Stains

Stain Guide

View our stain removal guide for help on how to remove stains from carpets.
Overturned glass and spilled red wine on white carpet indoors, above view

Stain Guide for Carpet & Rug Cleaning

Home spot and stain treatment is an important part of maintaining your carpet. Use these tips to treat spots or spills as soon as possible when they happen.

NEVER USE BLEACH

Bleach can remove lots of stains, unfortunately it will also remove the colour from your carpet.

ACT QUICKLY

The older the stain, the more difficult it is to remove. Absorb liquid with clean white towel or paper towels and scrape up solid material. Work from the outside spot toward the center to avoid spreading it.

TEST SOLUTION FIRST

Test the solution on a portion of the fiber or the carpet that is not normally visible.

BLOT GENTLY BETWEEN STEPS

Rubbing or aggressive blotting can cause a stain to spread or penetrate deeper. A clean white towel or paper towel allows you to see when you are no longer absorbing the spot or stain.

BE PATIENT!

Repeat the procedure several times until no more residue shows on your towel.

About the Solutions In This Guide

Ammonia Solution – One tablespoon of household ammonia(Sudsy) to half a cup of lukewarm water.

Detergent Solution – One teaspoon of laundry detergent(Tide) to one cup of lukewarm water.

Enzyme detergent – Use any laundry detergent that contains enzymes. Mix as detergent above.

Non-Oily Nail Polish Remover – Use undiluted as directed.

Unscented Hair Spray – Great on ink and small tar spots.

Vinegar – Plain undiluted white table vinegar.

Stain Guide

Alcoholic Beverages

1. Flush with warm water or soda water. 2. Blot dry.

Animal Stains

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply ammonia solution. 3. Apply vinegar. 4. Rinse and blot.

Artificial Colours

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar. 3. Rinse. 4. Apply enzyme detergent. 5. Rinse and blot dry.

Beer

1. Flush with warm water and blot dry.

Blood

1. Apply cool detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar. 3. Rinse. 4. Apply enzyme detergent. 5. Rinse with cool water and blot dry.

Chocolate

1. Apply non-oily nail polish remover. 2. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 3. Repeat step. 4. Apply detergent solution. 5. Apply ammonia solution. 6. Rinse and blot.

Coffee/Tea/Cola

1. Flush with cold water or soda water. 2. Blot dry.

Crayon

1. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 2. Repeat step 1. 3. Apply detergent solution. 4. Rinse and blot.

Fruit Juice

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar. 3. Rinse. 4. Apply enzyme detergent. 5. Rinse and blot dry.

Glue

Professional Cleaning Recommended

Grass Stains

1. Apply cool detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar. 3. Rinse. 4. Apply enzyme detergent. 5. Rinse with cool water and blot dry.

Gravy

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar solution. 3. Apply enzyme detergent.

Grease/Oil

1. Apply non-oily nail polish remover. 2. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 3. Repeat step. 4. Apply detergent solution. 5. Apply ammonia solution. 6. Rinse and blot.

Gum

1. Chill with ice cube. 2. Scrape off as much as possible. 3. Apply non-oily nail polish remover.

Ink (Ballpoint)

1. Spray with unscented hair spray (yes, this really works!) 2. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 3. Repeat 1 and 2.

Jello

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar. 3. Rinse. 4. Apply enzyme detergent. 5. Rinse and blot dry.

Ketchup

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar solution. 3. Apply enzyme detergent.

Lipstick

1. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 2. Repeat step 1. 3. Apply detergent solution. 4. Rinse and blot.

Milk

1. Apply warm water or soda water. Dry cleaning solution may also be used. 2. Blot dry.

Mud

1. Let dry. 2. Brush, scrap or vacuum off as much as possible. 3. Apply detergent solution. 4. Rinse and blot dry.

Mustard

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar solution. 3. Apply enzyme detergent.

Nail Polish

1. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 2. Apply non-oily nail polish remover. 3. If stain remains apply detergent solution. 4. Apply ammonia solution. 5. Apply vinegar solution. 6. Rinse and blot dry.

Paint (Latex)

1. Blot up. 2. Rinse with detergent solution.

Paint (Oil-Based)

1. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 2. Apply non-oily nail polish remover. 3. If stain remains apply detergent solution. 4. Apply ammonia solution. 5. Apply vinegar solution. 6. Rinse and blot dry.

Rust

1. Apply vinegar. 2. Let sit 5 min. Repeat twice. If stain remains, Professional Cleaning Recommended

Soda

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply vinegar. 3. Rinse. 4. Apply enzyme detergent. 5. Rinse and blot dry.

Tar/Shoe Polish

1. Apply non-oily nail polish remover. 2. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 3. Repeat step. 4. Apply detergent solution. 5. Apply ammonia solution. 6. Rinse and blot.

Urine

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply ammonia solution. 3. Apply vinegar solution. 4. Rinse and blot dry.

Vomit

1. Apply detergent solution. 2. Apply ammonia solution. 3. Apply vinegar solution. 4. Rinse and blot dry.

Wax

1. Apply paint/oil/grease remover. 2. Repeat step 1. 3. Apply detergent solution. 4. Rinse and blot.

Wine (Red)

1. First blot with white wine, if stain remains: 2. Apply detergent solution. 3. Apply vinegar solution. 4. Apply ammonia solution. 5. Rinse and blot dry.


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Stain Removal Reviews

This is a wonderful company who has great values of integrity. We had tenants that left our property with significant pet damage, and our service tech fully inspected the place and was honest, advising we needed to actually rip out the flooring and repair it as the carpet cleaning would not solve the issue. I am so grateful for honest companies who value integrity and not just pocketing money. Thank you! We will continue to trust and reccomend your services.

- Thomas Pasterfield

We had an amazing experience with Alberta Carpet Cleaning, and I have to give a huge shoutout to Lawrence for his outstanding work! We recently moved out of our home where we had a small puppy, and I was honestly a bit worried about the condition of the carpets. But Lawrence went above and beyond—he was friendly, professional, and incredibly thorough. By the time he was done, the carpets looked absolutely impeccable—like new! You’d never know we had a puppy there at all. I’m so impressed and grateful for the care and attention to detail. If you need top-quality carpet cleaning, you got it with them!

- Amanda Marie

This has been hands down the BEST service ever. They take text messages first thing in the morning and respond immediately. Our old dog recently had 3 accidents on our brand new carpet and area rug 3 days in a row and they came back every time with prompt service and everything looks amazing. Could not recommend them more.

- Emilie

I loved the communication with this company from the day before to the day of. We had an unexpected insurance claim in our home that has been extremely stressful, but these guys were a DREAM to deal with at the tailend of the clean-up! Very professional and got right to it! I was able to book the furnace cleaning with the carpet cleaning immediately after. I didn't catch the names of the furnace team, but they were quick and thorough and double-checked vent counts with me before completion and were very informative. Mark and Marc were my carpet cleaning guys and are an amazing duo. Highly recommend. I'd give a 10 if I could!

- Coral Simmonds

This is a wonderful company who has great values of integrity. We had tenants that left our property with significant pet damage, and our service tech fully inspected the place and was honest, advising we needed to actually rip out the flooring and repair it as the carpet cleaning would not solve the issue. I am so grateful for honest companies who value integrity and not just pocketing money. Thank you! We will continue to trust and reccomend your services.

- Thomas Pasterfield

We had an amazing experience with Alberta Carpet Cleaning, and I have to give a huge shoutout to Lawrence for his outstanding work! We recently moved out of our home where we had a small puppy, and I was honestly a bit worried about the condition of the carpets. But Lawrence went above and beyond—he was friendly, professional, and incredibly thorough. By the time he was done, the carpets looked absolutely impeccable—like new! You’d never know we had a puppy there at all. I’m so impressed and grateful for the care and attention to detail. If you need top-quality carpet cleaning, you got it with them!

- Amanda Marie

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