Carpet Stains Reappearing
Honey the dog just went on the carpet, quick get the carpet cleaner.
You quickly get the spot cleaned up, scold the dog and go about your business. The next day or so you happen to notice carpet stains reappearing. But I cleaned it up and it looked as good as new. What’s up?
The problem that many don’t understand is that when the dog did his business on the carpet, it soaked into the pad as well. When you cleaned the spot, you only cleaned the surface fibers and did not get all the “problem” out.
When carpet stains reappear, this is called wicking. As you use your carpet cleaning chemical or “spotter” the carpet fibers are wetted to remove the spot. (remember the difference between a spot and stain is time) As the fibers dry, they will pull up moisture from down in the pad up to the surface where they dry and become a stain. To demonstrate wicking, take a paper towel and put a portion of it in a glass of liquid. You will see how the liquid wicks up the towel.
If you want to get all the spot out of your carpet you have to insure you get enough cleaner into the pad as well. Blot the spot untill there is nothing more being absorbed. It is always a good idea to apply cleaner once again and repeat the process. If you have a portable extractor this will insure you get the spot and carpet stains reappearing will be a thing of the past.
For more on carpet extraction cleaning, read on >
