Spot cleaner for carpets

An effective carpet spot cleaner is provided which is comprised of sodium polyphosphate and/or sodium tripolyphosphate; sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate and Butyl Cellosolve.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This Invention relates to a spot cleaner to clean difficult areas of 
carpets. 
The art has developed numerous compositions for cleaning of carpets. 
Generally, an aqueous solution is utilized which comprises various 
solvents, color, odor and other additives. The key to development of an 
effective cleaner or shampoo has been and continues to be the search for 
an effective combination of various detergents. 
The carpet industry has developed sophisticated synthetic fibers which are 
longer lasting that those manufactured in previous years. Thus, there is a 
need for development of more effective carpet cleaners. Furthermore, 
economics dictate the type of cleaning composition. For example, if one 
desires a highly effective cleaner, then a more concentrated, and thus 
more expensive composition is desired. 
One of the factors which must be considered in utilizing a more highly 
effective cleaner is the deleterious effect that chemicals have on 
carpets. Obviously some chemicals, while being effective cleaners, can 
simply cause breakdown of the fibers and thus harm the carpet. 
Accordingly, highly reactive materials must be excluded from the cleaning 
composition. Thus there is a delicate balance between providing an 
effective cleaner while providing a cleaner which will not harm the 
carpet. 
Accordingly, there is a need for a development of a composition to "spot 
clean" difficult areas of a carpet so that the user need not purchase such 
more expensive cleaner to service the entire carpet. Additionally, the use 
of a more concentrated cleaner may have has a deleterious effect on the 
carpet. Thus, a spot cleaner is only utilized in difficult areas of the 
carpet. 
Further, the spot cleaner must exclude those chemicals which are expensive 
or may be harmful to the carpet. 
Accordingly, there is a great need in the art for development of more 
effective "spot cleaners". 
Accordingly, one object of the Invention is to provide a cleaner which will 
effectively remove dirt, stains and the like from various fabrics. Another 
object of the Invention is to provide a more effective "spot cleaner" 
which can be applied to areas of greater degree of dirt, stain and the 
like. Other objects of the Invention will be apparent from the following 
discussion. 
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
The Invention herein comprises a "spot cleaner" for use in carpet areas 
which have dirt and stains which generally are difficult to remove and in 
some cases cannot be removed utilizing normal shampoos. 
The Invention herein comprises a unique combination of ingredients 
contained in an aqueous solution. The unique combination of ingredients 
comprises an alkali metal pyrophosphate or tripolypyrophosphate, or a 
combination thereof; an alkali metal; an alkylaryl sulfonate; and a 
mono-alkyl ether of ethylene glycol. 
The alkali metal pyrophosphate or tripolypyrophosphate is preferably a 
sodium poly phosphate or sodium tripolyphosphate. The alkylaryl sulfonate 
is preferably sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate. The mono-alkyl ether of 
ethylene glycol is preferably butyl ether which is sold under the trade 
name "Butyl Cellosolve". 
Accordingly, the preferred unique composition is one containing sodium 
polyphosphate; sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate; and Butyl Cellosolve. 
The alkali metal polyphosphate and/or tripolyphosphate is generally 3 to 8 
percent by weight of the entire diluted solution; the alkylaryl sulfonate 
is generally one to four percent by weight of the entire solution; and the 
Butyl Cellosolve is generally eight to twenty percent by weight of the 
entire diluted solution. 
The remaining balance of the solution are various added solvents, such as 
an isopropanol, a fragrance enhancer, such as the material marketed under 
the trade name "Limonene", and other known additives. The principal 
solvent is water. The isopropanol is added in an amount less than 2 
percent, and the Limonene and other ingredients are only added in trace 
amounts. Thus, the amount of water is some amount over 70 percent by 
weight of the entire diluted solution. 
A most preferred solution is that comprising a sodium polyphosphate and/or 
sodium tripolyphosphate in an amount of 5 percent; a sodium 
dodecylbenzenesulfonate in an amount of 2.5 percent; Butyl Cellosolve in 
an amount of 15 percent; isopropanol solvent in the amount of 1 percent 
and a trace amount of Limonene in the amount of 0.03 percent. The sodium 
polyphosphate/sodium tripolyphosphate ratio is generally 90:10, preferably 
70:30. Either phosphate is suitable alone, but preferably in combination. 
It has been found that the above combination of ingredients results in an 
extremely highly effective cleaner. Thus, the above composition can be 
utilized as a "spot cleaner" for difficult areas of carpeting.

For clarification, below is a sample of a preferred and typical 
composition. 
______________________________________ 
Concentration 
Range 
Component (% by weight) 
(% by weight 
______________________________________ 
Sodium Pyrophosphate/ 
4.9 3-8 
Sodium Tripolyphosphate 
Sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate 
2.4 1-4 
Butyl Cellosolve 15 8-20 
Isopropanol 0.9 0.2-2.0 
Limonene 0.03 trace 0.1 
Water Balance Balance 
______________________________________ 
The above solution excludes those reactive materials which may harm carpets 
and further, the above solution excludes expensive chemicals. For example, 
the various amines are excluded. 
The above solution has been found to be suitable and to include only 
relatively inexpensive and readily available materials. Thus, other 
reactive chemicals are excluded. Thus the ethanol amines are excluded from 
the spot-cleaning solution. Such amines are not required for effective 
spot cleaning of carpets. 
Accordingly, the above combination of ingredients has been found to result 
in a highly effective "spot cleaner" for carpets without having any 
substantial deleterious effect on the carpet and includes available and 
relatively inexpensive materials.