We’ve all had that moment when a glass of red wine gets knocked off the table or out of your hand and straight onto your carpet – and probably a cream one at that.
A study conducted by the University of Milan determined that a glass of red wine before bed could help you to fall asleep faster and sleep better.
But as any wine drinker will know, one accidental spill could cause hundreds of pounds in damages.
Red wine is particularly difficult to get out of carpets, upholstery and even clothing, but while there are plenty of expensive cleaners out there, there is one item in your home that can help remove these unsightly stains – and it costs just £1.90.
According to Adeel ul-Haq, owner of bedroom company ComfyBedss.co.uk, the secret to getting rid of red wine stains is table salt.
Adeel stresses the need to act quickly when it comes to red wine stains. The first step to remove any red wine marks is to blot the stain with a paper towel without rubbing, as this will only spread the wine further.
Blotting the red wine will help soak up the liquid on the surface, but your carpet or upholstery will have sucked some of the liquid into its fibres, which is where the use of salt comes in.
After removing the surface-level spill, you should pour a generous amount of salt over it, completely covering it. Then, leave the salt to absorb the red wine for 10-15 minutes or 30 for any particularly large stains.
Once the salt has soaked up the remaining red wine, just vacuum the remains away, and if there is any stain left, just add water on top of the spill and start the process again
Explaining why salt works to remove wine stains, Adeel said: “Salt absorbs the red wine through something called osmosis and capillary action. Salt grains are porous and have tiny spaces in between them.
“The tiny spaces between salt grains help draw the liquid up before the pigments from the red wine can set into your carpet or upholstery fibres. This is the same process plants use to draw liquid from their roots to their leaves.
“For this to work, salt is most effective when it is used immediately on a fresh stain. If you add salt after the pigments from the wine have set, then it won’t be as effective.”
