“What do I do about this stain?” was the frantic question on the other end of the line. This wasn’t the first time we received a call from a customer asking for advice on how to remove a stain in their carpet, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last!
At Lov ‘N Kare Carpet Center, your local carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ, we pride ourselves on making even the dingiest carpets look new, so it doesn’t really surprise us when customers call in for emergency carpet cleaning tips in between their regular carpet cleanings. We’re always happy to share our carpet cleaning tips with our customers, which is why we decided to share the following three steps to achieve the best spot cleaning possible.
Remove the excess
The fastest way to avoid a permanent stain is to remove excess spill as quickly as you can. For dry spills, vacuum up the excess. For gooey or sticky spills, try to scrape up the excess with a spoon or knife. For liquid spills, blot up the extra fluid with a damp cloth. Work fast and do your best to avoid rubbing the spill in deeper or spreading it around.
Use a stain remover
Once you’ve removed excess spill, you can use a stain remover to lift what’s already begun to absorb into the carpet fibers. Just be sure that the stain remover you have is safe for the type of carpet you’re attempting to clean. In case you don’t have a stain remover on hand, you can make your own by mixing together ¼ teaspoon of vinegar, 1 teaspoon of mild dishwashing soap and a quart of warm water. You should apply the stain remover to the stain, but be careful not to soak the stain. Too much liquid can cause its own damage to your carpeting.
Here are a few other stain removers you can try to remove some common stains:
Wine: Spray with club soda and blot clean.
Urine: Use an enzymatic cleaner, which can be found at most pet stores.
Blood: Apply club soda and cold water, then blot clean.
Blot the stain
Once you’ve applied the stain remover, you can dampen an absorbent cloth with cold water and use it to soak up the remover and (hopefully) the stain. Then, use a dry absorbent cloth to blot away any excess water. If the carpet still feels wet to the touch, cover the area with a dry cloth or paper towels and press down on it with a heavy object for a few minutes.
While these steps likely won’t remove every stain completely, they can definitely help to minimize the damage. For really tough stains, you’ll want to call on your local carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ at Lov ‘N Kare Carpet Center. We are not only the experts when it comes to removing stains, but we can also help protect your carpet from future spills. To learn more about our services, give us a call today!
The internet can be an invaluable resource for learning and researching a variety of different topics. One of the most commonly searched topics, in fact, involves cleaning tips. Folks across the globe want to know how they can keep their home clean without constantly hiring carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ.
The only problem with the internet is that you never know who’s actually writing and posting these “tips.” Even if the writers have good intentions and just want their readers to have a clean home, their online advice can end up making your carpeting worse. Here are a few common pieces of carpet cleaning advice that you might want to stay away from:
Vinegar: Chances are, you’ve read somewhere that vinegar can remove any stain just as well as a professional cleaning product. While vinegar can be a useful natural disinfectant, it’s proven time and time again to be a fairly useless carpet cleaning product. Vinegar may help remove surface-level stains, but it won’t do anything to remove those deep-down stains and ground-in dirt that cause long-term damage.
Ammonia: Though it’s not quite as common of a cleaning tip as vinegar, many folks recommend treating carpet stains with ammonia. Our advice? Stay away from it! Ammonia isn’t just an unhelpful cleaner—it can flat out ruin your carpet or hardwood. On top of that, ammonia is toxic and potentially harmful for your kids and pets.
Hairspray: Applying hairspray in the morning will keep your hair looking great all day. Applying hairspray to a carpet stain, however, will do much more harm than good! Instead of removing that stain, hairspray will leave a firm, sticky residue that’s tough to remove and attracts dirt and germs.
Water: At first thought, water probably seems like the safest possible cleaning solution there is. We drink it every day, so it must be harmless to clean with, right? Not quite. Instead of cleaning stains, water can actually make them worse. Water can make some stains bleed deep down into the carpet, causing potentially permanent damage. Instead of using tap water to clean stains, opt for club soda or seltzer.
Dish soap: When it comes to removing grease and grime from plates and pans, nothing beats dish soap! However, we advise you to leave that dish soap under the kitchen sink where it belongs. A drop or two of dish soap will quickly remove surface stains, but that’s only if it’s completely rinsed out afterward. Since that’s nearly impossible to do, you’re better off avoid using dish soap altogether.
Hydrogen peroxide: Most of us have a bottle of hydrogen peroxide sitting in our medicine cabinet to help clean out wounds and prevent infections. Take our advice and save it for that purpose! Hydrogen peroxide is a bleaching agent, which means it can permanently fade the dye in your carpet if you use it to try to remove stains.
If you need a deep clean or just someone to help remove a stain on your carpet, be sure to call Lov ‘N Kare Carpet Center. Our team of carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ can remove any stain and have your home looking as good as new in no time at all.
Imagine this scenario: You’re rushing to get ready for work in the morning, ironing your best shirt, when you step away for just a moment. But in that moment, the iron teeters and falls. You rush to pick it up, but the damage has already been done—there’s now a burn in your carpet.
Unlike spills and everyday grime, burns are hard to ignore and it can be difficult to imagine how a burn can be remedied. But there is hope—as carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ, we’ve seen it all, including burns. Here are a few ways you can repair burns in a rug or carpet, without having to replace it.
Cigarette burns
Cigarette burns are probably the easiest to remedy because they are often quite small. To fix a cigarette burn in carpet, use a piece of sandpaper to gently sand away the burn mark. Then, using a vacuum, clean up any residue. If there are still a few black fibers left behind, you can use scissors to cut these out. For light scorch marks still present, you can use a solution of one part peroxide to 10 parts water. Soak a cloth in this solution and blot the area, moving from the outside into the middle. Finally, use another dry towel to blot the carpet.
Small burns
For burns that are larger than a cigarette burn, but still on the smaller side, you will need to cut the burn out. Using scissors, carefully cut the burnt part of the carpet out, taking care to leave behind the backing. Next, cut some carpet fibers from a less noticeable spot, such as inside a closet. Using super glue, carefully glue the new fibers to the area where the burn occurred. Finally, trim the fibers to make sure they are even with the rest of the carpet.
Large burns
Repairing large burns can be a lot trickier and, if done incorrectly, they can be highly noticeable. To repair large burns, you will need to use a craft knife to cut around the burnt area, again being careful not to cut the underlayment. Use the piece you cut out as a guide for cutting the new piece of carpet. Using carpet adhesive, position the new piece carefully, making sure that the fibers and pattern are aligned with the rest of the carpet. Finally, place something heavy on the spot and allow the carpet to sit overnight to ensure that it is secure.
In some instances, you may not be able to repair a burn. If you don’t have spare carpet or an out-of-the-way place to cut carpet from, repairing a large burn may be impossible. In these instances, you may want to consider replacing your carpet.
At Lov ‘N Kare Carpet Center, we are more than your local carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ. We also offer carpet installation services. If you would like to learn more about the services we offer, reach out to our team today!
Between kids, pets and life, you might feel as though your home’s carpeting is a used canvas of nasty spills and ugly stains. Sure, you might be able to clean out some stains, but it could turn into a losing battle as the years go by. Wouldn’t it be great if there were such a thing as stain proof carpet? Well, there is, sort of, if you choose the right type of carpet material. To get a better understanding, let’s ask knowledgeable carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ for their professional insight.
Stain resistance of wool
While a stain-preventing chemical is applied to most carpet fibers, this is not the case with wool. It doesn’t get treated, yet wool is quite possibly the best material for folks looking for a stain resistant carpet. The reason for this is that wool is naturally resistant to all sorts of spills, like juice, condiments and oils, and not many types of carpet materials are resistant to both liquids and oil spills. Most carpet fibers are resistant to one or the other, but not both. Wool carpets can be expensive, but you should consider making the investment if your flooring needs regular protection against both liquid and oil stains.
Stain resistance of nylon
The most popular type of carpeting for residential homes is nylon. The biggest draw of nylon carpet is its stain resistant abilities against a variety of spills and other carpet mishaps—just as long as it is treated with a good protective stain coating. And although nylon doesn’t repel oil spills like wool does, it also does not absorb oil like some other carpet materials.
Choose wisely, though—understand that the thing about selecting nylon carpet for its stain repelling abilities is choosing one with the right kind of added coating. Nylon is not naturally stain resistant like wool, so make sure to buy a brand that treats its nylon carpets, and get it from a reputable carpet store.
Stain resistance of olefin and polyester
Although polyester and olefin are two different types of carpet materials, we can talk about them together here since they are similar in the stain resistance department. They are both oil-based carpet fibers, which means that while they are great at repelling spills, they attract oils. If you are wondering why anyone would want a carpet material that attracts oils, the answer is because polyester and olefin are relatively inexpensive.
Keeping in mind that oil is usually brought inside on the bottoms of shoes and found on skin and in kitchen areas, it’s recommended that homeowners install these types of carpets in rooms that are not likely to encounter oils. Put polyester or olefin in any room where people will have their shoes off and won’t be lying on the carpet.
Regular care and cleaning, including vacuuming, professional carpet cleaning and treating stains early, is key to proper carpet maintenance. Take care of your carpeting, and it should last a long time. Call Lov ‘N Kare Carpet Center today to book the best carpet cleaning specialists in South Amboy, NJ!
Is it true? Could your carpet be the cause of your allergic reactions? Could all that sneezing and coughing be due to your carpet? It’s possible. However, the true cause isn’t the fibers of your plush flooring. It’s what trapped on those fibers that’s aggravating your allergies. You may need carpet cleaning services in South Amboy, NJ to perform a deep cleaning of your carpets to alleviate your symptoms. Here’s what’s going on.
The Allergens
Carpets offer soft, attractive surfaces for your rooms. They can make a room warmer, quieter and more inviting. The problem? They also invite allergens. In fact, carpeted floors contain up to 100 times more allergens than hard floors. A few of the most common culprits include:
Dust mites: These tiny creatures are one of the most common causes of allergies, and they are present year-round. They burrow deep into carpeting and furniture, where they produce shocking amounts of waste each day (200 times their body weight). It is this waste that actually causes your allergic reactions. Regular cleaning is often insufficient to remove these unwelcome guests.
Pets: Your best furry pals leave behind traces that get trapped in carpeting. Dander and hair collects on carpet fibers and can activate allergies when touched. They may also gather on the surface until disturbed, then float in the air for long periods of time after they are kicked up from the carpet.
Mold: Despite your best efforts to keep a clean house, mold may make its home in your carpet. Spills or leaks can create damp spots that go unnoticed. Over time, these areas develop mold. Improper carpet shampooing can also contribute to mold problems, if the carpet is not dried thoroughly. As the mold spores enter the air, they cause allergy problems (as well as other health issues).
Pollen: Your carpet doesn’t go outside, but the people and pets that walk on it do. You probably also open a window occasionally. As the pollen from outside makes its way inside, it lands on your carpet fibers. Later, when you walk or sit on your carpet, you may disturb this pollen and have a sneezing fit.
The Answer
What should you do to keep the presence and spreading of allergens to a minimum in your home? Here are some options:
Hard surfaces: One option to reduce the number of allergens in your home is to remove all the carpeting. As mentioned, hard surfaces trap far fewer allergens than carpeting. However, many homeowners don’t like this option. This is understandable, considering the comfort and aesthetic appeal carpeting can add to a home. Additionally, installing different flooring can be a significant investment.
Carpet cleaning: Another option is to keep your carpets freshly cleaned. Regular, deep cleaning performed by carpet cleaning services in South Amboy, NJ can reduce the number of allergens present in your carpet. It will help keep it looking sharp, too!
If you are experiencing allergy problems due to carpeting, contact the carpet experts at Lov ‘N Kare Carpet Center. We offer the thorough cleaning you need to help alleviate your allergies. Contact us today for more comfortable surroundings tomorrow.
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