Caring for Fine Rugs

Antique and/or hand-woven rugs are an asset for your home and can be worth more than the floors on which they sit. Caring for fine rugs is a process that requires some combination of expertise, diligence, and the willingness to pay for professional cleaning and maintenance. Unlike other floor coverings, many of these rugs are truly irreplaceable. Here are some of the things you need to know, as you consider the best way to care for your rug.

Fine Rug Cleaning: Identification and Inspection
Specialty carpets need special care. Some rugs, such as those of Asian origin can be fashioned from everything from silk to nylon to wool, needing very special care when cleaning to avoid any possible damage. These may need to be dry cleaned or cleaned by hand with special shampoos. Today, many Asian style rugs are constructed by machine with modern materials that make them very easy to clean. However, reputable carpet cleaners will want to make sure of the materials before cleaning to avoid damage. Determining the origin and construction of the rug is important to choose the best cleaning method.

Cleaning Methods for Fine Rugs
Many dirty rugs can be cleaned by homeowners. Maybe the condition of your rug isn't a matter of life-and-death, but you want it clean and you're pretty confident it's not made from an ultra-sensitive material like silk. In this case, a pretty standard cleaning method is to thoroughly vacuum both sides of your rug, gently wash with cool water and rug shampoo, then rinse and allow to thoroughly dry. That said, before you tackle the project, try out this process on a small, inconspicuous area of your rug to avoid unnecessary damage or discoloration. Needless to say, professional rug cleaners will put your own rug-cleaning ability to shame. Pre-inspection, preliminary dusting, and dye-testing are some of the stages these cleaners frequently offer before completing a full-immersion wet wash and a controlled drying environment.

Spills, Stains, and Other Issues
In this case, take your fine rug to a professional. The best plan of attack will result from the material of your rug and the nature of the contaminant (urine, blood, chocolate, coffee, etc.). Some stains may be a lost cause, but you'll also be pleasantly surprised by the number of different miracles professional cleaners can perform. If you know the material of your rug and the contaminant, you can probably find the right answer online, but if you're at all unsure, leave it alone and contact the pros immediately. Often, the wrong cleaning or even the wrong application can become the death knell of your rug.

Professional Cleaning for Fine Rugs
Often, it's cheaper to take the rugs to a professional cleaner, so you don't get charged for a service call or transportation costs. On the other hand, if you're aiming for convenience, most professional cleaners are more than happy to come to your home. Either way, according to data collected from HomeAdvisor, the average cost of rug cleaning is somewhere in the neighborhood of $200-$225. Of course, each project, like each rug, is unique. If you have particularly delicate or large and heavy rugs, your cleaning services may be considerably more expensive. In some circumstances, a cleaner may even need to inspect your rug to determine if the best cleaning method can be applied at the home or off-site.