Home made carpet cleaner ?

MadMonkey

Can you make your own carpet cleaner ?

We have moved into a house with a cream carpet that has many marks on it and with my 3 small rugrats this is only going to get worse !

We are eventually going to put laminate down but that' a long way off on our list of work to do !

I borrowed a Bissell today and it's maken a big difference but i need something to spot clean with - any tips ?

Thanks

Nicki

Stardrops is great for carpets. In my old house I used to use it in my Vax instead of carpet cleaner, and spot treat any stains with a spray bottle with stardrops and water, after the carpets had been shampooed and were still damp. This worked much better than the stuff which came with the machine.

In my current house all the carpets are sisal and can't be shampooed, and they get grubby quickly. I do miss the old Vax days!!

mandy_moo_1

i second stardrops i bought one of the cheap carpet cleaners from argos, and i put stardrops and warm water in it, and it works a treat!

star2007

Whatever you do, don't use washing up liquid! I remember my mum pennypinching when I was little & used this in the carpet shampooer. However, I read years later that washing up liquid can leave a sticky residue on the carpets, which can attract dirt and grit to them, which will cause damage and discoloration. So her penny pinching was counter effective! I'd use a proper carpet shampoo from a bottle, only make up as much as you need, use a greater dilution of water, look for an own brand version etc.

mummymandy

HELLO, DOES ANYONE KNOW IF IT'S POSSIBLE TO MAKE YOUR OWN CARPET SHAMPOO LIQUID? I HAVE THE MACHINE, BUT DETERGENT IS SO EXPENSIVE. ANY IDEAS PLEASE?:j

doodlesmum

I have used the liquid washing tablets instead of the stuff you buy because you are right it is jolly expensive , dissolved them in hot water,makes the carpet smell nice and cleans it at the same time .

bluetimone97

Normal laundry washing liquid, bold does the job for me

mummymandy

thanks so much doodlesmum and bluetimeone97, i shall try that right now! its great to know people are so helpful!:beer:

Unorganized

I think you'll need to go over it a time or two with either plain water or water and white vinegar to remove the excess soap, or it leaves a slightly sticky residue on your carpets that attracts dirt? Someone correct me if I'm wrong but that's what I was always told

quintwins

i goggled this a few weeks back and it said laundry liquid aswell so thats wat i used and it worked a treat

Kittendreich

We've tried a couple of other products, but they havn't worked well (either didn't clean well or left residue and we did have a foam disaster!).Thought I was stuck with the expensive fluid, but found a HUGE bottle of machine carpet cleaner in B&Q for about £9 - still not that cheap, but should last a while and much better than the tiny bottles for £15-20 in most other places... It managed to salvage a carpet after we had a flood and the ceiling fell in so I think it cleans well enough!