How to Clean a Carpet with Vinegar – Simple Method

Stains and dirt are magnets for turning one carpet into dull and dirty, making the entire room cluttered. Various commercial cleaning and spot remover products available on the market can be quite expensive but do not always work as well as an ideal cleaning solution for every stain. 

Let’s face it, spill and dirt still happen, and you spend quite a lot of time looking for an alternative cleaner that can fix these disadvantages.

Why not use vinegar? With vinegar, you can DIY your carpet cleaner to tackle any stain. Here’s the instruction on how to clean a carpet with vinegar; follow it, and your carpet will be in its mint condition once again.

Is Every Vinegar Good For Carpet Cleaning 

If a thought struck your mind about whether every vinegar can work, just surf the blogs and your eyes will properly be caught by plain white or apple cider vinegar. Let us explain.

The two common and inexpensive vinegar for carpet cleaning-plain white and apple cider vinegar-are generally acetic acid. They are determined as low rate on the ph scale, running somewhere with a ph of approximately 2,4. 

During the carpet cleaning process, cleaning the surface leads to the fact that you are attempting to neutralize the stain’s ph. In other words, you balance stain’s ph to 7. 

Thus, acidic products like vinegar are the ideal treat for alkaline stains having a ph of 14 on pet’s urine, wine, soil. If you are reading more on whether to use either of these two kinds of vinegar, you are in the right place.

Apple Cider from Clairoliviawayman

Plain White Vinegar 

Plain distilled white vinegar has a second talent – cleaning. Whether the dirt is caused by a pet, chocolate, pasta sauce, or even red wine, this acidic vinegar can absorb and remove all these stains. With a pH of 2.4, it makes distilled white vinegar more acidic than various types of vinegar. 

Undoubtedly, most people are surprised when they clean their carpet with plain white vinegar for the first time. Adding such potent vinegar will make the stain easier to remove, but it can also contain a high percentage of acid that makes it too strong for certain carpet types.    

Apple Cider Vinegar

Unlike the plain white vinegar made of laboratory-produced acetic acid, apple cider vinegar comes from the apple’s natural double fermentation. This exception makes apple cider vinegar milder if you don’t want something too strong as potent plain white vinegar. 

Apple cider vinegar is often touted as a miracle cure for any stain or spot, whether it’s an errant cup of coffee, a magic marker mishap, soil, or muddy paw prints. What’s more, it’s completely organic, effective, really baby and pet safe. 

How To Clean A Carpet With Vinegar – Step-by-Step Process

Check Out Material Of Your Carpet

Another part of the cleaning is the carpet’s material that you need to take into account. It is always crucial to determine what material your carpet is made of, whether it is synthetic or natural fibers. 

Vinegar is a great natural cleaner for various types of carpets, but not for natural fibers.

Almost any kind of materials can work well with vinegar, whilst those made of natural fibers require careful treatment. Exposure to very acidic products quite often increases the chance they become more fragile and damaged. Unfortunately, in such a situation, it may make matters worse.  

It is not always the solution for wool, silk carpet, which are made of natural fibers. Using vinegar may not work at all, or even result in doing more harm to the nature of carpet’s fibers. 

Make Your Own Vinegar-Based Cleaning Solution

how-to-clean-a-carpet-with-vinegar
Image by Mike Mozart

One of the best things about mixing up a vinegar carpet cleaner is that you will notice how simple it is. A DIY mix works as well as the complex commercial products advertised on TV.

Instead of making a complicated concoction of multiple ingredients, you will mix a solution of one part vinegar with ten parts water, simply making it a natural and versatile carpet cleaning. You will be ready to go.

6-Step Process

With the proper technique, you will make significant effective removing the stain and disinfecting it at the same time without damaging it. We’ve put together ideas of carpet cleaning steps that can help you do your job better, try out the following.

1. Approach The Stain Right Away

Getting to the stain once it happens is the first step to solve the cleaning process puzzle. Whether the stain’s nature is, it can be spilled wine or coffee, puppy pee, or chocolate prints, leaving it longer means making it harder to clean the stain. Because of this, you’d better not leave it dried off but get started to get it out right away.

2. Blot The Spill/ Spain

For the best result, instead of rubbing the liquid in, you should blot it up. Now is time for the method tutorial, while using your fingertips, lay the absorbing towel over the dirt and blot it firmly, you might also blot the stain with the heel of your palm if you feel it brings more comfort.

3. Use More Absorbing Towels 

Feel free blotting until there is nothing left to soak up. You might use a few towels along the way, which means the larger the area the more towels consumption will be.

4. Mix Vinegar And Water

Ideally, it would be best if you diluted the vinegar with one-half water in a spray bottle. But if you pour more of undiluted vinegar onto the dirt, you may inevitably have regret for this action. The worst part can be the larger spread of the stain, which definitely ruins the whole fibers of your carpet.  

When applying the mix to your carpet, spray the entire area and spray it separately on the “mist” setting. Then, allow the solution to soak in for five or more to ten minutes, it’s up to you. Paper towels are necessary when you use them to mist the stain gently but firmly, you can make repetition until you’re satisfied with the final result.

5. Wait For A Few Minutes

Now is the time for vinegar to do its job. After a while, then go to rubbing. Even scrubbing on the stain is acceptable, what you need to get the dirt out is put a little elbow grease, which gives that carpet the ultimate appearance of deep cleanliness.

6. Vacuum

When the time has elapsed, the vinegar is absorbed into the carpet fibers. Once the area is air-dried, make sure you vacuum the carpet thoroughly afterward. Going over the area two or three times gives time for vinegar cleaner to absorb smells and stains. Repeating with the other sections to make sure you suck up all the dirt and debris when you’re cleaning the whole carpet.

Proceed With Caution When Using Vinegar

Vinegar is one of the most accessible and commonly used products at home. It is an indispensable component for eco-cleaning surfaces, removing mold, and has an antibacterial effect. However, the liquid is acidic, so there are things that should not be used. Check out which are the things that you should keep in mind when cleaning with vinegar at your home.

Stain Scrubbing

If a stain seems like it’s a little more stubborn, make the spot blotted with a white, clean, and lint-free rag and pour double the amount of your DIY vinegar-based stain remover. Wiping from the outside of the stain towards the center. 

Repeat until the stain ultimately disappears. Allowing testing it on in the inconspicuous area for several minutes before applying to the affected area ensures it doesn’t wipe out the carpet’s material.

For any stain requiring a little scrubbing, be cautious to rub the paste over the stain, working from the outside towards the center without affecting the material’s color. 

Before vacuuming the paste and spraying with the mixture including water and vinegar, you leave it in place overnight. Wait for 30 minutes and then blot up the moisture. This works on pet stains, as well as some stains caused by coffee, tea, or ink.

Smell

Most vinegar has a regular smell, depending on the amount of vinegar you use making the cleaner solution, some may have scents included, but the odor dissipates quickly. 

In fact, the more strongly the carpet will smell of vinegar when you use more vinegar in the water. Feel free to add a few drops of a citrus essential oil if you wish to mask the off-putting scent of vinegary a bit.

In Conclusion

Vinegar is inexpensive and works as magic that makes your carpet out of stain. Going to mix it with water allows you to clean carpet in a more economically and environmentally friendly way. 

When it comes to regular cleaning carpets, in most cases you have to pay around 30 dollars. Why not buy a large bottle of vinegar for only a few dollars and check out more reading on how to clean a carpet with vinegar. 

With using vinegar cleaner through the steps we have shown above, it can benefit you a lot saving, then restoring the appearance of your carpet will be easier than ever before.

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