Cleaning a rug professionally and without causing damage takes some training. The method is very complicated, and a great amount of machinery and space is needed - that’s why we are the only professional rug cleaning plant in Cambridge.
Most carpet cleaners will state that they can clean rugs and they do this by either cleaning the rug with a carpet cleaning machine or by farming them out to professional rug cleaning plants such as Art of Clean.
There are many stages of cleaning a rug, and our rug cleaning technicians have undergone several training courses to enable them to be able to clean rugs properly.
1- Some rugs can hold up to one pound of dirt per square foot before they look dirty, so dusting the rug before submersion is very important. We complete the removal of dirt by vacuuming the rug, then by using a vibrating machine system, which gently beats the rug, releasing all of the tiny bits of dirt. If the soil is left in rug then it will wear out more quickly.
Most carpet cleaners will state that they can clean rugs and they do this by either cleaning the rug with a carpet cleaning machine or by farming them out to professional rug cleaning plants such as Art of Clean.
There are many stages of cleaning a rug, and our rug cleaning technicians have undergone several training courses to enable them to be able to clean rugs properly.
1- Some rugs can hold up to one pound of dirt per square foot before they look dirty, so dusting the rug before submersion is very important. We complete the removal of dirt by vacuuming the rug, then by using a vibrating machine system, which gently beats the rug, releasing all of the tiny bits of dirt. If the soil is left in rug then it will wear out more quickly.2- Dye testing is done to determinate the stability of the dyes used in your rug. Most fibres are dyed using a mordant process, which is a chemical reaction that binds the dye to the fibres. If the dyes are not stable, they will bleed as soon as they get wet (one unstable colour can ruin an entire rug!!) Unfortunately there is no way to know if the dyes in your rug are stable unless we individually test them. Every hand made rug is unique and the dyes used in an individual rug are unique too. These dyes can be natural dyes, man-made synthetics or a combination of both.
Natural dyes: Until the late nineteenth century only natural dyes were used for colouring wearing yarns. Natural dyes include plant dye (come from roots, flowers, fruit…), animal dyes (come from animal sources that include insects) and mineral dyes - come from ochre (yellow, brown, red), limestone or lime (white).
Synthetic dyes: In the mid-nineteenth century, as the demand for handmade rugs increased in the West, their production increased in the East. The need for easy-to-use and less expensive dyes with wider ranges of colours caused the development of synthetic dyes in Europe. Synthetic dyes were imported to Persia (Iran), Anatolia (Turkey) and other countries. Colour testing is a very time consuming process and an absolutely necessary part before the wash process.
3- The next process is to decontaminate the rugs if it has been contaminated with mildew, urine, mould or insect infestations. We do this by submersing the rug into a decontamination of rugs, however this will not always 100% remove the smell from your rug.
4- The rug will be submerged and given a cold water shampoo bath, using soft brushes for mild agitation. The rug is soaked depending on how much surface soil needs to be worked out and rinsed from the rug’s fibres.
Removal of all cleaning and soil residue by means of clear water rinse is vital of achieving a thoroughly clean rug. The rinse process utilises clear water at a gentle flow rate to ensure the rug is left without any residue after the cleaning process.
5- At this point we use a rug centrifuge extraction system, this speeds up the drying time by 10 times compared to other methods, eliminating mould growth, colour run, browning and other issues associated with sloppy wet rugs taking weeks to dry. We are the only company in Cambridge with this system.
After the cleaning process has taken place we then protect the rug by spraying the rug and combing it through the fibres, this will prevent any further spills from being absorbed into your rug.
6- Finally we leave the rug to dry using humidifiers and air movers, this is a nice gentle drying process which reduces the amount of shrinkage. But we always take care not to overlap rugs within the drying process as it causes damage to the rugs.
So you can see from this article that knowing how to properly clean rug takes some knowledge, machinery and space.
Feel free to ahve a look at our website on persian rug cleaning and our main website: www.artofclean.co.uk
Art of Clean is a specialist cleaning firm in:
Working for domestic or commercial clients throughout Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk and Hertfordshire.
