Why You Should Never Use Laundry Detergent Powder On Your Carpet

Whether you've had a mishap involving red wine at a dinner party or want to tackle a hard-to-remove carpet stain that has been there for years, the internet can be a great source of advice for cleaning hacks. At first, you may think that the only way to give your carpets a deep clean is to invest in a carpet cleaner or pay a company to clean them for you. However, cleanfluencers on TikTok and Instagram have shown there are several ways to get your rugs looking pristine and social media-ready. Better Homes and Gardens explains that it's good to have some carpet cleaner on hand in your cleaning supply cupboard to combat stains as soon as they occur. You can also use a solution created out of vinegar, which should have similar effects and allow you to blot the stain away. 

All-in-one products can also be beneficial, and using one product for multiple things can be helpful. However, Ann Russell, a U.K. TikToker, outlined why you shouldn't use laundry detergent powder on your carpet. It may seem like a quick fix at the moment, but it could lead to weeks of irritation.

Russell's followers flock to her page to get the lowdown on her house cleaning hacks. She's created videos on basic cleaning supplies that everyone needs, ways to get rid of bad smells emanating from your sink, and even ways to get the smell of smoke out of your clothes if you've experienced a fire. But one of her most popular videos debunks the TikTok cleaning hack of spreading washing detergent powder on your carpet to clean it.

"Oh sweetheart, I get why you are doing it, and it seems a brilliant idea, but here is the thing. You are not going to get all of that powder out of your carpet. Which means that you're going to get a build-up of soap powder, which if you have got kids, or if anyone goes on it with bare skin, will be irritating," she said. "It will make your carpet more dirty because it's sticky. I know it smells great, but please don't use soap powder on your carpets like that."

Russell then suggested what her followers could do instead. "If you can afford it, get a vacuum extraction machine and wash them. Don't use anything with it, as there will be plenty of soap in the carpet," she said. "If you need to do it, use something like Shake n' Vac or bicarbonate of soda."

In the videos that followed the detergent powder video, Russell answered people's questions on what cleaning products were best for their carpets. In addition to that, Russell also explained how to clean the edges of a fitted carpet, whether vinegar mixtures work on getting smells out of rugs, and how to get cigarette smells out.

Her advice is in line with a lot of advice offered by experts online. Tutor Clean writes that the most common and inexpensive types of effective carpet cleaners can be shampoos and steamers. Using specialist carpet shampoo can be effective in giving your floors a deep clean without leaving residue. Similarly, Real Simple explains that you can create a solution out of white vinegar and water if you don't have any carpet cleaner on hand. Dab it in, and gently remove the stain. But no matter what product you choose, there is one thing to keep in mind: Never rub a stain. Better Homes and Gardens explains that you should never rub a stain since it can work deeper into your carpet and become even more difficult to remove.