Q.   How do I get Grease out of my carpet?

Long Answer:    This is a little more advanced, but if done properly you can successfully remove the worst grease spots from your carpet.  Oil and water don’t mix so you will have to break down the grease before you can remove it. (WARNING: IF YOU DO NOT FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH ALL OF THESE STEPS CALL A PROFESSIONAL, THIS IS WHAT WE ARE TRAINED TO DO AND WE HAVE SAFER SOLVENTS ). There is a paint solvent called Odorless Mineral Spirits   (O.M.S.)  that you can get at any home improvement store.  (WARNING: IF YOU SPILL THIS IN YOUR CARPET IT WILL DESOLVE THE LATEX GLUE THAT HOLDS YOUR CARPET TOGETHER AND EFFECTIVLY DESTROY YOUR CARPET -----DO NOT POUR O.M.S. ON YOUR CARPET). Despite its name Odorless Mineral Spirits smells really bad but it will dissolve grease on contact so all you need is a tiny tiny little bit.

1) Do not carry the can of OMS over any carpeted surface.

2) Put a SMALL AMOUNT  (you can always add more) of OMS on a clean cotton rag that you don’t mind throwing away.  Old white socks and white tee shirts are great for this. Do not wash the rag, it will make your washing machine smell like gasoline.  See  #4  below for instructions on disposing of the rag. 

After you have put some OMS on the rag walk over to your grease spot and wipe it gently from the outside to the center turning the rag to a fresh spot with each pass until it is gone .  Is it gone already? Use a dry rag to wipe off any excess OMS left in the carpet and proceed to step #3.  If not, repeat the same sequence with a fresh area of the towel.  If it’s not gone now or at least significantly better, it’s not grease continue on to step #3.  If it is a lot better but not completely gone you should stop for a minute,  go outside and breath some fresh air and let the OMS that’s left in the carpet evaporate .  You can repeat the sequence but be careful not to saturate the fibers with OMS because they could wick the solvent down into the backing of the carpet and into the Latex.

  3) Let the remaining  Odorless Mineral Spirits in your carpet evaporate for about 30 minutes then using  the spot cleaner of your choice and your Wet and Dry Vac  spot clean the area as follows:      A)  Put a very small amount of spot cleaner on the spot and work it into the fibers very gently with something like the handle of a kitchen spatula.      B)  Pour about  3 teaspoons of water on the spot and immediately suck it up with the Wet and Dry Vac.  Do this three more times, tripling the amount  of water each time.       C)  Use your clean white towels to absorb the remaining moisture, following the procedure outlined  in  (What should I use to clean spots on my carpet?).

4)  Always treat any rag that has solvent on it as highly flammable with the potential to self combust.  After spot cleaning lay your rag out flat on a non flammable surface  like concrete or rocks to dry for 24 hours before disposing of the rag. 

Delta Steam-Way

The Premier Carpet Cleaners in Elk Grove