Nothing completes and anchors a room more than area rugs. These floor furnishing can add a finishing touch to your home décor, merging design elements and bringing a room together. Plus, they provide a warm welcome for your feet.
Unfortunately, area rugs attract dirt, dust, dander, and minuscule debris. Over time, your once-fluffy rug can turn ugly and dirty. To prevent that from happening, here are a few cleaning and maintenance steps to help keep your rug looking fresh and beautiful.
- Understand Your Rugs
Before doing anything, you must know more about your area rug. Each rug has different care needs. You need to consider the kind of materials or yarn used, the backing type, and any other special instructions from the manufacturers.
Taking the time to familiarize yourself with the rug is even more critical if you have the oriental types with intricate stitching and design. Knowing the kind of area rug you have, you can tailor its maintenance and cleaning, preventing unnecessary damage to the material.
- Regular Vacuuming
As mentioned earlier, rugs are dirt magnets which can make them look unhygienic and dull. Regular vacuuming can help keep dirt and dust buildup to a minimum. This prevents dirt from settling deeply into the fabric, making it more difficult to remove. Also, the sucking action of the vacuum helps restore the rug fibers, preventing it from looking flat and dingy,
Before vacuuming, take your rug outside to give it a good shake, dislodging any loose dirt trapped within the fibers and making it easier for the vacuum to pick up. How you vacuum will depend on the type of rug you have.
The standard vacuum with a beater bar or spinning brush for cut pile carpets can help clean deep within the fibers. Meanwhile, you should use the suction feature for deep pile rugs to prevent piling and fuzzing. For rugs with fringes, be careful not to vacuum the delicate edges, which can cause tangles and permanent damage. After vacuuming the surface, don’t forget to clean the rug’s underside.
- Schedule Professional Cleaning
Even if you do regular vacuuming, dust, and debris will still find themselves deep in rug fibers. Hiring an expert rug service like Rug Wash Specialist can ensure a professional deep clean. Experts recommend that rugs be professionally deep cleaned at least once a year, especially in high-traffic areas.
While you can try DIY deep cleans, the professionals ensure a proper clean. Rug specialists have the best experience and the right tool to clean and maintain your rug, depending on its material. This provides more effective and safer cleaning while removing stubborn stains with less effort.
- Be Diligent With Spills
Regardless of how much you try to avoid spills, accidents can happen. Whether your toddler spilled his drink on your rug or your naughty fur baby peed on it, fast action is necessary to prevent deeper stains.
As soon as any liquid is spilled onto your rug, you should soak it up and prevent it from absorbing deeper into the fabric. Dampen a white cloth or tissue paper and blot the area. Don’t rub the area since it may cause the stain to spread further.
Once the stain is removed, wipe the area with a dry cloth to absorb the liquid. Allow it to dry, or use a fan to help it dry faster.
- Avoid Sunlight
Sunlight is a natural enemy of rugs, especially colorful ones like oriental rugs. Although fading can give any rug a unique, antique appearance, prolonged exposure to direct sunlight can cause excessive, inconsistent fading. It may also cause the fibers to become brittle.
Thus, you need to block direct sunlight and prevent it from hitting your rug. You can move the rug away from the sun. If this isn’t possible, you can use curtains and window blinds to block off sunlight in the room. Also, consider rotating it more frequently to ensure uniform fading.
- Use Padding
Adding padding underneath your rug can prevent it from sliding around, which minimizes the risk of sliding accidents and injuries. That said, it prevents the buildup of debris and dust on the underside, which helps reduce wrinkling and preserve the rug’s shape. Padding helps maintain your rug and makes walking safer and more comfortable.
Takeaway
There’s no denying that area rugs can transform any room effortlessly. If properly cared for, your area rugs, especially oriental or more intricate ones, can last for generations. Following the cleaning and maintenance tips outlined above, you can keep your area rugs in tip-top condition and look as good as the first time you brought them home.
