Cheaper Carpet Cleaning Solution, works better too.

[canadian gardener]

I use non sudsing ammonia for years in those rental steam cleaners. I used to run rental units. A couple of TBSP up to 1/4 cup in the tank depending. Takes out most guck. Won't hurt the carpet but you never know so try a patch of inconspicous carpet in a closet or such first.

I pretreat spots with laundry pre treat OR OXYCLEAN

(NOT liquid detergent, like Wisk, but I mean the spray on stuff that dissolves stains.)

If you use straight liquid detergent on any spot to clean it, you will have the concentrated detergent residue in their for life, attracting dirt to it like a sponge. It will be a gray spot.

So I used a LIGHT spray of spray n wash OR OXYCLEAN powder dissolved in VERY HOT WATER as a pre treat.

2 other pretreatments I"ve used:
For blood use peroxide, and sponge it clean with cool water before steam cleaning.

For ink use rubbing alcohol and blot WELL.

Note about OXYCLEAN POWDER:
OXYCLEAN is good, but can lighten the carpet and bleach some colours right out, try on an inconspicous spot. IF you have a light carpet to begin with, it can restore it though and it's a good alternative. TEST in a closet or somewhere inconspicous first.

The way to use OXY is in a bowl of boiling water, dump onto stain, rub in, blot up. Repeat. THEN go over carpet with the ammonia solution.

Back to my ammonia method.

After running the ammonia solution thru, IF YOU ARE DOING THIS METHOD FOR THE FIRST TIME ON OLDER CARPETS you follow with a rinse using some vinegar, not a lot, about 1/4 cup in the tank.

Vinegar and ammonia chemically cancel each other out.

What the vinegar does is break down all the ammonia and old carpet shampoo residue, so it can be picked back up and cleaned out.

I prefer to use the vinegar as a final rinse and only if the carpet was exceptionally dirty with shampoo to begin with.

The old soapy residue from other carpet cleaners needs picking up or if you use more than 2 TBSP ammonia per tank of hot water because both of these situations will attract more dirt later.

After doing that vinegar rinse the first time, you should be able to maintain the carpet in future cleanings with ammonia 1 to 2 TBSP in the tank ONLY. ANd only about once every 2 or 3 years.

Dry REALLY well, and as fast as possible.

Carpets that are wet cleaned too often or that aren't dried quickly develop stinky socks smells, from various microscopic molds and fungi.

In worst cases, Kawasaki syndrome can hit the kids in a home where the carpet was recently cleaned.

I take the machine over it, dry on SUCK or however you like to call it, several times to suck as much out as possible.

Then I take every towel I own and lay them down and scrub with them and dance on them etc, to try to blot up more. Pick them up after that and dump them in the washing machine, you need the indoor air drying the carpet now not the towels.

Then I take every fan I own and set them running across the surface of the carpet to keep the air moving.

I turn up the heat in the house, and about once an hour open all the windows and doors to let out the moisture laden air, and replace with dry air, which then gets heated in the furnace, and sucks up more moisture.

Repeat till bedtime, then go back to normal except leave those fans blowing at least till morning. If morning comes and it's damp feeling in the house even if the carpets are dry turn up the heat and repeat till it dries.

Because winter air is driest of all, I find that the best time to do carpets. Next best time is in the heat of summer if it's a dry heat or a dry spring day. Fall is the worst. The air is often full of mold spores and damp.

[paelthom]

Sounds like my method except I only use the vinegar. Never thought about trying the ammonia but might just have to give it a try come spring. I use the rental cleaners too but would like to get one of my own. We only have area rugs but they really get dirty between us and the dogs/cats.

[canadian gardener]

Sorry Pat, didn't see your post, I posted in again, here with a couple of comments, because in times past when I share this method, there can be some confusion.

The Vinegar is a WONDERFUL cleaner ESPECIALLY if a carpet has had lots of shampoo in it.

Essentially Vinegar (1/4 cup or so to a tank of hot water) will clean out the old detergent residue along with the trapped dirt.

Eventually though Vinegar will lose some effectiveness. Chemically vinegar is close to oil, and doesn't actually break down any oily dirt. Ammonia will do that.

Both Vinegar and Ammonia are environmentally safe cleaners that don't aggravate allergies. (if asthmatic, don't inhale the ammonia vapours, keep it very very dilute)

comments to help with my method:

I use 2 TBSP of ammonia per tank of hot water for most carpet cleaning situations.

That does most carpets and cleans off most spots. Try that before using a heavy 1/4 cup solution because if you use the stronger solution, when you don't have to, you run the risk of leaving some in the carpet to attract dirt.

which is why older carpets that have been shampooed a lot, tend to get dirty really fast. Those carpet detergents aren't cleaned out. The mild ammonia solution pretty much rinses it'self right out as it cleans.

Use a LIGHT spray of spray and wash or carpet spot shot for any pretreatment of spots or stains because ANY detergent residue left in the carpet will attract more dirt.

OXY is fine and will take out most spots, but works best in VERY HOT water.