Non-Toxic Carpet Cleaning – What Are The Options?

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Nobody enjoys cleaning up dirt, spills, and stains, but it’s a lot more stressful when it happens on your carpet. There are many products out there that can remove all the dirt and sometimes even the stench that gets trapped in your carpet. The problem is most of these products promising deep clean and instant freshness contain very harmful chemicals. Just like that stubborn spot, these chemicals can stay trapped in the fibers of your carpet for a long time.

Fortunately, there are many homemade and ready-made non-toxic carpet cleaners to combat all your carpet woes. Keep your home safe with these products and keep your carpet good as new.

Tips for Non-Toxic Carpet Cleaning

Non-toxic carpet cleaners are much milder than commercial and chemical cleaners. While it’s definitely the safest way to clean your carpet, it may not be as strong as chemical cleaners. Here are some simple tips to make the products as effective as possible:

  • Remove the spill, dirt, or whatever mess is on the carpet as quickly as possible. The fresher the mess, the easier it will be to take out
  • Before applying the product, get as much of the mess out as you can. If the mess is dry, vacuum the area to lift out as many particles as possible. If it’s wet, blot off the liquid as much as you can
  • Blot, don’t scrub, the mess. Blotting keeps the mess in one area instead of spreading it even more on the carpet
  • If you have an odor problem, deodorize your carpet regularly. Odors come from dirt and bacteria that have become lodged in the fibers of the carpet. If you deodorize your carpet regularly, this will stop the problem from happening in the first place. When your carpet starts to stink up, that means the cause has been in the carpet for quite some time already

Home-made Cleaners

Baking Soda

Baking Soda

The holy grail for any kind of homemade cleaner, baking soda is excellent for spot cleaning or deodorizing your carpet. Mix it with water to create a paste and rub it on the spot with a stain or dirt. You can also sprinkle it straight on the carpet. Leave it for at least 10 minutes and pass through your carpet with a vacuum cleaner. This helps lift off unwanted smells from your carpet.

If the stain is a bit more stubborn, you can mix a cup of baking soda with a teaspoon of liquid soap. The soap helps loosen up the dirt and stain a bit more. Apply the solution on the spot and blot dry.

Vinegar

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Vinegar is another common household item that does a great job with cleaning. The smell puts off some people, but it dissipates pretty quickly once you’re done cleaning. You can spray pure white vinegar onto stains and blot them up with a clean cloth. If you have a steam cleaner, you can also use vinegar in place of the chemical cleaner. The room will smell like vinegar for a while, but it will disappear once the vinegar dries.

If you want to get rid of particularly strong odors, you can mix

  • 1 tablespoon of vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon of baking soda
  • a cup of warm water.

Spray it all over your carpet and let it dry. There’s no need to vacuum the solution afterward, but you can do it to get rid of some residue if you notice any.

Ready-Made Cleaners

Better Life Stain & Odor Eliminator

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This product is a good all-around cleaner. It can be used on carpets, sports gear, furniture, and even laundry. It can even remove tough stains like blood and pet excrement. It’s color-safe, non-toxic, biodegradable, and scented with natural botanicals. Just spray directly on the stain or problem areas and blot with a dry cloth.

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Biokleen Carpet and Rug Shampoo

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Biokleen is a plant-based cleaner that uses the power of citrus and grapefruit seed extracts. There are no residues, fumes, or artificial fragrance and colors making it an extremely safe product to use for your carpets. It’s also a concentrate so you get more cleaning solution out of a single jug.

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Puracy Natural Carpet Detergent

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Puracy is also a plant-derived cleaner that works very fast on your carpets. It removes soil, odors, and stains from not just your carpets but even upholstery, rugs, and other washable surfaces. You can use it for manual cleaning and you can use it for carpet cleaning machines as well. The formula is even hypoallergenic so this product is a good pick if you have family members who are sensitive to chemical formulas.

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Aunt Fannie’s Cleaning Vinegar

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As the name suggests, this is a vinegar-based cleaner infused with different scents to leave the room with a more refreshed smell. It’s a multi-purpose and multi-surface spray that you can use to solve your carpet problems. You can spray the product directly on the problem spot and scrub the area till the stain is removed.

It’s not technically a carpet cleaner, so it’s much more effective on solid surfaces like kitchen counters and tabletops. However, it still works on fibers like carpets and upholstery. If it’s not too much of a big job, Aunt Fannie’s Cleaning Vinegar will do the trick.

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Earthworm Carpet and Upholstery Cleaner

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This carpet cleaner is a bio-enzyme-based cleaner. It’s fragrance-free as well so it won’t disturb people with sensitive noses. Since it’s made with natural enzymes, it’s also safe for all members of the family, including furry ones. You can spray the product directly on the stain and let sit for around 10 minutes. Once the product has seeped through, blot with a dry sponge or cloth, or scrub lightly if the stain is stubborn.

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So, there you have it. Lots of different and non-toxic options for carpet cleaning that you can use right now. Less harm to you and your family, and in many cases, way cheaper than the expensive chemical products!

 

34 thoughts on “Non-Toxic Carpet Cleaning – What Are The Options?”

  1. We broke down a long time ago and bought a carpet cleaner. We have three kids, we had two dogs, a husband in construction… our carpets get really dirty really fast.

    We use Dr Bronner’s Sal Suds and it works out fine. Are our carpets 100% clean and sterile? Probably not, but they’re clean enough. Not as well as a professional would do it, perhaps, so I just clean them a bit more often. I don’t mind. I’m saving quite a bit of money, I’m guessing.

    robins last blog post..That’s a Lot of APLS

  2. Hello, I’m not sure where you live, but there is a small franchise called Citrusolution and they claim their cleaners are environmentally friendly. I’ve used them in my house a few times now and I am always pleased with the results. The house smells like oranges when they are done and he always shows me when he’s done the huge amount of pet hair he was able to get out of my carpets that day. Ew. But they are pretty small still, mostly in the south. Here’s the parent company website:

    http://www.c4.coop/cleaning_process.html

  3. Michelle Gudmunsen

    I’m in the same boat as you regarding the state of my carpet. Nature Brite works wonders on those spots, but what about the rest of the floor? I’m going to try to find out about options NOT in