In the busy office spills, spots, and stains are unavoidable. Imagine how quickly the office carpet can become dirty when so many people walk, eat and drink over it every day. However, these stains may not have to be permanent. Removal of spots, spills and stains should be a part of your regular commercial carpet maintenance program, but when an accident happens you need to react quickly.
There are two basic approaches to remove spots and stains from your carpet. You can physically remove the stain from the carpet or use carpet cleaning chemicals. In order to remove them completely, some stains require both chemical and physical treatment. According to the IICRC (Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification) spills, spots and stains are defined as:
- Spills can be wet, dry, oily or combination states of matter that accidentally are deposited on the textile floor covering. Depending on the composition of the spill, quick response time and cleaning procedures may assist in the minimizing the probability of it becoming a spot or a stain.
- Spots are defined as foreign material on the surface of a fiber, usually changing the texture of the fiber (e.g. sticky, oily, greasy, stiff, etc.). Spots usually can be removed. However, some spots, if left for too long, can become stains.
- Stains indicate the addition of color, frequently in liquid or pigment form that has been more strongly attracted to the carpet fiber. This added dye or pigment may bind to a dye site and actually alter the structure of the fiber. Not all stains respond positively to removal efforts.
There are four basic stain removal techniques. Which technique to use in treating a particular spot, stain or spill depends upon the nature of the stain.
- Blotting – This is the most common spot removal technique and it can be used in various parts of cleaning process. Firstly, when you get a spot or a stain on your carpet use a clean towel to blot the stain. Start this process from the outside of the stain and work your way inwards to prevent the stain from spreading further as you try to remove it. Secondly, you can use this technique to lift the stain off the carpet after you have applied some kind of stain remover.
- Soaking – When you have oily or greasy stain on your carpet you should use soaking technique. Begin by soaking up as much of the oil as possible with baking soda or a cornstarch. Allow the absorbent to sit for a couple of minutes to soak up oily residue and then just brush off the excess stain.
- Brushing– This technique is usually used when the stain has already dried. Use a stiff brush to work on the stain to loosen it up and to remove the excess dried stain before you begin to treat the stained area with the chemical remover.
- Scraping – This technique works best for the wet excess stain. You can use a dull knife, spoon, or spatula. Don’t press hard and gently take the top layer off the excess stain. It may not remove a stain completely, but it is usually a necessary step before applying a stain remover.
