A Short Guide on Cleaning Your Wool Rug

Wool is among the best fibers for carpeting. Handmade wool rugs for sale are so durable that you can bend them back and forth for more than 20,000 times without damaging them. Wool is far superior to other popular material choices like silk and cotton, which can only take up to 3,000 bends before breaking.

Wool is also great at insulating living spaces, as it can save up to 13% in heating and cooling bills. It’s flame and water-resistant, too. It will take a really strong flame of around 1058 degrees Fahrenheit for wool to ignite. These convenient features make the material an excellent choice for rugs.

However, cleaning wool rugs and carpets can be quite a challenge. This is because wool absorbs large amounts of liquid quickly. As such, you need to be extra careful when drinking wine, coffee, or juice near your brand new rug. If it’s too late and you’ve already stained your carpet, or if it’s due for routine scrub-down, give these wool cleaning hacks a try.

What You Need

Although wool is a premium fabric, you don’t need expensive equipment and chemicals to rid it of stains. Most of the cleaning supplies you need are found in your home or the nearest department store.

• Vacuum cleaner

•.Large sponge

• Rubber spatula

• Throwaway towels/clothes

• Tissues

• Broom

• Mild detergent like Woolite or Ivory Snow

• Bucket

• Clothesline

Start with Spot Cleaning

The moment you spill something on your rug, you should act immediately to stop the liquid from spreading.

1. Get a couple of paper napkins or towels from the kitchen to blot the stain. This way, it doesn’t spread further into the carpet. Don’t scrub the stain back and forth, as you’ll risk smearing the rug.

2. If the spillage has solids like bits of food, scrape them out with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, then let the rug dry.

3. After letting the stain settle, fill a bucket with water and add one to two tablespoons of mild detergent to it. Give it a good mix. Dip your sponge into the mixture and wring out the extra liquid.

4. Gently scrub the dry stain. Repeat this process until you’ve gotten rid of the blemish.

5. Rinse the sponge in clean water and wipe out the remaining suds on the rug.

Beat It Up

If you’ve had your wool rug for more than a year, there’s a good chance that it’s caked with dust and dirt, even if it still looks clean and good on the surface. Its fibers can trap pollen and dust from outdoors and potentially give you and your family sneezing fits or full-blown allergic reactions. Here’s a simple way to get rid of these irritants.

1. First, change into some old clothes and wear a face mask.

2. Then, transport your rug to your yard or balcony, or where the clotheslines are. Hang the carpet up there.

3. Get your broom and give the rug a few good whacks. This should give you an idea of how dirty the rug is, as the dust starts flying from the carpet.

4. Keep hitting the rug until you think it’s finally dirt-free.

Use Your Trusty Vacuum

Now that you’ve removed most of the dirt, you can give your rug a deeper clean with your trusty vacuum cleaner. With this, you eliminate as much dust as possible, especially those trapped deep within the carpet’s fibers.

However, you can’t just run your vacuum over your rug as you would on your regular carpet. Though wool is durable, you don’t want to possibly rip its expensive fibers off, especially the rug has decorative patterns. It’s recommended to take off your vacuum’s beater bar so only the suction will remain. Using a handheld vacuum cleaner is also ideal. Run the vacuum from the top to the bottom of your rug. Repeat this process for the rest of your carpet. Always vacuum in the same direction to ensure a clean and uniform finish.

This cleaning process takes a lot of energy and time to do, so free up a weekend to get your wool rugs spic and span. It’s worth the hassle when your carpets match the rest of your furniture again.

When to Get Expert Help and Why

After cleaning your rug, you may find that it still doesn’t look as clean as you first bought it. This is because these steps don’t involve giving your carpet a deep clean with water and soap. You can’t do that at home without expensive equipment and chemicals.

This is where professional rug cleaners like the Lolo Rugs and Gifts team come in. We don’t just provide handmade wool rugs for sale, but we also do repairs and cleaning. Send your problematic carpets over to us, and we’ll return it to you looking and smelling brand new.

Contact us today for all your wool rug needs.