3 Things to Avoid When Cleaning Your Wool Rug

Hand knotted wool rugs represent a large but worthwhile investment. When the time comes to clean your Oriental or Persian area rugs, you want to take every precaution to be sure the rug is cleaned thoroughly but safely. Some of the best things you can do for your wool area rug are routine vacuuming, typically at least weekly, removing shoes while inside the house, and working to remove any spill or stain quickly.

When it comes to wool rug cleaning, it’s just as important to be aware of what NOT to do when cleaning them. Here are three very important things to avoid when cleaning an Oriental wool rug:

Do not scrub the rug. The scrubbing motion is far too abrasive for wool fibers and will cause them to frizz up and make the surface of the rug fuzzy. Instead of using a scrubbing motion or technique, just gently blot the area, typically with a clean cloth or paper towel.
Avoid using hot water to clean the rug. Persian rugs cannot be steam cleaned because the extremely hot water can cause the fibers to shrink or twist. If the dyes in the rug are not colorfast, hot water can enable them to bleed. If using water to clean your rug, it is ideal use cool water to help prevent any type of warping or discoloration.
Don’t use abrasive or acidic cleaners or harsh chemicals on your wool rug. Though wool is extremely durable, the fibers are also very sensitive to harsh cleaners and can weaken and even break. Be sure any cleaning solution you use to clean your Oriental rug has a pH level between five and eight.

Cleaning high quality wool Persian rugs is an art form, and it’s wise to trust this important job to a trusted professional rug cleaning service in your area. When researching the best local rug cleaners, look for a company that cleans rugs thoroughly and gently, with custom cleaning plans to fit the unique needs of the rug.

RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best area rug cleaner Jacksonville FL residents trust with their finest wool area rugs. We pride ourselves in high quality rug cleaning specifically designed to fit the needs of the rug as well as the desires of the customer. Our repeat customers throughout Jacksonville FL in Mandarin, Riverside, Ortega, San Marco, and Atlantic Beach call on use whenever their rugs need anything from routine dusting, to maintenance cleaning, to stain removal, and even restoration after a rug has been neglected or left in storage. Call on us and let us provide quality cleaning for your treasured rugs.

How To Protect Your Rug From Heavy Furniture

Heavy furniture leaves indentations on carpet and rugs, and you may wonder if this will cause lasting damage to your beloved Oriental or Persian rug. Most indentations gradually disappear over time, and you can help them along by placing an ice cube over the sunken area. However, in some cases, depending on the fragility of the rug, the weight of the furniture, the material and condition of the furniture’s legs, and other issues, you could risk doing damage to the rug.

We recommend protecting your rug from heavy furniture in these ways:

Move Furniture When Vacuuming – Whenever you move furniture to vacuum your rug, reposition the furniture so that it is slightly different than before. In other words, don’t place the feet of the furniture back into the indentions that they left in the rug; let those areas have a rest.
Use a Rug Pad – A good quality rug pad, in the appropriate dimensions for your rug, will do a lot to protect and preserve your rug. It also helps to keep the rug in place and prevent it from bunching or folding.
Use Furniture Pads – Protect your rug on both sides by ensuring a rug pad is properly in place, and also that there are pads underneath all furniture legs. Larger or heavier items, such as entertainment centers or pianos should have larger dent protectors underneath them in order to disperse the weight over a larger area over the rug.

With the right precautions, your heavy sofa, overstuffed chairs, and grand piano can indeed be placed on your favorite area rugs with very little risk. And when the time comes to dust or deep clean the rugs, trust them to a highly rated local rug cleaning company like RugPro!

RugPro is the best rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL, Riverside Avondale, San Marco, and Ponte Vedra Beach homeowners rely on for Oriental rug cleaning and care. We’re the trusted rug cleaners in your area and would love to deep clean or restore your rug for you.

7 Common Stains (and How to Get Them Out of Your Oriental Rug)

When the inevitable spills occur, it’s important to act quickly so the spill doesn’t have a chance to become a stain in your beautiful Oriental rug. Here’s a reference sheet to quickly address common household spills and stains:

Pet Urine– Blot with cold water, then use a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of clear dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of cold water. Continue rinsing with cold water until the urine and the cleaning solution are removed completely.
Wine– First, apply a rust remover solution to the affected area. When the area has dried, blot it with cold water and use a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of clear dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of warm water.
Blood– Blot thoroughly with cold water. Then use a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of clear dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of cold water. Rinse the entire area with cold water until the blood and cleaning solution are removed completely.
Juice– Blot with cold water, and then clean the area with a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of clear dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of warm water.
Vomit– Use a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of clear dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of cold water. Rinse the area thoroughly.
Coffee– Blot the affected area with cold water. Make a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of warm water. When the area has dried, apply a dry-cleaning solvent until you are satisfied with the results.
Milk– Blot the area with warm water. Once the area has dried, apply a dry-cleaning solvent. Finally, use a cleaning solution of one teaspoon of dishwashing fluid mixed with one cup of warm water.

Spills happen even when we’re careful, but luckily most common spills can be addressed with these tips. Remember that every rug is different, and these cleaning processes may not be suitable for your Persian rug or wool area rug. It’s best to have a highly rated Jacksonville rug cleaning company clean your rug routinely, as well as after spills occur. The best professional rug cleaning companies have the tools, cleaning solutions, and expertise to clean nearly any type of stain or spot. RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best professional rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL homeowners call on for their rug stains, spots, and spills. Join your Atlantic Beach, Mandarin, and Riverside neighbors and call on RugPro to give your favorite rug the cleaning it deserves!

Vacuuming v. Rug Dusting

Homeowners and rug collectors know the importance of routine vacuuming, but what’s the difference between weekly or biweekly vacuuming and professional rug dusting?

Frequency– We recommend vacuuming your Oriental rugs weekly.High traffic areas benefit from being vacuumed more frequently. You should also routinely flip the rug over and vacuum the underside as well. (It’s a good idea to rotate the rugs at this time to avoid the rugs getting worn in certain paths and areas.) Rug dusting, on the other hand, is recommended every 6-12 months.
Equipment– When you vacuum your rug, you can just use the upright vacuum you use to clean your carpet, though you’ll want to be sure the beater brush is raised as high as it can go. Rug dusting requires the use of a significantly stronger machine. Great rug cleaning companies such as RugPro use the “Rug Badger.” In a rug dusting scenario, the rug is splayed over a grate, and the Rug Badger is slowly pushed over the rug. The machine produces thousands of harmonic vibrations per minute, which loosen the debris, dust, and dander in the rug and release it into the grates underneath it.
Thoroughness– Vacuuming is useful and necessary in terms of weekly maintenance and keeping dust and dander at bay. Rug dusting, however, is exponentially more thorough, often removing several pounds of dust and debris from the fibers and backing of a wool area rug!
Preservation– So, which is better for preserving your rug for decades to come? The answer is: both. Weekly vacuuming is an effective and convenient way to maintain your rug by routinely ridding it of as much dry soil as possible. Rug dusting is necessary in order to remove far more dust and dirt routinely. Rug dusting is also the important first step in deep cleaning any Oriental or Persian rug.

A great local rug cleaning service is outfitted with the best cleaning solutions and equipment for cleaning fine area rugs thoroughly and gently. Find a great rug cleaner in your area to trust with your rugs!

RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best Jacksonville FL rug cleaning service homeowners in Northeast Florida, Mandarin, Queen’s Harbour and Riverside depend on for cleaning and care of their rugs. Keep your rug soft, clean, and in great shape with routine cleaning at our professional rug cleaning shop!

Should My Rug Be Cleaned in My Home or in a Facility?

You may be wondering if it’s possible to have your area rug cleaned within your home. There are many good Jacksonville FL rug cleaning companies, and certain ones do offer this service. However, though this seems convenient, it is not recommended. Here’s why:

Cleaning Rugs Inside a Home May Cause Damage to the Home– Rug cleaning is like any cleaning project: considerable water and cleaning solutions are required in order to get the rug thoroughly cleaned. If a rug is cleaned inside your home, the cleaning process could cause damage to areas of the home, including the underlying floor and nearby furniture. For a rug to be successfully cleaned, it often needs to be submerged in a rug bath where moving water can circulate through the fibers and truly give the rug a deep clean. Even if dry cleaning solutions are used on a rug, they cannot be used inside a house without risking damage to the surrounding space.
Rugs Require Specialized Equipment– Fine wool Oriental and Persian rugs cannot be cleaned using ordinary cleaning equipment. Though they do benefit from traditional vacuuming, they need specialized dusting machinery to truly loosen and remove the debris and dust from deep within the dense fibers. Furthermore, they typically need to be spread out in a large-scale bath, and then have the water squeegeed out using heavy duty equipment. Finally, they need to be dried on a float table or hung from a drying tower. This equipment cannot be transported from house to house. Instead, a rug must be taken to the rug cleaning facility to experience a true, customized deep cleaning.
Rugs Require Specially Trained Technicians– If a company offers to clean a rug in your home, chances are they’re part of a carpet cleaning company. Carpet cleaners are trained specifically to clean carpet. This means your handknotted silk Persian rug would be cleaned using the same method and skills as would be used on standard acrylic carpet. As you can imagine, your rug (and you) will be left wanting. Though a synthetic area rug could theoretically be successfully cleaned by a carpet cleaner, your silk or wool Oriental rug would likely sustain damage if it were to undergo the standard carpet cleaning process.

In some very rare instances, exceedingly large rugs do need to be cleaned in place, rather than in the rug cleaning facility. In these rare but important situations, a professional rug cleaning expert will need to perform the cleaning process. The rug expert will have a specific protocol for oversized rugs and will take all the precautions to thoroughly clean your rug while protecting the surrounding area.

The best rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL homeowners trust with their rugs is RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning. We offer the most thorough deep cleaning process available, and most importantly, we handle your beautiful rugs with the highest possible standard of care. We’re the trusted rug cleaning service for homes and rugs throughout Riverside, St. Augustine, Ponte Vedra, Nocatee, and Jacksonville, and we’d love to provide your Oriental rug with a quality, deep cleaning

The Best Oriental Rugs for High Traffic Areas

Certain areas of your home naturally get used more than others, and for different purposes, and it matters where you choose to place your rugs. The Oriental rug underneath your dining room furniture will need to be vacuumed frequently and inspected for food and wine spills after every dinner party. A Persian rug in a seldom used guestroom, however, will receive considerably less use.

Generally speaking, Oriental rugs are constructed to be durable and capable of withstanding the wear and tear of everyday daily life. However, the fiber content of your rugs matters as well, since some types of fibers hold up better than others to heavy foot traffic and use.

Use our tips to help determine where to place your rugs within your home.

WOOL RUGS – Wool Oriental rugs are sturdy as well as stunning, and they’ll stay in good shape even when kept in high traffic areas. However, wool rugs should not be kept in damp areas such as bathrooms or basements because the fibers can harbor mold and mildew.
SILK RUGS – Silk rugs are lustrous and luxurious and though they’re comfortable to walk on, will do best when kept out of high traffic areas.If placed in a high traffic area, a silk rug can begin to look frayed. For households with pets and/or young children, it’s best to keep silk Oriental rugs in rooms that don’t get a lot of use, such as a guestroom or your home office.
COTTON RUGS – Cotton fibers are highly absorbent and tend to show dirt and spills more readily than their wool counterparts. Additionally, cotton rugs do not hold their shape as well as wool and silk rugs, so if placed in a high traffic area, they can become misshapen or warped.

Wool rugs are overwhelmingly the best rugs for placement in high traffic areas. However, even wool rugs require additional cleaning and care if they’re expected to hold up well in such traffic. Be sure there’s a rug pad beneath the rug, and that the rug gets rotated regularly so that certain areas and fibers do not wear sooner than others. It’s also important to schedule routine dusting and deep cleaning with a good professional rug cleaning company so that the rug has a chance to get rid of the dust and debris that is incessantly tracked onto it and subsequently into its fibers and backing.

RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL homeowners trust with their rugs. We pride ourselves on our rug deep cleaning process, and our ability to customize the perfect cleaning plan with the individual needs of each rug. We frequently clean rugs from high traffic areas and understand the importance of routine, high quality cleaning procedures in order to extend the life of your beloved rugs. We’re happy to serve clients throughout Northeast Florida, including San Marco, Fleming Island, Nocatee, Atlantic Beach, and Ponte Vedra Beach, and we’d love to take care of your rugs as well!

How Frequently Do I Clean My Persian Rug?

It’s no secret that the best way to keep your Persian and Oriental rugs clean and protected is to have them cleaned routinely… but how do you know when your area rug needs to be cleaned?

Dusting– Rug dusting is recommended every 6-12 months. Regular rug dusting is important, because it removes dry soil from your rug’s fiber and backing, including dust, sand, dander, hair, dirt, debris, and more. Rugs in high traffic areas of your home can hold a surprising amount of soil and dust in their fibers. In fact, a high-quality rug dusting tool will often remove several pounds of debris from a rug, even when the owner brings it in routinely! The best rug cleaning services are equipped with rug dusting tools that loosen and remove these soils mechanically through intense vibrations. This process is gentle on the rug, yet highly effective at removing soils from deep within the rug’s fibers.
Maintenance Cleaning– Maintenance cleaning is recommended every 12-18 months. The maintenance cleaning process will vary among rug cleaning companies, but should include a full inspection, dusting and dry soil removal, low moisture cleaning, a neutralizing rinse, and a thorough drying. This process, when done by the best Jacksonville rug cleaner you can find, will keep your rug clean and protected.
Deep Cleaning– It is recommended that you get your rug deep cleaned every 2-3 years. The best professional rug cleaning companies specialize in deep cleaning packages, which should include dusting and dry soil removal, deep submersion and hand wash in a rug bath, a neutralizing rinse, and a number of other services that are customized to your rug’s unique needs, including the application of a stain protector or brightening of the rug’s fringe.
Restorative Cleaning– There are occasions where a rug may require more than the standard cleaning procedures. For example, a rug that has been severely contaminated by pet urine stains or damaged in storage is a good candidate for a restorative cleaning.In some cases, the damage may be irreparable. However, if there is one thing that could potentially revive a rug from such a disaster, it’s a restorative cleaning appointment with the best Oriental rug cleaning company in your area!

An Oriental rug as beautiful as yours deserves to stay in great shape and be enjoyed by your family for years! It’s important to find a great professional rug cleaning company and rely on them for routine dusting, maintenance cleaning, and deep cleaning.

RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL rug owners and homeowners have called on for years. We specialize in gently but thoroughly removing all debris from wool and silk rugs. We have the best rug dusting equipment on the market, and a world class rug bath cleaning system to ensure your rug is cleaned gently and thoroughly. Come visit our rug cleaning shop in Arlington and see why we’re the trusted rug cleaners for customers in Jacksonville, Atlantic Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, and throughout Northeast Florida!

Removing Pet Urine from Your Wool Rug

Pets are part of the family, so we’re able to forgive them when they make messes around the house. However, when a pet has an “accident” on your favorite Oriental wool or silk rug, you need to clean up the pet urine quickly and correctly to make sure your rug gets properly clean, with no lasting damage done.

Here’s how:

First, extract as much of the urine as possible.If you have a wet vac, go over the area repeatedly with the wet vac until you’ve suctioned out as much urine as possible from the rug’s fibers. If you do not have a wet vac, fold a bath towel and place it over the stain. Press firmly or stand atop the area for 10-15 seconds in order to absorb as much as possible. Refold the towel and repeat this step until the urine no longer wicks into the towel.
Prepare a mixture of 1-part vinegar and 1-part cold water. Test the solution on an inconspicuous part of the rug to be sure the rug is colorfast.
Wet the rug thoroughly with the vinegar mixture, not only on the affected area, but several inches beyond it in every direction.
Allow the mixture to sit on the affected (and surrounding) area for 1-2 minutes.
Thoroughly extract all moisture. If you have a wet vac you’ll again go over the area repeatedly with the wet vac to ensure all possible moisture is removed. If you do not have a wet vac, take a clean bath towel and repeat the process of pressing firmly or standing on the towel until all moisture is absorbed. You may need to use multiple towels, but fortunately, all soiled towels can be thrown right into the washing machine when the process is finished.

If a pet urine spot is tackled immediately with these techniques, you have a high chance of getting it out. However, for urine stains that are more than one day old, we recommend making an appointment for your rug to be cleaned by a highly rated professional rug cleaning service.

RugPro is the best Oriental rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL rug owners and pet owners call on to keep their rugs in terrific shape. Treatment of urine spots and stains is one of our most popular services, and we’re the experts in removing spots, spills, and stains from Persian and Oriental rugs. If your rug has suffered pet urine spots, trust it to us to get it clean again. Years of experience and extensive training make us the best professional rug cleaning company in the area, and our customers throughout Riverside Avondale, Ortega, Beaches, and downtown Jacksonville trust us to clean their treasured rugs properly and thoroughly. Let us give your own rug the thorough cleaning it deserves!

3 Ways to Clean Your Shag Rug

Your shag rug needs to be cleaned, just like any other rug. However, the long threads that comprise its “shagginess” make it unlike any other type of rug and somewhat tricky to clean. Here are your options for cleaning a shag rug:

Vacuum– You’ll be surprised at the difference a simple vacuuming will make in your shag rug’s appearance. Be sure to turn off the beater bar on your vacuum so that it doesn’t suck up and damage your rug’s fibers. If you can’t shut off the beater bar, then at least set your vacuum on the highest setting. Vacuum slowly so that A) you can suction out as much debris as possible, and B) you can be sure the rug is not being damaged by the vacuum. We recommend flipping the rug over and vacuuming the backside as well. This is a good way to remove more dust and debris from the backing of the rug. If your shag rug has delicate fibers, we recommend vacuuming ONLY the backside.
Beat– Don’t be afraid to go old school and clean your shag rug the way your forefathers cleaned their rugs: hang it over a line outside and beat it.You can use a broom handle, extension pole, or other such tool to beat it. If the rug is small enough to easily handle, you can simply shake it out.
Professional Rug Bath– Aside from vacuuming and beating the rug, the best option you have for getting your shag rug truly clean is to call on a great rug cleaning company. All the best rug cleaning companies have professional rug baths on their premises, where the rug can be safely deep cleaned.

Shag rug owners, Oriental rug owners, and homeowners throughout northeast Florida call on RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning for their rugs. RugPro is the best Jacksonville FL rug cleaning company and the trusted name in safe, high quality rug deep cleaning. We’ve earned the trust of customers in Atlantic Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, Riverside Avondale, and throughout Jacksonville, and would love to provide care for your fine rugs as well.

Think Twice Before Cleaning Your Oriental Rug Yourself

A common misconception among novice rug owners is that it’s simpler to clean their rugs themselves. In reality, it’s almost always easier and an overall better choice to trust your Oriental rugs to a great professional rug cleaning company. Here’s why:

Convenience– It is far, far easier to drop your rug off at a good rug cleaning company than it is to spend the time researching safe cleaning methods, prepping the rug, prepping the area beneath and around the rug, and then doing the cleaning itself, and hoping everything turns out alright. A great rug cleaning service will pick up your rugs at your home, take the rugs to their shop for dusting, spot treatment, and deep cleaning, roll them safely for delivery, bring them back to you, and arrange the rugs back in your home exactly as you want them, moving furniture to accommodate the rug as you wish. It just doesn’t get any easier or more convenient than that!
Cost– Mishaps that occur when rug owners clean their rugs themselves can be costly. Oriental and Persian area rugs are treasures and require specialized cleaning products and highly specialized cleaning methods and care. If something goes wrong while you’re cleaning your own Persian rug, you could cause expensive damage to the rug itself or to the flooring underneath the rug. The cost-effective choice in rug cleaning is to hire a highly rated rug cleaning company to clean your rugs.
Quality– High quality rug cleaning requires advanced training, specialized equipment and cleaning solutions, and a passion for the work. The best rug cleaners will first provide a thorough inspection of your rug, identifying the fibers, construction, and other important qualities of the rug, as well as the specific stains or spots, and then will devise the perfect plan to clean the rug safely and thoroughly.

RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best professional rug cleaning company Jacksonville FL rug owners trust with their beloved area rugs. Our technicians are experienced rug cleaners with a passion for providing custom cleaning for fine Oriental and Persian rugs. Our rug cleaning team puts together custom care plans for each rug based on the unique needs of the rug and the customer’s wishes. Our clients in San Marco, Mandarin, Ortega, Fleming Island, and Ponte Vedra Beach agree that with care like that, why go anywhere else for great professional rug cleaning service?