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  • Protecting Your Rug From Moths


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    A genuine, hand-knotted Oriental rug will last for decades or more with the proper care and cleaning.  Vacuuming your rug regularly, cleaning up spills quickly and completely, and having your rug professionally cleaned will each help protect your rug and prolong the enjoyment you get from it.  Keeping your rug clean will also protect it from moth infestations, which could greatly damage your beautiful rug, or even ruin it.

     

    The Dangers Of A Moth Infestation

    A moth infestation is a catastrophe for a Persian or Oriental rug.  Adult moths do no damage to your rug, but they lay hundreds of eggs which hatch into larvae and consume wool or silk fibers in mass quantities.  Some species of moth are attracted to the wool itself, while others will eat the wool if there is a contaminant in the fibers that they find appetizing.  In either case, they will devour large portions of your wool rug, and the cost of repairing or reweaving the rug can be staggering.

    There are two situations in which rugs are especially susceptible to moth infestations.  The first situation is if your rug has been soiled.  Clean rug fibers do not appeal to moths, but soiled rug fibers are highly appealing.  Moth larvae love to eat contaminants that are trapped in the rug’s fiber, and are particularly drawn to protein-based contaminants, such as the keratin in pet hair, food stains, or even blood or urine stains.  The second situation in which your rug is especially susceptible to moth infestations is if it is in storage.  Moths and bugs love the damp, dark, undisturbed solitude that storage provides, and can do extensive damage to your rug before being discovered.  As you can imagine, the worst thing you can do to a rug is to put it in storage after it has been soiled.  That will almost surely spell ruin for it.

    So, how do you know if moths have befallen your rug?  Here are some indicators:

    • Loose fibers are found on the surface of the rug.  (This is broken or loose pile, which means the larvae have eaten the fibers where the knots are connected to the rug’s foundation.)
    • Foundation fibers are exposed.  (The wool might be completely eaten away, leaving only the cotton foundation fibers of the rug.  These fibers would have the appearance of a grid.)
    • Granules are found within the rug’s fibers.  (These granules, which look like sand, are larval excrement.  They will filter down through the fibers, and even into the backing.)
    • Larvae are visible.  (Recently-hatched larvae will sit on top of the fibers until they have built their cocoons.)
    • Cocoons are visible.  (Small, fuzzy or sticky cylinders indicate that larvae are present.  Look closely, because often the larvae will camouflage their cocoons to be the color of the fibers.)
    • Adult moths are present.  (Though the adult moths do not damage to your rug, they likely indicate that larvae are present.)

    If you find any of these signs on or around your rug, your first call should be to your pest control company who will need to come rid your home of the infestation.  Your second call should be to your local rug cleaning professionals.  You will want to set up a deep cleaning for your rug as soon as possible!

     

    How To Protect Your Rug From Moths

    Keeping your wool area rug clean is the best way to protect it from moths.  The cleaner the rug, the less appealing it is to bugs.  Here are some tips for keeping your Oriental rug as clean as possible:

    1. Vacuum regularly.  Once per week, vacuum the face of your rug.  Once per month, vacuum the underside of the rug, the underlying pad, and the floor beneath.  If your rug is too large to flip, then do these steps in sections until the entire rug has been thoroughly vacuumed.
    2. Clean up spills immediately and thoroughly.  If you weren’t able to get to a spill in time, or worry that you didn’t get it cleaned adequately, make an appointment to have your rug cleaned by one of the professional rug cleaning companies in your area.  Your rug cleaning technician can even apply a protectant to your rug’s surface to further protect against stains.
    3. Regularly inspect for moths and insects.  Inspect your rug, and also the nearby furniture, behind wall hangings, and the corners of the floors.  Here in Northeast Florida, every homeowner relies on one pest control company or another.  Whenever the technicians are in your home, inquire as to what types of insects they are finding, and have them alert you should they encounter webbing moths and casemaking moths.
    4. Avoid using mothballs.  Mothballs may deter moths from your sweaters, but they will not deter them from your rug.  Moreover, the notorious odor mothballs emit will likely be carried into your rug!
    5. Apply moth repellant to your rug.  Having a professional apply a high grade moth repellant to your rug is a great deterrent for moths.  Moth repellent tastes sour and uninviting to moths and their larvae, and therefore protects your rug from an infestation.  We recommend applying moth repellent after a professional cleaning.

     

    The best thing you can do to keep your rug clean enough to deter bugs, is have it routinely cleaned by a highly-rated rug cleaning service.  The best Oriental rug cleaners will clean your rug thoroughly, including the backing, the fringe, and deep into the fibers – everywhere moth larvae love to be.  The very best rug cleaning company will have a rug bath on the premises, which will clean your rug more thoroughly and gently than any other method.

     

    The Best Jacksonville FL Rug Cleaning Company

    RugPro Oriental Rug Cleaning is the best professional rug cleaning service in Jacksonville.  We specialize in deep cleaning Oriental and Persian rugs, and we will put your mind at ease and keep the moths away.  Rug owners throughout Northeast Florida know they can trust their finest heirloom area rugs to us for dusting, maintenance cleaning, deep cleaning, and protectant application.  We are the rug cleaning specialists and would love to help protect your beautiful Oriental rug with a thorough and careful cleaning.