It's also great for smells due to mold or mildew, as it can actually remove the fungus as well as the odor. To treat your carpet, mix white or apple cider vinegar with warm water in a ratio of one part vinegar to two parts water. Spray your carpet evenly and let it air dry.
This acidity means that vinegar has natural antibacterial properties as well as being antimicrobial, antiseptic and will kill mold. Vinegar will also loosen and lift dirt from surfaces. Here's the problem. Although vinegar is an eco-friendly and useful substance, it's not appropriate for cleaning your carpet!
With Vinegar, It's All in the Technique
Using a damp rag, an inconspicuous area of carpet (inside a closet or in a corner, for example) can be moistened before applying the vinegar as if you were actually cleaning the area. Allow the vinegar to sit for a few minutes and then blot it away.
Mix 2 cups of warm water with four tablespoons of vinegar. Spray the water and vinegar solution on the stain and leave to dissolve for 30 minutes. Use the piece of cloth to blot the area gently until the stain gets absorbed into the fabric. If the stain is a little bit tough, scrub gently.
To deodorize your carpet naturally, try these methods: Baking soda: Sprinkle baking soda over the carpet, let it sit for 30 minutes, then vacuum. White vinegar: Mix equal parts water and vinegar, mist over the carpet, let it sit for 10 minutes, then blot with a cloth and let air dry.
If you're worried that cleaning with vinegar will make your home smell like pickles, don't worry – the smell disappears pretty quickly, especially if you air out your space properly. Open windows and doors to encourage air flow. Once dry, you'll find that vinegar leaves a fresh scent.
(And don't worry—the items won't smell like vinegar once dried.)
Soak up any moisture from your carpet with a dehumidifier or several fans pointing downward. Once the area is dry, mix 2 cups of warm water with 1 cup of white vinegar, and spray the carpet.
'Leave a bowl of vinegar out overnight,' advises Saskia Gregson-Williams, cookbook author and founder of Naturally Sassy. 'In the morning, the vinegar will have absorbed all the unsavory smells and your kitchen will be as fresh as a daisy. '
Not only does baking soda have some seriously formidable cleaning power in its own right, but it also does an excellent job of neutralizing odor—which makes it the perfect partner in crime for vinegar.
You can try a mixture of white vinegar, Dawn dish soap, and water in a spray bottle. Use 1/4 cup of white vinegar, 1 tbsp. of Dawn dish soap, and fill with water. Spray area liberally and let soak for 5-10 minutes and then proceed with blotting with a clean, dry towel until stain is removed.
Vinegar is an especially useful odor solution for spot cleaning. It's also great for smells due to mold or mildew, as it can actually remove the fungus as well as the odor. To treat your carpet, mix white or apple cider vinegar with warm water in a ratio of one part vinegar to two parts water.
In a bowl or small bucket, mix one part white vinegar with three parts water. Dip the bristles of the scrub brush into the solution and rub them into the carpet. Massage them into the fibers well (without fully saturating the carpet) and follow up with a cloth to help blot excess moisture.
Marble, granite, and other natural stones, like slate, whether used as home finishes, such as countertops, floors, and shower walls, or household goods like tabletops or serving pieces, should not be cleaned with vinegar.
You'll probably need to let it sit overnight, but the key is to wait until the vinegar has completely dried. As it dries, the smell of the vinegar should dissipate. Finally, you'll just need to vacuum up the baking soda. If there's more than a little left in the spot, you may want to scoop some of it up first.
White and distilled are types of vinegar. They differ fundamentally in their acetic acid content. White, also known as spirit vinegar, has 5% to 20% acetic acid. This is generally higher as compared to distilled vinegar's 5%-8%.
If you smell vinegar for a long time after using it to clean, you might be using too much of it. Aside from diluting the vinegar, you can also cut back on how much you're using. Vinegar is a powerful cleaner on its own, so you may not need to spray as much of it to clean up messes compared to other cleaners.
While the acidity of vinegar makes it such a good cleaner, this property unfortunately also adds a pungent smell.
Neutralize the smell Then you're going to want to douse the spot with an enzymatic cleaner or simply make your own cleaning solution by combining (white or apple cider) vinegar and water in a 1:1 ratio. Because the vinegar is acidic, it will neutralize the bacteria in the dog pee, offsetting its odor.
Baking soda is a top recommendation and used often by professional carpet cleaners. Baking soda absorbs moisture and neutralises smells by trapping them. It works especially well for fusty or musky odours. To apply sprinkle a generous amount onto your carpet or sofa.
While vinegar is an excellent tool for repelling certain insects, not all bugs hate vinegar. Specifically, aphids and fruit flies love the scent of vinegar and will seek it out. You can use this to your advantage by creating traps.
Inhalation exposure to high concentrations of acetic acid vapors causes irritation of eyes, nose, and throat. People with high occupational exposure can develop conjunctivitis, bronchitis and pharyngitis, and erosion of exposed teeth (incisors and canines).
If you use a light hand with the vinegar, the aroma will go away on its own in 30 to 60 minutes, particularly on solid surfaces. If it's on a soft surface, it may take a day or so. Air circulation can make the vinegar aroma dissipate more quickly. The vinegar aroma will go away when it's dry.
There's another thing you can do, though: Pull out a bottle of distilled white vinegar. The acetic acid in vinegar neutralizes alkaline odors, which means it can help get rid of cooking smells cheaply and easily. Some people make a diluted solution of vinegar and keep it in a spray bottle to mist around the room.
To use white vinegar to deodorize a couch, pour white vinegar into a spray bottle and get to work on cushions and armrests! If you're concerned about the vinegar altering the upholstery, spray a small amount of white vinegar on your couch in a discrete location and wait overnight.