A stain on your carpet can be a stain on your whole day. One moment you had a pristine, beautiful carpet; now you’ve got an unsightly eyesore spreading itself across your floor. The good news about most stains is that if you clean them up immediately, your carpet will be back to looking as good as it was before the stain happened.

Our cleaners at Dr. Chem-Dry have cleaned every kind of carpet stain imaginable, leaving them looking as good as new. Here are five of the most common carpet stains we’ve encountered, along with ways you can clean them up before they make themselves at home.

Coffee

Few things will wake you up better than coffee; few things will make you wish you were still asleep like a coffee stain on your carpet. If you spill your cup of joe, the first thing to do is carefully blot the area with a clean white cloth. Blot the stain from the outside of it to the inside to avoid spreading the stain around. Mix some club soda or seltzer water with one cup of lukewarm water. Sponge the area with this mixture and then blot it again with a white cloth. Repeat these steps a few times with gentle scrubbing, because you don’t want to damage your carpet fibers. Then sponge it one final time using clean water and then blot it dry. The quicker you get to the stain, the better and if it doesn’t all come out, don’t worry! Just call Dr. Chem-Dry.

Paint

Once a paint stain dries, it can be very difficult to remove. Act fast right after it happens, though, and your carpet will be fine. It all depends on what kind of paint you’re using. If it’s water-based, simply blot the stain with a wet paper towel. Do NOT scrub the stain!

For latex-based paints, start by blotting out the stain with a paper towel. Like the water-based paint stain, be sure not to scrub the stain with the towel; scrubbing will just push the paint further down into the carpet. Once you’ve removed as much of the wet latex paint as possible, use lukewarm water to remove as much as possible. Using the water, clean the stain by gently blotting it from the outside of it until you hit its center.

For oil-based paints, you can use the same process you’d use to clean a water-based paint stain. It’s important to note, however, that you should do this as quickly as possible. Oil paint stains are the hardest to remove once they are dry, so spare yourself the headache by cleaning it up while it’s still wet.

Related: How to Remove Paint From Your Carpet

Red Wine

Research shows that a glass of red wine a day can be good for your heart; common sense says that a spilled glass of red wine is bad for your carpet. Before the wine has a chance to dry, you need to blot the stain with a clean white cloth. Make sure to alternate what part of the cloth you’re using so you’re always blotting the stain with a fresh surface. Pour a small amount of water onto the stain and continue blotting it. The water will help dilute the wine, making it easier to blot. Add more water as necessary and continue this process until you’ve gotten as much of the stain out as possible. Now you’ll need to make a paste with a 3 to 1 ratio of baking soda to water. Put this baking soda paste directly on the stain and let it dry. Once the paste is dry, vacuum it up.

If the stain remains after you’ve removed the paste, no problem! We can help. We have a Professional Strength World Famous Spot Remover that you can purchase from us or at Home Dry. This product can remove most red stains, including red wine and Kool-Aid.

Blood

Whether it’s a bloody nose or a mishap on your cutting board, sometimes blood can get on your carpet. Unless you want your home to look like a crime scene, you’ll want to clean it up as soon as possible: dried blood is very hard to remove. Blot the affected area with a clean white towel. As you blot the area, lift the towel up to pick up as much wet blood as possible. Make sure that you do NOT rub the stain, as this will just spread the blood onto more carpet fibers.

Spray the area with cold water and let it sit for a few minutes. Never use warm or hot water! That can make the blood stain a permanent part of your carpet. Continue wetting and blotting the stain until it’s gone. If the stain persists, treat it with a salt paste. Make the paste by mixing salt in a bowl of cold water. Mix the water and salt together until you produce a thin paste. Pour a little of the paste over the stain and let it sit for a few minutes. Blot the paste with a clean towel.

If the stain is STILL there, repeat the salt paste method a few more times. You can then treat the stain with diluted liquid detergent. Stir 1-2 teaspoons of liquid detergent (don’t use anything that contains bleach or lanolin) into a cup of cold water, then soak a towel in that solution and apply it to the stained area. Speed up the drying process by using a fan. Once the carpet is dry, vacuum the area to restore the carpet fibers back to their original shape.

Pets

No matter how well you train your pets, accidents can happen. No need to rub their face in it, though: pet stains can be removed quickly and definitively if you act fast. The first thing to do is soak up as much of the urine as possible by using thick layers of paper or cotton towels. Once you’ve laid down an absorbing layer on the stain, stand on that padding for about a minute. Remove the padding to check out the stain and then repeat this process until the area is barely damp. Follow this by rinsing out the stain with clean, cool water. After you’ve rinsed it, remove any remaining water by either blotting it with a towel or using a wet vac.

One thing you need to do every time you clean a pet stain is to deodorize the stain. The scent of the urine will inspire your pet to come back to that spot and have another accident, so you’ll want to make sure there’s absolutely no odor left when you’ve finished cleaning the stain. We have a Pet Odor Remover that is professional strength that can be used for these type of accidents in-between professional cleanings. Just call us for more information. Home Depot also sells the consumer strength version of our Pet Odor Remover, that can be used after removing as much of the urine as possible.

Related: How to Properly Remove Pet Urine From Your Carpets

Got a stain that you can’t get out? Need some help getting your carpet back to looking as good as it should? Give Dr. Chem-Dry a call at 602-243-6379.