Step One: Pre-Inspection
We begin by thoroughly inspecting your rug. We start by identifying the rugs country of origin. Second, we determine what type of fiber your rug is made from as well as its foundation. We look for damage from pests like moth or carpet beetle damage. We inspect the fringe and side cords for tears or degrading fibers. We look for pet stains and odors. We look for preexisting bleeding and we test the rug for color fastness. This information will help us determine the type of cleaning best for your rug.
Step Two: Dusting / Dry Soil Removal
It is a proven fact that a woven rug can hold several POUNDS of dirt. Therefore, the most important step in our cleaning process is removing all the dry soil. We do this before washing the rug. Washing the rug before we remove the soil, only makes MUD and doesn’t clean your rug. For best results we use a TUMBLE duster machine and then thoroughly air dust your rug with compressed air.
Step Three: Urine Odor Removal
Pets “pee” on wool rugs… “It’s what they do!” So… we have to decontaminate the rug in order to get rid of embarrassing odors. Cleaning by itself won’t fix pet problems so instead we employ the use of pet urine treatments to decontaminate rugs.
Step Four: Rug Cleaning
The best way to clean a woven wool rug is to give it a “nice” thorough bath. This is done by laying the rug out in a cold water bath and shampooing the entire piece with specially formulated rug products that safely and gently wash away any sticky or greasy soils from your rug.
Step Five: Rinsing
After the rug bath, we thoroughly rinse your rug with large volumes of cold water to neutralize and flush away any remaining suds, soil and residue from your rug. When a rug is not properly rinsed it can re-soil prematurely.
Step Six: Groom / Detail Finish
Grooming and detailing a rug is the second most important step in the cleaning process. A rug will not look nice in your living room if the face fibers aren’t brushed in the same direction before it dries. After the rug is dry, it is inspected for stains or dye bleed that didn’t wash away during the cleaning process and steps are taken to correct these flaws. The fringe is also re-cleaned and brushed-out to ensure it is the crown jewel of your rug.
Step Seven: Speed Dry
Rugs MUST dry as fast as possible. Most problems occur during the drying process if rugs are allowed to dry slowly. Mold, mildew, cellulose browning and even bleeding just to name a few. Therefore, we use a heated dry room filled with industrial size blowers and dehumidifiers to SPEED dry all rugs. FASTER is BETTER.
