How to Remove Stubborn Stains

Not again! Even after explicitly reminding your child numerous times to sit still and not to run around when she’s drinking her apple juice, the inevitable occurs. As the waterworks begin and you try to calm down you distressed daughter, you’re also likely distracted, considering all the nifty tricks you could use to get that stain out of the rug fast. As parents, you know the drill. Spills are bound to happen when little children are living in your home, so the duty now falls on you to figure out how to get those pesky stains out. You definitely want to act fast, as the chances of water damage and discolored stains are unpleasant side effects of a spill. Luckily, we’re here to help!

Trick 1: Vinegar

Coffee, juice, soda, milk, water: you name it. If you’ve got any kind of rug or carpet in your home, then liquid is one of its worst enemies. And because liquid is your worst enemy, consider vinegar your new best friend. Despite its deceptive appearance as just a kitchen item, vinegar is a miracle elixir that can be used for a number of home tricks. To remove light stains, use a mixture of 2 tablespoons of salt and dissolve it in a ½ cup of white vinegar. Rub this on the stain, let it dry, then vacuum. For juice stains, you want to mix a tablespoon of laundry detergent, 1 ½ tablespoons of white vinegar and 2 cups of water. Use this mixture on the stain and blot. If you have wood furniture such as reclaimed wood table tops in your home with water stains, diluting vinegar with water and olive oil creates a solution that can help remove stains and residue from wood without damaging the polish.

Trick 2: Baking Soda

Although we think we’ve properly potty trained our children, this unfortunate assumption can sometimes be a big mistake. When your child makes an “uh-oh” on the carpet, you want to act quickly. Luckily, there’s another home item that can do just the trick. After wiping up what you can of the stain, poor baking soda over the stained area, pat it down with a paper towel, and leave it there for about 1-2 hours before vacuuming it up.. Baking soda is also a big help for cases like these because it absorbs any odors that may have ended up in the carpet.

Trick 3: Salt

Salt is another household item that you’ll be thanking yourself for having in your kitchen, especially if you’ve got a ton of it. If you’ve got a fresh stain, act fast and sprinkle salt all over the stain. Actually scratch that: forget sprinkling, pour as much salt as you can, until you can no longer see the stain. Wait about ten minutes, until the salt has absorbed all the liquid, and use a vacuum nozzle attachment to remove the stain and salt. Even difficult to remove spills like ketchup can be safely extracted with this trick.

Bonus Tip: Wood Flooring

With a full family living in your home, all sorts of messes and accidents can occur, and because stains, even when you are able to get them out, are annoying to remove, it can be a smart investment to install wood flooring. Having wood floors will also increase the value of your home if you ever decide to move out, and that’s because wood flooring is both rustically beautiful, and provide much easier maintenance than carpets. If your children or spouse have a lot of allergies, wood floors allow these allergy causes such as dust and pollen to be easily swept up, whereas these allergens can build up in carpets.

If you ever find yourself dealing with another spill crisis at home (which let’s be honest, with the little ones it’s going to happen again), don’t forget these handy tricks to safely remove any potential stains, and keep your home looking clean and tidy.