How to Clean your Oriental Rug at Home

[R R Carpet Cleaning]

Cleaning your Oriental Rug at home is a risk. I would always recommend
hiring a professional Rug Cleaner to make sure the job is done right
and your rug isn't ruined. Remember your Oriental Rug is an investment
and should be treated as such.

If you still want to clean your Oriental Rug at home, here are the
steps to follow. These steps are for Wool Oriental Rug Cleaning;
other, more delicate fabrics such as silk should not be attempt to be
cleaned by you and should be cleaned only by a professional rug
cleaner.

Step 1: Removing the dirt

Vacuum your oriental rug. Vacuum the top of the rug using suction
only. Flip the rug upside down and vacuum the rug completely. This
should be done as a routine cleaning process once a month to help
reduce the amount of dirt caught deep down in the fibers of your rug.
Oriental rugs can trap dirt in the rug fibers creating a sandpaper
effect each time you walk on it.

Step 2: Fringes

If your oriental rug has fringes along the edges, do not vacuum them.
When you vacuum over the fringes they will be stressed by the vacuum
bristles creating stress on the fibers, or worse breaking them free
and sucking them up into the vacuum for good. Simply tuck the fringes
underneath the rug. If you happen to suck up some fringes, do not pull
the fringes free as you may break them away from the rug. Simply turn
the vacuum off and remove each fringe from the vacuum manually.


Step 3: Dusting

Place your oriental rug outside the home in a vertical position. Using
a broom handle or stick gently beat the rug to remove dust that may
still be caught in the rug fibers. This will cause a lot of dust, so
be prepared.

Step 4: Vacuum again

Once all the dust is removed from the oriental rug, you should re-
vacuum the rug to pick up any dust or dirt that was loosened by the
broom or stick (step 3).

Step 5: Prepare the cleaning surface
Clean any dust or dirt in the area that you are cleaning your oriental
rug with a hose and some soap. Preferably clean your rug on a driveway
that is on a slope to avoid water pooling.

Step 6: Wet your rug

Once your rug is in a clean area, place the rug face down with the
reverse side toward the sky. Note the direction of the rug's pile.
Soak the rug with only cold water running in the same direction of the
rug's pile (you may use a garden hose). Make sure to soak the rug
evenly and thoroughly.

Step 7: Shampoo

Using a 3-5 gallon bucket, fill with water with one or two tablespoons
of mild liquid detergent. Mix until suds appear. If needed add more
mild detergent as seen fit. Always test an area before applying to the
entire rug. At the same time (an assistant maybe needed) pour the
detergent water mixture on the rug while agitating with a clean
bristle brush. Do not scrub hard, as you are only trying to agitate
the rug. Make sure the bristles are evenly coming in contact with the
reverse of the oriental rug, scrubbing back and forth, up and down.
Repeat if necessary refilling the water detergent mixture as needed.

Step 8: Rinse and Repeat

Rinse the rug thoroughly making sure no detergent is left in the rug.
You may need to continue to agitate the rug using a bristle brush to
remove all suds. Flip the oriental rug over and repeat step 7. This
time only working the brush in the direction of the oriental rugs
pile. Do not scrub, or move in a back and forth, up and down motion.
Only move the brush in the direction of the rug's pile. Once all suds
have been removed (you should see the water run-off become as clear as
possible) you can now start the drying process.

Step 9: Drying

Once all the suds have been removed and the oriental rug is clean,
squeeze the excess water from the rug. Only move in the direction of
the rug's pile. Once you have finished squeezing the rug, you may
place a number of dry towels on the rug and walk on them to absorb
more of the water. Once you have removed most of the water take the
oriental rug indoors (a garage is ok) and hang to dry. The less
contact from the ground the better. Both sides need adequate air
circulation to help in the drying process. Fans will help dry the rug
faster. Do not use any type of heating lamps as this can cause uneven
drying and will result in your rug becoming wavy once fully dried.
Avoid leaving the rug outdoors in the direct sunlight for a long
period as this may fade the rug. Once the oriental rug is completely
dry, you may rub your hand or re-vacuum the rug to remove any
stiffened areas of the rug.

Authors note:
Remember, any type of Oriental Rug Cleaning should be handled by Rug
Cleaning Professionals. These steps are a very simple version of what
the professionals will do to clean your rug. Be very cautious when
ever using a detergent or cleaning process on your oriental rug as it
may cause bleeding in the dyes of the rug. Never leave detergent in
the rug for any extended period of time as it may destroy your rug
fibers.