How to clean carpet stains, with and without a carpet cleaning machine

However effective your vacuum cleaner, there will always be those unfortunate spills and baked-in stains that need closer attention. I run a commercial cleaning business and rely on a homemade paste to remove the most stubborn marks from my carpets (and deploy it after any accidents). It’s inexpensive and you will probably have the ingredients in your cupboards already.

It won’t achieve a deep clean, though. If you’re looking to tackle bigger areas and own – or can hire – a carpet cleaner, I also have some fail-safe advice to ensure a pristine finish.

Spot clean stains with a homemade paste

For small stains, this quick concoction is all you need. Simply mix the following ingredients together slowly until they form a paste:

• Half a cup bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tbsp mild washing up liquid
• 1-2 tbsp of warm water

Avoid brightly coloured washing up liquids, especially if you have lighter-coloured carpets, as the dye may transfer onto the fibres. Before you start, there’s one step that applies to any carpet cleaning; always test your cleaning solution (homemade or otherwise) on a small, hidden area of flooring to check for colour-fastness and compatibility.