Like everything else today, rugs need special care to ensure long life. Regular cleaning using adequate treatments will help extend the life of your rug.
Vacuuming Regardless of whether your rug is a cut pile or loop rug, vacuuming is the basic and primary step for caring for your rug. Rugs are exposed to endless mistreatment, such as treading feet, dirt, dust, oil and spills of all sorts. Vacuuming regularly can prevent soil build up. Vacuums with good suction are recommended to lift surface dirt. This especially applies to looped rugs, where damaging the loops is possible. Cut pile rugs on the other hand, require rougher treatment. Besides removing surface dirt, it’s necessary to agitate the pile to loosen the dirt which may have seeped into the core. These rugs require a vacuum with a beater or brush bar to lift the residue imbedded in the rug. While vacuuming remember to never allow the soil storage bag to become too full or dirt may escape the vacuum.
Cleaning
Even though vacuuming removes a lot of soil, oily substances deposited on the rug also pose a problem. If left to pile up, these oils cause matting due to the pile sticking together. Gradually the rug starts to form ridges and the colours dim. If not removed when first noticed, it becomes hard to clean. It is, thus, advised to clean your rug when dullness first starts to appear. There are many ways to clean your rug but almost all require clean cloths or paper towels, warm water and a cleaning substance. To avoid altering the rugs texture DO NOT RUB as fuzziness may result.
Removing Stains
Our rugs are treated to be stain resistant which delays the stain setting in and gives you a chance to react. The key is to treat the stain or spill quickly before it is absorbed by the rug and dries.
Basic cleaning steps for typical everyday stains
1. Scoop up as much of the spill as possible
2. Absorb as much of the liquid thats left with a dry cloth/paper towel by blotting
3. Apply warm water to the stain then blot again If the stain remains visible, mix warm water with a mild non-bleach laundry detergent. Using a clean cloth apply some of the mixture to the stain and let it soak for 5 minutes.
4. Rinse the stain with warm water and blot it well to extract the residue. Repeat until there is no detergent on the rug. When satisfied and the rug is completely dry, vacuum the area.
Specific Stains
Since different stains require different cleaning treatments, it is important to identify the source and nature of the stain. Below is a list of common stains and how they are best removed
