In many contemporary homes, polished wooden floors are an essential feature of interior design. The best way to showcase these floors is with strategically placed rugs. Oriental and Persian rugs look gorgeous in these proud homes and provide comfort for cold feet.
A quality rug is a valuable asset in the home and easily damaged if not cared for correctly and we recommend that you hire a professional to take care of these for you in order to preserve their quality and beauty.
But if you would like to save some money and do it yourself, here’s how it can be done:
Tools:
Vacuum, Rug beater, mild rug shampoo, soft long-bristled brush, garden hose, window squeegee
Steps:
1: Vacuum both sides of your rug. Then hand your rug and beat out any remaining dirt/dust. Remember, 80% of the soil in rugs can be vacuumed/beaten out
2: Move your rug to a clean, flat space outside for washing.
3: Wet your rug with cool water and test a small area with a white cloth for colour run with your mild rug shampoo. If the colour doesn’t run, shampoo the entire rug, front and back, using the soft long-bristled brush.
4: Brush the shampoo gently into the grain of the rug pile, making sure that the area is entirely wet with the hose beforehand.
5: Clean your rug’s fringes. Using a soft brush and your soapy water, lightly brush your fringe away from the rug. Repeat until clean.
6: Rinse your rug with a hose running cool water. Make sure you completely rinse out all shampoo from the front, back and fringes.
7: Remove standing water from your rug using a clean rubber window squeegee. Run the squeegee along the rug’s grain until you’ve removed all excess water.
8: Lay flat to dry in the shade with plenty of airflow passing over the rug. It is preferable to suspend the rug so that air can pass over both sides for faster drying.
9: Use an oscillating fan to assist in a rapid dry to avoid watermark stains.
10: Remember, you are required by law not to allow waste water to go down the stormwater drain, and if you can manage that as well as avoid inadvertantly damaging your rug in the whole process then you’ve done well.
Happy DIY!
