers

If your dog or cat has vomited on the carpet, use a sponge to work some shaving cream into the affected area of ​​the carpet. Let the shaving foam soak in before you vacuum the carpet. In this way, not only will the pollution disappear, but also the unpleasant smell.

Cleaning bridges or runners 

It is very easy to clean bridges or runners if you drag them over a piece of the damp lawn after tapping them out in the garden.

Beware of steel chairs. 

If you have steel chairs that normally stand on the carpet and you have cleaned the carpet wet or damp, you should only put the chairs back on the carpet when it is completely dry. Otherwise, there may be unsightly rust stains on the chairs and the carpet.

Removing wrinkles from carpets

If your carpet wrinkles, it is advisable to moisten the back of the carpet with water and leave it flat for at least an hour. Then iron the carpet from the reverse side – the creases should then be gone.

Cleaning the Carpet: Tips for Removing Stains

Generally speaking, stains on carpets and carpets can hardly be avoided. You must react to the stains with the right means. You should know whether the contamination is a fat-soluble, water-soluble or protein-containing stain. Knowing the nature of the stain in the carpet enables you to choose the right cleaning agent or stain remover.

The following applies to stains on the carpet:

• React directly – do not let the stain dry out!
• Use a clean towel, tea towel or paper towel to do this.
• First, you should absorb the liquid with it.
• Avoid rubbing too hard so as not to “work” the stain deeper into the material.
• Always treat stains on the carpet from the outside in (avoid edges).
• Do not use stain remover until the stain has completely dried out.

Tips for special stains on the carpet:

• Blueberry stains 

Blueberry stains (also other fruit stains) should be treated with lemon juice as fresh as possible. – Simply drizzle the juice on the stain and let it absorb. Please note that lemon juice bleaches, which is why its use as a stain remover on dark carpets, is only partially recommended.

• Bloodstains

To remove blood from the carpet, take cold water or spray mineral water on the stain. Then dab it off well and then treat it with diluted ammonia. Then take some suede on hand to rub the carpet dry. Alternatively, you can brush out the blood while it is dry, then rub it in with diluted ammonia and then use a damp cloth to wipe it off.

• Burn marks

If a firmly glued carpet or carpeting has a burn mark, you can remove it by first knocking out a suitable piece with a punch from a leftover piece or a hidden point of the carpeting. Then punch out the burn hole or the burned area and apply some all-purpose glue to the resulting free area. Don’t apply too much glue that it doesn’t ooze out sideways when you put the new piece of carpet in the hole. Place a heavy object on top, which you only remove when the glue has dried through. 

• Egg Yolk stains 

Egg yolks dry up very quickly. So first, put a little glycerine on the egg yolk stain to soak it. You can then wash out the stain with lukewarm soapy alcohol and, last but not least, rework it with damp salt.

• Colour spots

If it is for the colour patches around Paint colours, you should start first with lukewarm water, dab before you wipe with a cloth soaked in vinegar. Then let it dry off well. If oil paint gets on the carpet, the first thing you should try is to scrape as much of the paint off the fibres as possible. Then you can treat the stain with ammonia or turpentine (substitute).

• Grease stains | Oil stains

Enter dry on grease stains or oil stains something rye flour, corn flour or talcum powder and leave everything. Then brush off the soiled area and rub with clean water. Alternatively, you can rub fat or oil stains out of the carpet fibres with an ammonia solution.

Vegetable stains

Treatment with cold water is usually sufficient to remove vegetable stains from the carpet.

• Grass stains

In the case of grass stains, it is advisable to first rub the contamination with diluted ammonia or alcohol and then treat it with warm soapy water. Finally, you should finish the carpet with clear water.

• Resin stains

To remove resin stains from the carpet, rub a little butter on them. Then simply wipe gently with soap and water.

• Coffee stains | Tea stains 

Coffee or tea stains contain tannins and should therefore be treated with a little liquid all-purpose cleaner or dishwashing detergent. Put the selected cleaning agent on a damp cloth and then dab the stain with it. Then rinse with clear water.

• Leftover chewing gum

Chewing gum in the carpet should be completely hardened before you start removing it. Then squeeze an ice cube on the chewing gum or spray ice spray from the pharmacy on it. In the “frozen” state, the chewing gum becomes brittle and can be easily scraped off with a blunt knife.

• Glue stains

Glue can be partially removed from the carpet by using an oil-free nail polish remover. To do this, carefully dab the nail polish remover on the edge of the glue stain to loosen it from below. Then lift it off with the back of a knife and finally use a special stain remover to remove the last marks on the carpet.

• Liquor stains

To remove liquor stains from carpets, you should first use lukewarm water and then treat the stain with soapy water.

• Mayonnaise stains 

Gently dab mayonnaise stains on the carpet with lukewarm water, being careful not to enlarge the stain any further. You can then use either alcohol or alcohol for follow-up treatment.

• Jam stains | Honey stains

If jam or honey dripped onto the carpet, put a slight carpet shampoo for stain treatment is best. Dab the stain with the agent and then finish with white, neutral vinegar.

• Milk Stains 

It is imperative that you remove milk stains from the carpet immediately. Otherwise, the “smell” will remain for a very long time. Dab the milk stain beforehand with cold water and then use either alcohol, alcohol or diluted ammonia for post-treatment. Finally, rub again with lukewarm water.

• Punch stains

You can usually remove fresh punch stains directly from the carpet by using hot water. If the stains have already dried, rub them out of the carpet fibres with diluted alcohol.

• Red wine stains

If red wine spilt onto the carpet, you should immediately sprinkle generous amounts of salt on it. Let the salt work and dry properly. Then reach for the vacuum cleaner and remove the salt from the carpet. If you can still see traces of the red wine, you can treat these areas again with carpet shampoo.

• Mould stains

To remove mould stains on light-coloured carpets, make a kind of pulp from diluted ammonia and potato flour, which you apply to the soiled areas. Then let the cleaning paste dry well before brushing it out. Then rub the carpet again with alcohol. If there are mould stains on a dark carpet, rub them with a mixture of ammonia and water (1: 4). Then treat the affected areas with plenty of clean water.

• Chocolate stains

If you have chocolate stains, first try to scrape as much of the chocolate as possible from the carpet fibres with a knife. Then treat the dirt first with cold and then with warm water.

• Wax stains

Let the wax harden completely first. Then use a knife to scrape as much wax out of the carpet as you can. You can then treat the affected areas of the carpet with alcohol, petroleum ether or alcohol.

• Water stains 

You can remove water stains from the carpet by either brushing them out with diluted ammonia or vinegar and then carefully rubbing them with a damp cloth.