Rust Stains on Carpet and Metal - Rust Remover Product Test and Review

A few years ago, our office had a water leak.  We thought it was a leak in the roof, but discovered that the gutters were stopped up.  What a mess!  The office nearest the problem gutter had the biggest problem.  A lot of water soaked the carpeting, and it happened more than once.  Eventually, the gutter was cleaned out and the carpet finally dried.  No one paid any attention to the once-soaked carpet until a file cabinet in that office had to be moved.  

The file cabinet was emptied, the drawers were removed, and two people tried to move it. But, it just wouldn't budge. Why?  It was so severely RUSTED on the bottom that the rust actually adhered to the carpet. What a mess!

After a lot of work, the rusted-to-the-carpet file cabinet was moved.  Again, WHAT A MESS!  What to do?  How do you clean rust on carpet?

We purchased a product from Home Depot called Back to Nature Ready-Strip Rust Remover.  The words on the bottle are: "Safely removes rust stains like magic from virtually any surface!  Odor-free - Environmentally safe"  and "Works on: Removes most rust spots and stains from interior and exterior surfaces, including concrete, toilets, sinks, bathtubs, appliances, refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines, clothing, carpets, upholstery, autos and rv's, fiberglass boats, rigging and sails, bicycles, metal, wrought iron fences, tools, stainless fittings, antiques, and furniture, house siding, sporting goods, and more."

Wow, could it be true? Was there something that we could use to remove the rust from the carpet?

I'm happy to tell you the answer.  After testing the product, I give it a big thumbs up.  It worked!

I really wish there were photos to share of what it looked like right after the file cabinet was moved.  What a MESS! Trust me.  In the photo above, the lower half of the area was treated using the rust removal product, and the upper half of the area was not yet treated.  What a big difference!

Just for fun, I'm also sharing a photo showing a large steel beam in our parking lot.  It is VERY rusty.  The white stripe in the background is a parking lot stripe.  The photo below of the beam clearly shows, before treatment, during treatment, and after treatment.  

I used a soft wire brush to scrub the carpet AND the steel after the product was applied. It took a LOT of scrubbing for the carpet, but the steel only took about 30 seconds of scrubbing. 

NOTE: I don't know if it is truly environmentally safe as it claims to be or not. I just know that it works on carpet and metal.  The active ingredients are citric acid and oxalic acid. This is not a sponsored or paid review.  All opinions are my own.  This stuff works!