New carpet? New rug? New house? Big red stain? Red stains can turn a beautiful carpet or rug, into something you are forever trying to hide. Red stains are difficult to remove, and give your carpet an ugly spot. Why are red stains hard to remove and how do you remove them?
Types of red stains.
There are two types of red stains, synthetic and organic. Synthetic stains have synthetic red dyes in them. For example, red Kool-aid, lipstick, ink, synthetic red juices, and more. Organic stains have all natural dyes. Including red wine, fruit juices, tomato based juices, blood, and more.
For all stains.
The cleaning process is the same for almost every stain. A difference is the product you will be using to clean the stain, which also depends on the stain. For cleaning every stain:
- Remove excess. Whether the stain is dried or still liquid, use a clean cloth or a butter knife to remove any excess from the stain. This will allow the chemical you will use to reach more than just the surface of the stain.
- Apply carpet stain remover. Stain remover can be bought at a store, or you can use things you have in your home.
- Blot and scrub the stain away. Whether to blot or scrub, or both depends on the carpet. Depending on the type of carpet you have, scrubbing may damage the fibers in it. If you do choose to scrub, make sure it is gentle. Hard enough to get rid of the stain, but gentle enough to not cause any damage to your carpet.
Best way to remove synthetic stains.
Kool-Aid: Carbonated Club Soda. Pour a generous amount of club soda onto the kool-aid stain, let it fizz for a few minutes, clean up with a clean towel. Repeat.
Lipstick: Lipstick contains grease. When cleaning, use an all-purpose stain cleaner with a grease remover element. After applying all purpose cleaner, use a damp cloth and blot stain.
Ink: Using rubbing alcohol, apply to the stain, and blot the stain dry. Repeat if necessary.
Best ways to remove organic stains.
Red Wine: When removing wine stains, add water to the stain. This will help dilute the stain. After adding water, add a 3 to 1 ratio of baking soda and water to the area. Vacuum once the area is dry.
Blood: Mix a teaspoon of hand dish soap and two cups of cold water. Always use cold water with blood. Hot water may make the blood stain permanent. Dip a clean cloth into the solution, then blot the stain until it is gone.
If these suggestions do not remove the stain, another suggestion I would make is to get the stain wet using either a stain remover, vinegar, ammonia, or hydrogen peroxide. (When adding the chemical to the stain, make sure the chemical is diluted.) Once the stain is wet with chemicals, let it sit for about fifteen minutes. After fifteen minutes, take a damp white cloth and place it over the stain. Then, take your iron, and turn the setting to steam. Set the iron on the cloth and leave for a few seconds. Continue placing the iron on and off the cloth so the carpet doesn’t burn. As the iron is resting on the cloth, you can start to see the stain transferring from the carpet to the cloth.
Why are red stains so difficult to remove?
Red stains are difficult to remove simply because of the color. Most people don’t have red carpets, usually carpets are white, grey, brown, or similar colors. When red is spilled on carpets it sticks out like a sore thumb. Another reason is because of the dyes in synthetic spills.
What does CBM Pros do to remove red stains on carpet?
Our process of carpet cleaning is very similar to the process described above using an iron. We don’t carry an iron around with us everywhere, but we do have a carpet machine that releases chemicals onto the carpet, steams the stain, and vacuums the excess liquid. Leaving carpet looking brand new.
