The Cleaning Process - cont'd
How do you clean oriental rugs?
As we’ve mentioned, maintenance is important for the life and value of your oriental rug. The cleaning process typically has 4 steps: 1) Vacuum 2) Soil removal 3) Wash 4) Specialty Services.
3. Washing the rug - Each rug is evaluated to determine when it is appropriate to submerse (or wash) the rug. Submersion cleaning is a more thorough cleaning option, but it may not be the best choice for certain fabrics. Certain materials shrink when wet, so that needs to be taken into consideration. Also, some dyes are susceptible to 'bleeding', which means the rug needs to be tested or have a "dye-lock" applied to prevent colors from running. A cleaning solution is applied to the rug, and worked into the fibers, then water is used to flush out the dirt, leaving the fibers with a deep clean.
4. Specialty services might include urine removal, fabric protection application, or repair. If the rug has a severe odor or has urine in it, it will require additional treatments and possibly multiple washings to improve. We can advise the best treatment and suggest what options are available so you can make the best choice for your rug and your budget. Fabric protection can be applied after cleaning to deter soils and keep the rug looking its best! This is especially useful for rugs that will have high traffic or be exposed to food and other soils. We can contract with specialized rug companies who perform repairs on valuable and irreplaceable rugs.
