Carpet cleaning and obtaining the right carpet cleaning machines is one of the biggest problems people have today. If you’re lucky enough to have one of those carpet cleaning machines that brush or steam your carpet, then you’re good to go, but for those of us who don’t have one, the dilemma of bringing the equipment home is far from over.

In order to have clean carpets, we not only have to bring the equipment home, but then we have to decide which shampoo to use. It is expensive enough to rent the machine, but having to pay for that expensive shampoo makes it that much more difficult.

Since I’m one of those people who likes to pull out a nickel, that means I like to find and do the impossible. I have made it a goal in my life to keep as much money as possible in my pocket and not just spend it at the retailers.

One thing I learned is that you don’t have to use that expensive shampoo. There are several formulas for making your own that work even better than store-bought ones.

Equal parts blue window cleaner and water make a great cleaner, and vinegar and water are great too. Just be sure to make the ratio of 1 part vinegar to 10 parts water. And last but not least, you can use Tide liquid and water to make a great shampoo. When using vinegar, remember that the smell will linger on the carpet until it dries, which is four to five hours.

So now that you know how to get an inexpensive shampoo, let me tell you how to save money by not renting or buying that steam cleaning machine.

The first thing to do is put the cleaning solution in a spray bottle and clean the carpets. Next comes the actual cleaning. Cleaning the carpet with a mop works amazingly well. You can use a regular mop or a sponge mop. Either works well, just remember to wring the mop well before you go over the carpet. You don’t want the carpet to be too wet.

Go back and forth over the carpet as if you were scrubbing the kitchen floor, except you may want to go over it more times to remove dirt from the carpet. Once finished, wait four to five hours for the carpet to dry completely.

Once the carpet is dry, vacuum it over it to pick up the remaining dirt and fluff the carpet. You now have great looking rugs and you spend practically nothing.