Caring For Your Rugs

We love rugs and we’ve been rug cleaning for over 22 years in our rug cleaning facility in Markfield Leicestershire.  Over the years, we’ve come across all sorts of disasters with DIY cleaning and your rug needs the same TLC as your fitted carpets, in some cases, they require special attention.  So we’ve put together this quick and simple guide to help you to caring for your rugs.  

Wash It Yourself!

Look on the back of the rug and see if there’s a rug cleaning label.  If the label says “machine washable”, and your rug is small enough to fit in your washing machine, then why not!  Just be sure the label says it’s ok first.  Then, take the rug outside and give it a good shake before putting it in the washing machine at the recommended temperature. You can hang your rug on the line to dry it.  You may also be able to tumble dry your rug at the lowest heat setting, again, read the label.

Beating Larger Rugs

One of the most important processes when rug cleaning, is to remove the dry soil and dust from the base of the rug as this is an abrasive and can cause long-term damage to the fibres.  if you can, take your rug outside and give it a good shake!  Even better, if you can hang it over the washing line and beat it you’ll be surprised what comes out of the fibres!  If the label says dry clean only, then you’ll need to take it to be professionally cleaned.

Tip: Lay the rug face down on a hard floor (tiled, wood, LVT etc) and using an upright vacuum cleaner slowly vacuum the back. The idea here is that the beater bar on the vacuum cleaner will vibrate the rug, shaking the dust out of the rug.  Once you’ve finished vacuuming the back then turn the rug over and vacuum the face fibres.  Repeat this process until there’s no more dry soil on the floor after vacuuming the back.  

Vacuuming Your Rugs

like fitted carpets, rugs should be vacuumed regularly.  Rugs with fringes require a careful approach!  We’ve seen so many rugs that have lost the fight between fringe and vacuum cleaner! Use gentle suction and start from the middle of the rug, vacuuming toward the edges and the fringe.  But, be careful not to catch the fringe in the beater bar.  

Tip: If possible try and fold the fringe under the rug whilst vacuuming.

Caring For Oriental Rugs

The best advice we can offer with these types of rugs it to seek the services of a professional rug cleaning company.  This is because on some oriental rugs the dyes may not be stable and could run, turning the white parts pink or blue and ruining your rug!

Turn Your Rugs

This will ensure your rug will wear evenly.  How often? Well, that depends on where it sits.  If it’s in a low traffic area, i.e. under the dining room table then you should think about rotating it every six months or so.  For high traffic areas, i.e. in front of the sofa in the lounge then you should consider rotating your rugs every month or two.

Deal With Spillages

Firstly, don’t use Google or old wives tales to removes spots and spills from your rugs.  This is a definite path to the bin for your rug!  Best advise we can offer is to deal with it straight away by blotting the spill with plenty of kitchen towel or an absorbent cloth to remove most of the spill.  Then follow these simple steps:

1. First, soak up the excess liquid by blotting with a clean, absorbent material. Do not brush or rub the stain.
2. Then spot-clean with a mild detergent-white vinegar-water solution. Do not over wet.
3. Rinse area thoroughly with water and a small amount of vinegar. Avoid getting the back of the rug wet, or lay some plastic (carrier bag etc under the stain) to remove the possibility of dyes transferring from the rug to the floor it’s laying on.
4. Blot dry until most of the moisture has been absorbed
5. Allow to air dry. A fan or cool hair dryer can be used to speed up the drying process.
6. For stains that do not come out using these methods, ask our cleaning specialists

Professional Cleaning

Have your rugs professionally cleaned every year or two, depending on the level of traffic.  Professional rug cleaning will remove the ground-in soils that are at the base of every rug, and deal with any spots and spills as well as giving the rug a good, deep clean.  Also insist on having an anti-stain protector applied, which is a Scotchgard-type product when you employ the services of a professional rug cleaning company.  This will save your rug in the future from stains setting and becoming permanent.

If you want professional help with the cleaning of your rugs then why not take a look at how we can help you out here… Professional Rug Cleaning

If you have any issues with your rugs or would like any advice on rug cleaning then please feel free to contact us on 01530 215 036