Wine spills happen to anyone and everyone, there is nothing special about it. Wine can get on your carpet in most cases accidentally. Of course you want to get rid of that color off your precious carpet, so pay attention to the following tips on how to remove wine stains off your carpet. The options in use here are things that you have in your kitchen, so this might come in handy right when you need it.
Points to note for all stains
Do not let the wine stay longer on your carpet, because this is normally harder to wash it off. Blot it up immediately. Do this as fast as you can, if not immediately. Get a paper towel or you can use a rag and blot up the stain so that you can get as much of the wine off the carpet before it settles.When blotting, do this in an up-down motion. Rubbing from one side to the other is discouraged because in as much as it is able to get most of the stain, it also forces the stain to go further into the fiber, which becomes a different story altogether during removal. It will further force the stain spread further to places where it was not supposed to be.
Start blotting from the edges, and then move close towards the middle, so that you can stop the damage from becoming bigger than it is already.
Get some more cold water to the stain and keep on blotting until you cannot do it no more. Add some cold water again to it so that the rest of the stain gets diluted. Keep on blotting until you have the entire carpet dry.
Option 1: Salt solution
You will need the following:- -Table salt
- -Vacuum
- -Cold water
Get some salt on the stain before it dries out. In as much as dabbing will get the stain out, it does not get all of the stain out. When you cover the remainder with some salt however, it normally works. This is because the granules of salt will in most cases draw out all the moisture from your precious carpet with time and leave it spotless.
However, salt only drains out the stain by absorbing moisture, which therefore makes it not such a good idea for stains that are dried. If it is dry, try and put some water over the stain before you put some salt on it.
Allow the salt to settle down for some time. It will change color to pink. After the stain looks rather dry, you can then proceed. If you have more time on your hands, there is nothing wrong with letting it sit longer.
Once you are done, get rid of the additional salt, then get a vacuum cleaner and use it on the carpet. Your carpet should be looking much better now. If the stain is not all gone, there should be a very small hint of it.
In the event that there is a salty compound remaining, get some water and dampen the region, vacuum after that to get back the original texture.
Option 2: Working with vinegar
You will need the following:- -Paper towels or clean rags
- -1 tablespoon vinegar
- -1 tablespoon dish soap
- -2 cups warm water
- -Cold water
- -Vacuum Cleaner
Take a large bowl and make the mixing solution of the following and stir properly: 1 tablespoon of dishwashing liquid, white vinegar, and 2 cups of warm water.
Make sure that you are using white vinegar, because the others are known to bring about stains of their own.
Take a new rag and soak it in the solution. Use this to dab on the stained section of your carpet. This is supposed to have the mixture settling deeper into the fiber, in the process letting the stain loosen.
Take a dry rag and dry the liquid. Do this alternatively, dabbing and drying up the patch with the stain.
Get some cold water on the stained area, soak another rag and press it against the stain in order to dilute out the stain. If possible you can just pour some water on the stain. After doing that, dab it with the dry towel.
Take your time with this repetitive procedure. If you want good results in the long run, you will have to do this over and over again, so you must be patient.
Option 3: Use hydrogen peroxide and dish soap
You will need the following:- -Paper towels
- -Dish soap-
- -Hydrogen peroxide
- -Cold water
- -Spray bottle
- -Clean, fresh water
- -Cloth and weight
Take some hydrogen peroxide and mix it up with some dish soap. Stir properly and you will have a good mixture to work with. Actually you do not need too much of the mixture, but normally is dependent on how widespread the stain is.
Take note of the fact that this is normally a bleaching agent. Therefore it should be one of the best options in the event that your stained carpet is light colored. In the event that you are not so sure about the prospect of discoloration, try out the mixture on a small section of your carpet that is away from sight. Take note that most carpets do well with really low concentrations of hydrogen peroxide, up to 3%.
As we did earlier, blot the stained part with the mixture you have made. Take a small rag and dip into the solution. Use it to dab the stained part slowly, so that the moisture is able to sink into the fiber. This should be repeated until you have the mixture all over the stain. Remember never to rub, but blot.
Allow this to settle down for some time so that it can penetrate deeper and get to the deeper stains.
Get some soapy cold water and spray on it. Spritz properly on the stain and then take a dry towel and wipe properly.
In the event that you do not have a bottle that you can use for spraying, you can just do the blotting process again, but with a dry and fresh towel.
Take some lukewarm water and use this for blotting so as to rinse out the mixture from the carpet. You should be having a better result by now. Since the carpet will have a soapy and sticky residue, get an unused rag and dip it into normal water, then blot it over the worked area to get rid of the cleaning solution used.
When you are through, blot with something dry, like a towel.
Option 4: Baking soda solution and clear vodka or white wine
You will need the following:- -White wine
- -Vodka
- -Sponge
- -Cold water
- -Baking Soda
- -Vacuum Cleaner
Get some white wine on the stained part. Of course this is not what you would want to do on your carpet, but white wine is a really good option in the event that you do not have water with you. This is supposed to loosen the impact of the stain, more or less the same thing that water does.
If you do not have water or white wine, plain vodka will also work just fine.
Dab a sponge in the wine and use it to blot the stained part. Be gentle so that you can soak up most of the color without forcing it deeper into the carpet.
Take a paste of baking soda and use it on the stain. It works like salt does. A watery paste of baking soda is better than dry soda. Make the solution in a ratio of 3:1 for water to baking soda.
Get the stein covered with clean cloth overnight. You can also set something heavy on top of this covered stain area to help pushing down the baking soda solution into the carpet for a more effective cleaning process.
Since the cloth will definitely get damp, it is important for you to use something that is not vulnerable to damage under water, as the weight.
When you are through, try and vacuum away the baking soda residue. After soaking up the moisture from your stain, it should leave some clumps on the surface of your carpet hence the need for vacuuming.
In the event that the carpet still has some residue even after you are through vacuuming, just pour some cold water on to the stained area to get rid of the remaining baking soda, and then vacuum.
It is important for you to know when removing the stains on your own is impossible, hence the need for you to bring in a professional. This is particularly so in the event that you are dealing with stains that dry out so fast before you can do anything about it.
Make sure that you do not apply any heat on to the stained area until the stain has been properly removed. The problem with heat is that it makes the wine stain more stubborn because it settles.
Other than the ingredients that have been listed, you will also need to get the following:
- -Paper towel or rags
- -Cold water