Our carpets can get pretty dirty, pretty fast. Especially if you have a lot of foot traffic in your home. But not everyone can afford to call in the carpet cleaning professionals every time their carpet gets dirty.
Well, you don’t have to if you make your own DIY carpet cleaner. Just remember to treat a small spot of your carpet first to make sure it doesn’t damage your carpet before treating the entire carpet.
Here are five different DIY carpet cleaning methods:
Hydrogen Peroxide Method
Get yourself a gallon-sized plastic or glass container with a lid and funnel in 1 cup of hydrogen peroxide (3 percent is best), 1/8 cup of liquid dish soap, 1 tablespoon of OxiClean, and 1/2 cup of fabric softener. Then fill the rest of the container up with warm water. Use this in a carpet cleaning machine that you can rent or buy.
For spot treatments, scrape up any hard stuff with a spoon. Blot if your stain is a liquid. Cover the stain with your carpet cleaning solution and rinse repeatedly. If it persists, use soapy water to rinse. If it’s still being stubborn you can pour some hydrogen peroxide on it, let it sit for an hour and rinse. You can get the details from MarthaStewart.com here.
Vinegar and Baking Soda Method
For this method, you’ll need to pour in 1 teaspoon of liquid dish soap into an empty spray bottle along with 1 tablespoon of white vinegar and 1 cup of warm water. Pour in 1 teaspoon of baking soda and quickly close the top of the bottle. You may want to do this over the sink because your cleaning solution will start to bubble up.
Vaccum up your stain or the area of the rug you want to clean, then wipe it gently with the abrasive side of a sponge. Dampen the area with your carpet spray and rub and dab gently with a towel. Use the towel to soak up all of your cleaning solution to get rid of your stain. Get more information from PopSugar.
Laundry Detergent Method
This is another solution that can be used in a carpet cleaning machine. Get a large container or jug and mix together 2 tablespoons of liquid Tide laundry detergent with 1/4 cup of Awesome oxygen cleaner (this stuff is from the $1 store), 1 scoop of OxiClean, and 1 teaspoon of Downy fabric softener.
Slowly add in a gallon of hot water to minimize bubbles. Stir your solution until the OxiClean is dissolved. This is a concentrated mixture so you’ll want to only add a small amount, around 1/4 cup, every time you add water to your carpet cleaning machine. Click here for details from Happy Money Saver.
Salt Method
Mix one cup of white vinegar to 2 cups of water in a spray bottle. Pour in 2 teaspoons of salt and 15 drops of lavender or other clear essential oil of your choice. Shake up your solution (don’t forget to close the bottle tight or put the cap if you have one).
Spray this solution generously all over your carpets and remember to shake up your bottle often in between sprays. Let your spray dry on your carpet. Once the area has dried you can vacuum the area up. DIY Natural has all the details on this method.
Cornstarch Method
You can create a dry carpet powder from baking soda, cornstarch, and cornmeal that doesn’t require a carpet steamer. Just mix together 2 cups of baking soda, 1/2 of a cup cornstarch, and 1/2 a cup of cornmeal.
You can also add in some dry bay leaves or cinnamon powder to boost your carpet scent and anti-bacterial properties. Mix everything together in a food processor so it’s properly chopped into a powder.
Just sprinkle this mix all over your carpet and let it sit for as long as you can, overnight if possible. Vaccum up in the morning. This method will refresh and clean your carpet to keep it looking great. You can get the full tutorial from DIY Network here.
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