What to do if Santa spills milk on your carpet – carpet stain removal tips & tricks

He may only work one day a year but it’s a busy one, so when the big fella arrives at your humble abode he’s bound to be tired, thirsty and pretty peckish. Navigating a foreign living room in the dark is no easy feat so there’s bound to be some spilt milk, mince pies and a few muddy reindeer prints on your carpet the next morning.

Whatever it may be; spills, dirt, cranberry sauce, gravy or the advent calendar choccies, these pesky devils will most likely find their way onto your carpet this festive season. But there’s no need to panic – if you treat them correctly your carpet will live to fight another Christmas day!

Although it might sound daunting, carpet cleaning isn’t as tricky as you might think. Here are some of our best carpet cleaning tips and tricks to give you the ultimate guide for Christmas carpet stain removal.

An essential part of the carpet cleaning process is to know what not to do when cleaning carpet stains. Here are the classic DO’s and DON’Ts of carpet cleaning stain removal.

Do
• Contain the spill – with a paper towel or cloth
• Wipe away any excess liquids
• Scoop up any solids with a spoon

Don’t
• scrub your carpet. Scrubbing at a stain can actually push the stain further into the carpet fibres making it much harder to remove
• iron your carpet. Some people might suggest ironing over certain stains as a removal technique but try to avoid this at all costs. You are more likely to leave scorch marks on your carpet and melt nylon or polyester fibres
• leave the stain on the carpet. The more time a stain has to settle, the harder it becomes to remove

Depending on the type of stain, these household products are always good to have in the cupboard in case of a carpet emergency.

• White vinegar – great for lifting away all sorts of light stains
• A simple home detergent (or multi-purpose detergent) is also a fantastic tool to get out carpet stains and germs
• Bi-carb soda – the carpet cleaner all-round saviour

Disclaimer: If you are going to treat your carpet it may lead to discolouration or damage, always test your treatment in a non-obvious corner to see the effect of your treatment before applying to visible areas. Better still consult your carpet manufacturer or a professional carpet cleaner such as Drytron.

And remember… Drytron are great in any carpet cleaning emergency. Our years of developing a specialised cleaning process ensure you’ll get back to your celebrations in no time. If you need to get the carpet cleaning specialists in, then give us a call in the Drytron Customer Care Centre on 13 12 50.

Owning a pet can be such a fun and rewarding experience and they come with a huge list of positives that contribute to the overall happiness and fulfilment of everyday life.

But it’s not all glitter and unicorns when owning an animal. Domestic pets in particular, i.e. cats and dogs, can have a particular impact on the cleanliness of surfaces within the home. This is due to excess hair shedding that can cause a fair amount of hassle if left to build up on the affected surface for long periods of time. Professional cleaning services can play a crucial role in keeping your household aesthetics free of animal hair congestion.

Don’t be put off by the above comments – there is no reason why owning a pet has to be stressful, nor should you face an ongoing battle against pet hair shedding. As long as you carry out some regular cleaning practices and call in the professionals for carpet and upholstery dry-cleaning when necessary, you’ll keep your home fur-free!

Listed below are 10 carpet cleaning tips & tricks for pet hair removal, that you can implement into your everyday habits:

Sticky Lint Roller
It might seem like an obvious one, but sticky lint rollers are your best friend when it comes to a quick, fuss-free “de-fluff” session. They’re great for smaller areas, and not quite as effective on larger patches of carpet – as the sticky area of the roller can be quickly consumed by the first surface layer of hair. But hey, you’ve had a coffee and are feeling game – why not take to the armchair after you’ve finished cleaning up your favourite rug? Every small bit of maintenance helps to keep overall pet hair at bay.

Sticky-tape Rolled Around your Hand
This can be a fun one to encourage the kids to help with your carpet hair-removal movement – especially as Lint Rollers can be dearer and less effective on larger patches. Invest in some strong, industrial-grade packing tape, wrap around the palm of your hand several times (with the sticky component facing upwards!) and trick the kids into thinking they’re in competition to accumulate the most pet hair on their sticky tape. In no time, you could have larger rugs and carpets looking significantly less hairy than before! Go kids, go!

Roll the Dog Hair into a Damp Ball – Then Vacuum!
One of the most underrated hair-removal tricks in the book is that of a very light pre-moistening your rug and then sweeping the pet hair into damp, attractive clumps, prior to getting at them with the vacuum. Dampening the hair makes it a lot easier to sweep it into a pile for you to then blast away with your trusty hoover. This can make larger sections of carpet much more manageable to deal with – just be careful to not overdo the water usage. Carpet doesn’t dry quickly, without assistance, and wet carpet will lead to smells, mould, mildew and even carpet shrinkage. A slight light mist with a spray bottle is all you need to kick this trick into gear – and get rid of that hair!

Dampen your Cleaning Utensils
When it comes to hardwood flooring, rather than dampening the floor directly like above with the rug itself, you can actually dampen the broom or mop you’re using before you apply it to the floor space. Suddenly you’ve taken a pretty good everyday mop and transformed it into a highly efficient, damp hair-magnet.

There are many benefits of having your upholstery and carpets professionally dry-cleaned. Contact Drytron for a quote.