When you live with children, (or someone like my husband Nial) you’ll inevitably face spills around the house. And when they occur you need to be ready. If you’re not, you could face hefty repair expenses.
In this post, we take a look at some of the essential kit you need in your spill emergency response tool kit. It’s always best to be prepared.
1. Non-Woven Cloth
Most cloths people use for cleaning up spills at home are made of woven material. While this is okay for a lot of applications, it’s not ideal when you have serious spills, like red wine or hot chocolate on your carpets. It’s just not able to lift the stain from the underlying material.
Non-woven cloths, however, are different. These have a microscopic structure that naturally absorbs all moisture and liquid in the surroundings, including the particles that cause stains.
Vince Offer of Shamwow – the comedian in the original adverts – explains how it works. It’s basically a fibre that the manufacturer grows instead of weaves. This allows for a much finer structure and makes the product machine-washable as well.
This type of cloth, therefore, should be your first line of defence. You’re often able to use it without any additional cleaning agents.
2. Salt
Salt is another great tool to have in your clean-up arsenal. Salt is great for lifting stains from upholstery but doesn’t create any stains of its own.
It can feel a little weird pouring table salt on a wine stain, but it works. Just like in cooking, the salt draws out the moisture in the food and then dries out. When it does, it also brings all the colouration chemicals with it, helping to leave your home stain-free.
3. Brushes
While some stains will come out on their own, many require the help of brushes. It’s best to have a set of brushes with differing levels of stiffness. The more robust the brush, the stronger the bristles.
Some brushes need to be soft – like the ones you use on your interior furnishings. Others, however, need to be abrasive, like the ones that you use on outdoor equipment.
4. Cleaning Fluids
When it comes to cleaning up stains in your home, it pays to have the right cleaning fluids in your kits.
Cleaners work in two ways. Some cleaners react with stains in a way that neutralises the colour. You often see these options advertised as aerosols that you just spray on your surfaces. They’re not soap in the traditional sense, but instead reactive compounds that remove the visual appearance of stains.
The other option is genuine soap-like detergents that physically remove stains from fabric by clearing them away chemically. Soaps tend to be most effective at higher temperatures while neutralising products will work at lower temperatures.
5. Carpet Cleaner
Lastly, it always helps to have a proper carpet cleaner available, just in case you need it. These systems work by applying high heat and moisture to fabrics, helping to lift stains in the process. It can be fun to use them and see just how much dirt and grime are in your upholstery.
Got Something To Add?
Have you got something additional in your home emergency cleaning kit? Let us know by commenting below.
Until next time, thanks for reading.
Helen, Nial and Lewis
Welcome to Pikalily, an award-winning food, travel and lifestyle blog. We are Nial and Helen, a happily married couple from Northern Ireland, who share a passion for food and travel among many things. We became parents to our beautiful boy Lewis in 2017. Follow our adventures through the blog.
