Don't you hate it when after you've labored and cleaned your carpet thoroughly, you find it has some soap residue left on it? Soap stains are quite intolerable by any means, not to mention a little frustrating because the stubborn stains don't just go away with water. You need a good strategy to remove the stains from the carpet completely.
But first,
Let us look at how you end up with soap residue on your carpet. There are mainly two causes of this. One, recurrent shampooing of your carpet is likely to leave it with soap residue. Secondly, when you use excess shampoo to clean your carpet, chances are you will have some soap residue left more so when you do not rinse it out properly. If any of these two things happen, and you are left with soap residue on your carpet, here is what you should do.
How To Remove Soap Residue From Carpet? - 2 methods
You will be tempted to remove soap residue with water or use rough washes, but let's face it - that will not do much and will not give you the expected results. Rough washes may just as well ruin your carpet. Since we don't want that to happen, here are some proven solutions to getting soap residue off your carpet.
With Hand
White vinegar is your best friend when it comes to removing soap residue. You will need some clean clothes, a fan, and a few clean towels for this method. First, you need to absorb the soap residue from the carpet. To do this, place a towel in the wet area and dab firmly to soak up as much water as possible. You can change the towel as much as possible depending on how wet the area is. If the area is already dried up, this step won't be necessary.
Mix a quarter cup of white vinegar with a shampoo that has a separate rinse water reservoir. Rub the soap residue area with a harsh cloth dipped in the vinegar solution.
Keep dipping the cloth into the vinegar solution and rubbing until you are satisfied with the result. When you are done, leave the carpet to dry. Your carpet will regain its beauty.
With Machine
For this, you will need white vinegar and a cleaner machine. Fill the machine with the required amount of water but instead of shampoo or soap, add a quarter cup of white vinegar.
Now clean as you normally would with your machine. The diluted vinegar helps not only to remove dirt but also the soap residue. Continue cleaning over the affected area until the tough carpet stains are completely removed. once the carpet is clean, let it dry naturally by opening the windows or turning on the air conditioner. If it doesn't dry naturally, you can dab the wet area with an absorbent cloth to dry it.
Other Solutions
Using Rubbing Alcohol
Another quite simple solution to get soap residue off your carpet is by using rubbing alcohol. Simply take a scrubber dipped into rubbing alcohol and scrub the affected area.
You can place some rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle and use a hand brush to remove the tough spots. Continue spraying and scrubbing until you remove soap residue. Let the wet area dry out for a few minutes.
Using Lemon drops and Liquid detergent
Lemon drops work well to remove soap residue from your carpet. Mix some lemon drops with two tablespoons of liquid detergent and a cup of clean water. Put the solution on the carpet, concentrating more on the areas around the soap residue.
Let it soak and sit there for about 10-15minutes. Now take a harsh cloth or hand brush and start rubbing the area. Scrub the area for about 5 minutes. Take a thick dry cloth and absorb the excess solutions from the carpet. Leave the carpet to dry; you can use a carpet blower to help it dry faster.
Using an Absorbent Kitty Litter
Take the kitty litter and spread it over the residue area of the carpet. Let the litter absorb the liquid material from the carpet. After a few minutes of extracting the liquid, scrape it off with a broom or dustpan. Do this until all the soap residue is removed.
Take a dry cloth and soak up the damp area. Use a liquid cleaning agent to clean out the area and remove soap residue permanently.
You can use a vacuum cleaner or an absorbent cloth to clean any residue still stuck on the carpet's fibers. Now leave the carpet to dry.
How to get the soap out of the carpet without a vacuum?
Diluted soap can be a very effective cleaning agent, but soap all by itself can be a menace on your carpet. Here is the solution if you want to get the soap out of your carpet without needing a vacuuming cleaner.
Step 1
Take a clean, dry towel and try to wipe the soap off your carpet as much as possible. You may need to use more than one towel.
Step 2
Now take a damp cloth to wipe even more of the soap once you have used a dry one.
Step 3
Pour some warm water onto the soap to help soak it up, then continue wiping as you blot up the bubbles.
Step 4
Continue pouring water and blotting until no more bubbles are being produced. This means that the soap is all wiped out.
Step 5
Finally, allow your carpet to dry. You can choose to set up a fan nearby to help it dry faster or open the windows or place it in a heated room. Either way, the soap will have been removed, and better yet, you don't have to use a vacuum.
Other methods are:
Using a Handbrush and a Steam cleaner
First, take as many paper towels as you can and soak up the area you want to clean. Remove as much of the liquid component from the wet carpet as you can, and then use hot water to dissolve the soap from the carpet.
Keep on pouring the water into the soap until you feel sudsy by your hand. Use a hand brush to scrub the area and repeat the process until the soap is completely gone from the carpet.
There will still be some residue of the soap and laundry detergent left on the carpet; this is where the steam cleaner comes in. Apply the steam cleaner over the carpet to get rid of any residue of soap or laundry detergent.
Now let the excess water dry off; you can use an absorbent cloth to dry the carpet faster.
Using Soap and Wet-dry vacuum cleaner
Take some paper towels or a dry towel to soak up the excess soap with warm water. This will make your work much easier and convenient.
So that you are more precise with your cleaning, use a spray bottle to spray some warm or plain hot water on the soap. Take some salts and sprinkle them over the wet areas in the carpet to stop suds formation. Dub the area with as much pressure as you can to soak up the dirty water from the carpet. Repeat this process until the excess soap is completely absorbed.
Now place the carpet under the open sun to dry it or put it under a fan. Either way, make sure it is completely dried.
What happens if you leave the soap on the carpet?
Leaving soap on your carpet will act as a dirt magnet. More dirt will settle on your carpet than usual, and the more this happens, the more the quality of air in your home will reduce.
When the dirt particles in the fibers of your carpet mix with the air in your home, it can cause allergy-like symptoms such as sniffles, sneezing, coughing, and even the flu. Therefore, it is not advisable to leave soap on your carpet as it can be hazardous to your health and that of your loved ones. Make a point of cleaning your carpet regularly to improve the air at home and maintain a good odor.
Wrap-Up
Vinegar has proven to be of the best solutions to eliminating soap residue from your carpet. Aside from it, we have looked at many other ways you can eliminate soap residue and soap from your carpet. Remember, baking soda is also an effective cleaning agent and even helps remove bad odor from your carpet.
Don forget to be gentle to your carpet as you clean. Vinegar might be a little harsh on wool, silk, or other natural fiber carpets. Know the fiber of your carpet and ensure to maintain the texture. Also, use the proper amount of cleaning detergent, do not ruin the beauty of the carpet in trying to clean it.
To avoid the hassle of removing soap residue, ensure you rinse your carpet properly anytime you use soap or shampoo. Do not place soap carelessly on the carpet. We hope this article has helped solve your soap woes.