Carpet cleaning is tough. At least that’s the perception. No one quite knows the woes of dealing with unsightly staining quite like homeowners with carpet. It seems that no matter how hard they try, eventually something will get spilled and cause a nasty blemish on an otherwise pristine covering. Of the most difficult stains to remove can also be one of the most common. Getting rid of coffee stains requires quick reaction time and a little elbow grease.
As with any stain, the first step is to act quickly. As soon as the coffee is spilled, grab a white terry cloth or linen towel and start to dab at the spot in order to soak up as much of the liquid as possible. By removing this, you will be taking away any coffee that could linger and re-stain your carpet. If instead you begin to rub away at the stain with the coffee spill still present, you will only be giving the stain fuel to become worse.
Once you have dabbed up as much of the liquid as you can, work from the outside of the stain inward as to eliminate the possibility of it spread. To clean it, you will want to limit the number of chemical agents applied and stick with the basics when it comes to carpet cleaning and stains in general:
Start with a light application of white vinegar, as this will immediately start to break down the proteins and make it easy to dab them up. Keep dabbing until you notice a lightening of the stain. By doing so, you are working in steps rather than trying to rush through the job. Dab lightly, again, from the outside inward. Don’t worry about the smell from the vinegar as this will dissipate rather quickly once the job is completed. Once you feel you have removed as much of the stain as you can with the vinegar, apply a wet, white terry cloth or linen towel to the area and let the carpet absorb the water.
Once you have done this, begin again to dab at the stain. You are using white linen clothes and terry cloth for two primary reasons: One, there is no die that could bleach out and re-stain your carpet. Secondly, you will have a greater absorbency with these two fabrics..
Lastly, apply a little water and dish soap solution to remove the final light staining of the coffee. Work outward toward the inside, and gently dab to remove all residue. If getting rid of coffee stains doesn’t happen right away with this method, simply repeat the steps until you are satisfied. Want to learn about getting blood stains out of carpet? Read more here!
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