Red stains in the carpet are incredibly upsetting. However, your carpet is not ruined! Follow these simple steps to get rid of the stains. You’ll need a bottle of 3% hydrogen peroxide. This simple medical product is also a powerful cleaning solution! However, like all cleaning solutions you’ll want to test it just to make sure it won’t damage your carpet. Find an out of the way spot or a spare carpet square and pour a little bit on the carpet to make sure that it won’t bleach or stain the carpet worse. If it does, there are other carpet cleaning products that you can use. Hydrogen peroxide is safe for most carpets, however. You’ll also need some clean, white absorbent rags (like cloth diapers) and a spoon. Start by pouring the peroxide directly on the stain. You’ll start to see it bubbling right up out of the carpet, just like it would from a scratch on your knee! Now, work the peroxide gently inward with the spoon. You’re trying to avoid spreading the stain while making sure the peroxide penetrates the carpet as much as you need it to. You can also agitate the peroxide with your fingers a little bit. Next, place your rag directly over the stain. Press down. You should see the red liquid pooling up into the cloth. Just put pressure on it to get it all into the cloth. You may need more than one cloth if the stain is large or very deep. It’s easiest to do this if you catch the stain right away, nearly as soon as it hits the carpet. Waiting means that you’ll get a more stubborn stain. If you do have an older stain you can use the same process, but with one variation. You’ll need to soak down your white rag with water before you begin. You’ll also need to use an iron. Set it on its lowest setting (silk and polyester), then let it warm up. Put the peroxide in the carpet, then place the wet rag over the stain. Then press the iron over the cloth. Make sure the iron never touches the carpet! And, of course, you should make sure that you never leave your iron unattended. Lift the iron up after about two minutes. Your rag should be red, and your carpet should be returning to normal. Repeat the process as necessary. Some stains “wick.” This means they’ll seem to disappear but will reappear about a day later. If that happens the stain has gone all the way to the back of the carpet. You’ll need professional help if this happens. If you’re uncomfortable with any part of this process, or if you have a stain that just won’t respond to the DIY treatment, call us! We tackle tough carpet stains every day, and we can help your carpet look like new, too.