FAQ Oriental Rug Cleaning & Repair Questions

What should I look for when choosing someone to care for my rug?  

All rugs are not created equal and there are very few true rug care experts in this area. There are different cleaning methods for wools, silks, and tapestry. You need to find a professional company with experience dealing with the many different types of rugs to ensure your rug is cleaned appropriately.  Ask if you can see their plant and evaluate their process for yourself. Some questions to ask:  Will the rug be hand-washed in a specialized rug facility? (Some companies say they hand-wash but they clean the rugs in a warehouse, garage or use an automated system.)  Does the company have a climate controlled rug dry room? (If the rug is not dried fast and at the right temperature mold could start to grow!) How long has the company been in business? Is rug cleaning their primary business? Are they licensed, bonded and insured? What is their rating in Consumers’ Checkbook magazine? Is pick up and delivery included in the price?

Can the worn edges of my rug be fixed? 

Yes! Worn edges can be fixed, fringes repaired or replaced and holes can be reweaved. Ayoub Carpet Service has been repairing rugs for over 50 years and we would love to discuss the best solution for restoring your rug. 

Should my rug be cleaned in my house or should I send it out?

IICRC-Rug Cleaning Institute recommends that rugs should be taken to a specialized cleaning plant. Not only will the rug get the most thorough cleaning but the most appropriate method will be used to ensure the rug is not damaged. It typically takes about a week to 10 days to clean a rug.

Do you have some rug care tips?

• Vacuum often to get the loose dirt out of the rug. 
• Do not vacuum the fringe as it will cause fray damage.
• If you do spill something blot dry with a clean white terry cloth towel and blot again and again with a small amount club soda.
• Don’t use any other type of cleaning agent since it may cause the dye to bleed and may set the stain.

What are the white tufts or small, round, hard, white nubs in an area on the face of my rug?

This is a problem that sometimes occurs with older rugs woven on cotton warp. 

The white flecks that show on the face of the rug are the untrimed ends of knots in the warp strings. Weavers don't always use continuous lengths of cotton string as the warps--sometimes they tie together shorter lengths to make a warp long enough to string from loom beam to loom beam. Often the weaver doesn't trim the ends of the knot in the warp string closely, relying instead on the eventual thickness of the rug's pile to hide the knot and the ends of the knot. When the pile of the rug wears (to perhaps half its original thickness or less), the end of the knot in the warp becomes visible as a white tuft on the face of the rug.

Sometimes the pile of the rug has worn so low that even the ends of the warp knots have worn away, and the actual knot in the cotton warp is exposed. The warp knots appear as small round, hard white nubbins sprinkled in an area of the design where the pile is quite thin.

There is an easy (though time consuming) fix for this problem. Using a small, sharp scissors, a qualified rug repair professional can open the nap of the rug at the white fleck and clip off the end of the knot in the cotton warp as close to the base of the rug as possible. This doesn't damage or weaken the structure of the rug, it just gets rid of the unsightly white flecks in the design. The downside is the time and expense (if you have a rug repair shop do the work) it takes to clip all of these flecks, especially in a carpet-sized rug.

If an Oriental Rug Cleaning and Repair company recommends touching them up with colored markers; this is not a good long term fix. The marker color can lighten or even disappear if the rug is washed. Even if the marker is colorfast, coloring the nubbin of the knot still leaves the knot itself which looks different from the surrounding pile.