Although for major cleaning work you might want to call in a specialized cleaning company, it is best to take care of the little things by yourself.

I'll give you some information on how to clean some of the common carpet stains that you'll have to take care of more than you'd commonly want.

Here's what cleaning materials you'll need:

- Solvent (acetone or nail polish remover)
- Ammonia
- Dish washing detergent
- Warm water
- White terry towels
- Measuring cup

Chewing gum:

First try to scrape all the gum you can without damaging the carpet. After you've taken out most of the gum take a white towel, wet a small part of it with acetone and start blotting the remaining gum.

Do this until all the gum is gone (parts of it will stick to the towel), changing the towels as needed to get rid of the gum remains. Do not use paint thinner or solvents other than acetone or nail polish remover - only the last two are volatile and are weak enough to not hurt the carpet.

Blood:

Take care of any blood stains as soon as possible - the longer they stay the greater the chance that you won't be able to remove them successfully.

If the stain is new, take a white towel and dip it in a solution of 2 teaspoons ammonia to one cup of water. Blot the stain with the wet towel until the stain is gone or until the towel can't remove anymore blood. If the stain is still there go to the next step.

Mix one tablespoon of dish washing detergent with 16 ounces of warm water. Blot this mixture with a white towel until the blood is removed. You have to be patient and repeat this step a few times; if this doesn't do it you might want to take the carpet to a professional cleaner.

If there is no residue left take some cold water and rinse the area.

Beer stains:

If the stain was just done, quickly take a paper towel and dry the stain out as soon as possible.

Mix one tablespoon of dish washing detergent with 16 ounces of warm water. Apply a little bit of solution to a white towel and blot the stain until it is removed. Do this as many times as needed to remove the stain.

Once it is removed rinse the area with cold water and dry it by blotting it with a dry towel.

As you can see the steps are pretty similar but the solution you use to clean the stain is very important. Detergents will not work in some cases and ammonia or acetone might be overkill in other cases.

Be very careful as not to use cleaning substances in a stronger concentration than is required. You might be risking the integrity of your carpet and you could be creating a bigger and more noticeable stain than you already have.

Also, you should be very careful when disposing of substances and materials harmful to the environment. Towels and bottles with acetone or other solvents should always be disposed of in the ways defined by your community - these are usually collection centers.