It’s easy to forget your rugs when you’re spring cleaning. After all, you literally walk over them every day! However, they are bound to accumulate plenty of dust and dirt over time.
A little attention goes a long way toward keeping your rugs in pristine condition. With these cleaning tips and tricks, your rug will stay in shape for years to come.
1. Take Time to Address Stains
In an ideal world, spills either would be completely cleaned up the moment they happened, or they wouldn’t happen in the first place. Unfortunately, we don’t live in that world, and spills can easily turn into persistent stains.
For most rugs, you can spot clean recent stains by blotting with a washcloth and soapy water. If your rug is made of jute, you may want to try a baking soda solution. Harsher stains, such as wine stains, may respond to a mixture of two cups of warm water with one tablespoon each of wine vinegar and dishwashing liquid.
If you have an older stain, you may need to call a professional for help. A professional rug cleaner will have specialized equipment that can remove particularly tricky stains and repair damaged fibers.
2. Give Your Rug a Thorough Vacuuming
We recommend a quick weekly vacuum for recently made wool, polypropylene, seagrass, and nylon rugs. If you have pets or children, you may want to vacuum even more often. However, these quick vacuuming sessions will still leave quite a bit of dust that builds up and requires special attention once in a while.
Spring is a great time to give all your rugs a more thorough vacuuming session. Reversible rugs should be vacuumed on both sides, but hand-tufted rugs should never be vacuumed on the back since this could cause damage. If your rug is particularly delicate, consider using the vacuum attachment for a gentler touch.
Keep in mind that not all rugs should be vacuumed. If you own a delicate older or antique rug or a sheepskin rug, you should use other rug cleaning methods.
3. Toss Machine-washable Rugs in the Wash
Most rugs cannot be thrown in the washing machine, but a few can. If you own a small, recently made cotton rug or any rug labeled safe for the washing machine, take advantage of the easy cleaning method to give your rug a much-needed wash.
Make sure to let your rug air dry away from direct sunlight before placing it back in its usual spot. A damp rug could easily develop mildew or rot, and sunlight could cause fading.
If your rug is not specifically labeled as machine washable, you probably shouldn’t risk the washing machine. A professional rug cleaner will have the appropriate equipment to gently but thoroughly remove all the hidden dirt that has built up in your rug.
4. Let Your Rug Breathe
Your rug could use some fresh air after a long winter, just like you! Giving your rug some new air can be very helpful for freshening up if you’ve noticed any odd smells accumulating.
Pick a clear day and take your rug outside to let it breathe. With a little fresh air, unpleasant scents will dissipate and deep-seated dirt will loosen up.
5. Get Professional Rug Cleaning
No matter what type of rug you have, it could benefit from a thorough professional rug cleaning. You should strongly consider hiring a professional to cleanse your rug, make any needed repairs, and increase the rug’s longevity, especially if you have a particularly delicate, high-quality, or antique rug.
At Alexander’s Rug Care, we treat rugs with an 11-step cleaning process to gently remove as much soil as possible. Our services also include rug repair and protection to help preserve your rug for future generations.
Based in the Puget Sound region, we clean every type of hand-knotted rug from anywhere in the world. Contact us today to get a free quote.
