There is something beautiful and angelic about a perfectly clean home that is decorated in whites, or other light colours. A room styled this way looks crisp, light and peaceful; an appearance that many homeowners try to attain to impress family and friends. A creative mind who walks into a home like this sees a picture perfect layout, suited for a magazine cover. Unfortunately, your young nephew eating a bowl of pasta featuring a homemade bolognese sauce sees a blank canvas.

If you want to see true fear in the eyes of a homeowner, watch their face as tomato sauce gets dropped onto their white carpet.

We have all been there when a glass of red wine has tipped over, or mustard has dripped off a plate landing right on your favourite pillow. Your heart skips a beat and you rush to grab a warm cloth, furiously trying to rub the stain away. Before you run to the kitchen for a cloth, you have to know what kind of stain you are dealing with or you may actually make it worse.

The team at All About Details Cleaning has put together a list of food items that should be handled with extra care, and suggestions on how to deal with spills, if they do happen. You may be curious as to why some foods are more powerful at staining your home than others. Three factors that greatly determine the staining intensity of food item are chromogens, tannins and acids.

Chromogens?

Chromogens are intensely pigmented compounds that can easily be converted into dyes and stains when oxidized. Some food items and beverages that contain chromogens can instantly stain a surface when spilled. Red wine falls into this category, so don’t let it fall anywhere outside of the glass.

Tannis and Acids

Tannins are naturally occurring polyphenols that give some foods a textural feeling on the palate. Tannins are the compounds that can make your mouth feel dry after drinking a cup of tea or redwine. These tannins increase a foods ability to stain by enhancing the power of the chromogens that may be present. Other foods can stain because they contain high levels of acid, such as tomatoes. If you have a spill containing chromogens, tannins and acids, you have a real mess on your hands.

5 Foods That Commonly Stain A Kelowna Home

1. Coffee and Tea

The international fuel of mornings everywhere. If you were out late the night before, a quick cup of joe can be a godsend before heading off to work. Of course, rushing around in the morning while trying to get ready for the office will inevitably result in a spill or two.

• On a fresh coffee or tea stain, rinse with hot water right away
• If you are dealing with an older stain, soak in dishwasher liquid or reach for a spot remover
• For a really stubborn stain, try mixing 2 tablespoons of Borax with a cup of water and pour over the stain. Let it soak for 10-20 minutes then rise. After you can wash the material as usual

2. Tomatos

Tomatoes are one of the worst offenders for creating stains in the home, leaving ghostly orange spots wherever they are spilled. Whether you have had an accident with pasta sauce, ketchup, salsa or barbecue sauce; you can treat the stain using the same methods.

Whatever you do, don’t try and clean a tomato based stain using hot water. This will actually allow the stain to set in further.

• First, scrape off residual food and soak in COLD water containing two tablespoons of white vinegar and a tablespoon of dishwashing soap. Soak for at least 45 minutes, rub the stain to release lingering discolouration, then rinse thoroughly
• A  residual, lighter coloured stain may still remain. Repeat the process- Continue to apply no heat
• If discolouration remains, leave the item outside on a sunny day for the afternoon. The UV rays in the sunlight act as a bleaching agent and can remove stains from clothing and even dishes.

3. Mustard and Curries

Mustard and curry dishes are some of the food items with chromogens that will act like a dye on the materials around your home. The main staining culprit inside these delicious yellow dishes is turmeric. This secret ingredient is an expert stainer of all materials, so if a spill occurs, you need to act fast.

• Blot up any liquid in the spill immediately and scrap off residual food items
• Dilute baking soda in cool water to create a thick paste and apply to stained area. Leave on for a few minutes then remove with a clean cloth
• Next, dilute vinegar and lemon in cool water and apply to the stain. Soak for over half an hour, then scrub the area clean with an abrasive scrubber
• If this doesn’t work you can attempt to treat the material with a dry cleaning solvent

4. Red Wine

Due to the fact that Kelowna is in the heart of the Okanagan Valley, one of the most beautiful wine regions in the world, you may find yourself enjoying a glass or two of red wine. Alike turmeric, red wine will begin to dye a material on contact. We have been taught not to cry over spilt milk, so no need to cry over spilled red wine either.

• Stop the spread of the stain right away by soaking up the liquid with baking soda or salt. Place a paper towel behind the stain if possible to catch extra liquid
• Let the salt or baking soda soak for 5-10 minutes then rinse with club soda. If you don’t have any soda on hand you can use a rinse of equal parts white vinegar and cold water.
• Don’t utilize soap as this can set a red wine stain
• If consuming red wine often, keep a stain remover handy such as “Wine Out”

5. Berries and Cherries

The explosive flavour of blueberries and raspberries make them the perfect summer treat, but if you drop a slice of pie containing these delicious fruits you are going to need to act fast.

• Soak in cold water immediately
• Add in equal parts dishwashing liquid and white vinegar for at least 15 minutes
• Rise off in warm water and set outside to let the sun do its magic and bleach the material
• Wash material as you normally would

The real secret to a clean home is having the right knowledge at the right time. For further cleaning questions, consult our experts at All About Details Cleaning. Not only do we have all the answers on how to keep your Kelowna home spotless, we can help with the process too!

Call us today!