Kids And Carpet Catastrophes: 2 Tips For Cleaning Up Common Kid Carpet Stains
When you have kids, your carpets are under constant attack. Children generate a lot of messes of various types, and the marks, stains and debris they leave behind in your carpet can be difficult to remove. Here are some tips to help you clean up some of the most common messes that your child could leave behind in your home's carpet.
Grass Stains
Grass stains can be extremely difficult to remove from any fabric, including your carpet. You'll have to act quickly to get grass out of your carpet, but it can be done. Vacuum the area first to get rid of any loose debris and dirt.
Create a solution with one cup of water and a teaspoon or two of laundry detergent. This makes a soapy solution that is concentrated enough to remove the pigment. Put some of the mixture directly on the grass stain, and then blot it off with a clean, soft towel. You'll see the green color transfer to the towel as you blot.
Rinse the carpet area with clean water after you pull all of the grass stain up out of the fiber. Blot the area dry with a clean towel.
Crayon
The wax content of crayons make them a real struggle to remove from carpet. Since wax is naturally water-repellent, wax crayons are going to repel virtually every cleaning product you have. Luckily, there are other tools that can remove wax other than cleaning solutions. To tackle these messes, you'll need an iron, a butter knife, brown lunch bags, some baking powder and a sponge.
Start by clearing out the majority of the wax with the butter knife. The edge of the knife will scrape wax free of the carpet fibers if you place it close to the base of the carpet fibers. Then, lift upward to break the wax loose. Vacuum up all of the loose wax once you break it free. To remove the rest of the residual wax, fold a paper bag a couple of times, then place it over the wax. Run a preheated iron over the surface of the paper bag several times to warm the wax. As that wax warms up, it will stick to the brown paper and you can lift it right away from the carpet. Sprinkle a bit of baking soda over the area after you remove the wax, and let it sit for an hour or so. Then, wipe it away with a damp sponge.
Don't let your carpet fall victim to these two hazards of childhood play. With these tips, your kids can be kids and your carpet won't pay the price for it. However, if your carpet is stained beyond what you can clean on your own, a commercial carpet cleaning service may be the best investment you can make.
