June, 2013 - A-1 Cleaning Service, LLC.

Grass Stain problems

For your tuff summer grass stains, here are some tips…

– For washables: Use a cleaner made from an enzyme detergent and water, and leave it to soak in a warm place for half an hour. Use an eyedropper to apply a solution of one part ammonia/white vinegar and two parts water to the bleach any remaining stain. Rinse with cold water, and then finish with a normal wash cycle.

– For unwashables: Your best option here is to send your stained fabric to a dry cleaners. They’ll know all of the trade secrets on how to get a stain out of a wedding dress, suit or silk, so don’t try anything at home or you might end up ruining something precious!

– Linoleum/Tile: This shouldn’t be too hard. Just wipe with a cloth dipped in warm sudsy water, rinse, and dry with a clean cloth.

– Carpets: Sponge the area with a dry-cleaning solvent (use light strokes and work outward). Apply the dry spotter to stain then cover with an absorbent rag made damp with the dry spotter. Let it stand, changing the pad as the stain is lifted. Keep both the stain & the pad moist with the dry spotter. Flush with a dry cleaning solvent and allow to dry. Be sure to blot up the excess liquid during the procedure and before drying.

– Leather/Suede: Mix a mild solution consisting of soap and lukewarm water. Swish to create suds. Apply only the foam with a sponge. Wipe with a clean cloth. If there is still an oily stain, powder the area with an absorbent, like cornmeal. Give plenty of time for it to absorb, then brush off the powder. Repeat as needed.

I hope these tips helped! Good luck! 🙂

Why are grass stains so hard to remove?
Essentially, grass stains are dye stains. They are a combination of protein and other organic matter that has been mixed with the grasses’ juices (which includes chlorophyll, xanothophylls, and cartenoids; if you ever paid attention in science class, you know that these are relatively stable pigmented compounds). What makes these so difficult to remove is that these pigments are so similar to natural fibers like cotton, that the stain actually penetrates and bonds to the fabric fibers. These materials don’t bond as easily to scotch-guarded fabric, as the material is incompatible with the binding process, but all the same grass makes for an annoying stain to remove.

Guest Blog Post: Carpet Castle – Worst Messes That Parents Have to Deal With

Let’s not sugar coat it, children are messy! If you have kid, you’re probably going to need to hire a carpet cleaner at some point. What’s worse is they don’t get any less messy as they get older. Every parent can remember a time where their child has made such a huge mess of their carpets, walls, windows, doors, stairs, bed… actually it’s probably easier to list what they haven’t dirtied!

Here are some of the worst messes that will have you reaching for the phone to find a professional carpet cleaner similar to this Rug Cleaning Brighton company, or possibly even buying a new carpet!

Bodily fluids

From toddlers to teenagers, it’s inevitable you’ll have to deal with pee, poo, blood, sick and more. Almost every parent will have had to pick up and rush their child to the toilet with them peeing every step of the way. Some toddlers have poo-playing phases – most grow out of this quickly but boy, is it messy! As your children grow into teenagers they may start experimenting with alcohol which, as we all know, can lead to puking. There will often be times growing up when they are ill and vomit – but this will not prepare you for the trails of spew across your carpet, up the stairs or on the walls in the general direction of a toilet.

Food stuffs

Children are very creative, which unfortunately also means messy. Talk to any parent and they will tell you about the time their beloved little one found the flour or sugar and decided to make it ‘snow.’ Or when rotten eggs exploded after their kid decided to hatch a chicken, or pouring olive oil over the kitchen floor to make a slip-and-slide. The list goes on, but worst of all is when your sprog manages to get their hands on hamburger meat before promptly grinding it into the carpet.

Sticky stuff

More of a broad category, but it will often leave you on the phone to a carpet supplier to get a replacement carpet. If you thought the food stuffs listed above were bad, just see what happens if they get their hands on honey, syrup, ice-cream or chewing gum! Some things should come with child-lock tops to save parents the hassle of dealing with ridiculous amounts of mess. The worst sticky situations you will be in is if your kids get hold of glue (bad but not terrible), Vaseline (terrible) or adhesive glitter (worse than terrible). The latter of these may even defeat even the most professional and experienced carpet cleaning company!

Organic materials

Typically people think of mud when you refer to organic mess, and for the most part that’s true. However children will bring everything with them! Alongside mud you’re likely to have to deal with sticks, leaves, small animals and even handfuls of gravel or sand. These tend to be annoying and can be tricky to clean up, but thankfully nowhere near as disastrous as some of the above messes!

About the Author – Carpet Castle is a uniquely styled carpet warehouse with thousands of different styles, patterns and colours at unbeatable prices. As one of Wales’ biggest discount warehouses, Carpet Castle offers great prices on carpets, vinyl and carpet remnants.

Month: June 2013

Problems With Grass Stains

Worst Carpet Messes for Parents