Every person in charge of tackling the mound of laundry in their home has one thing in common—they absolutely loathe stubborn stains! Unfortunately, stains don’t just appear on your jeans. Instead, they can sink into fancy textiles and brand new carpet as well. From lime green grass stains to pesky red wine, here are our best tips for busting stubborn stains in your home.

Basic Stain Removal Tips

Before you start scrubbing, keep the following in mind for every stain:

• The sooner you can start pre-treating a stain, the better. If you can soak a stain quickly, you will have a great chance of being able to remove it.
• If you are using a pre-treating solution you haven’t used before on a certain type of fabric, you should patch test it on a discreet area first.

Sink Stains

1. Hair Dye: Use a denture cleaning tablet and crush it into a fine powder. Mix it with water to make a thick paste, and spread the paste onto the stain. Let the paste soak on the stain for 10-15 minutes and wash away with hot water.
2. Hard Water Stains: Mix together a 50/50 solution of vinegar and cream of tartar or use an all-purpose, heavy-duty cleaning solution. Apply the mixture with a cloth or sponge and scrub the stains. Let the cleaner soak for a few more minutes and rinse everything off.

Granite, Marble and Stone Countertop Stains

3. Create a paste with flour and one other cleaning agent depending on what the stain is. For food stains, mix flour and hydrogen peroxide. For oil-based stains, use flour and dish soap. For mold or fungus, combine flour and bleach. Once you have the right paste prepared, you should apply it in a generous layer to the stained area. Let the paste soak in for 12-14 hours and use a putty knife to scrape away the dried paste. If there is still a stain remaining, repeat the process.

Carpet Stains

4. For water-soluble stains, use a solution composed of ¼ tsp. vinegar and 32 oz. of water. What are water-soluble stains? Berries, soda, food dye, gravy, ice cream, milk, jelly, mud, water-based ink and wet or latex-based paint.
5. For trickier stains, like blood, chocolate, coffee, tea or wine, you should use 1 tbsp. of mild detergent mixed with 1 cup of water. You can also check manufacturer instructions to see what is recommended for the exact composition of your carpet.
6. For wax or gum, you should use an ice cube to freeze the area and then shatter the frozen material with something hard and blunt, like a spoon. Vacuum everything up before the pieces soften again.

Upholstery Stains

7. Creating a solution of equal parts white vinegar and cool water is a great way to tackle most sofa and upholstery stains. Mix the solution and place it in a spray bottom. Spray the solution onto the stain and use a clean, white cloth to blot the stain. Continue spraying and blotting until the stain has been removed.
8. Soda water, or plain carbonated water, is another powerful upholstery stain-fighting tool. Pour a small amount of soda water onto the stain and blot it with a clean cloth.

Get Rid of Stubborn Stains with Park Avenue Cleaning

Park Avenue Cleaning, LLC provides white glove cleaning services to homeowners and business owners throughout the greater Baltimore area. Experience a truly remarkable clean with our services! To learn more and schedule your home appraisal cleaning, call us today at (877) 546-9837.