You try and look after your Oriental rug. You vacuum it every week. You rotate it so that it does not get uneven fading. Every year you have your rug cleaned by a professional rug cleaning company. But inevitably it does not matter how careful you are, eventually, there is going to be the occasional spill.
Maybe it is your uncle’s massive gestures as he is holding a glass of red wine. Or it could be that your cat has an accident on your precious Persian rug. Or maybe there is a piece of chewing gum that you don’t know where it came from, although you have your suspicions (looking at you Susan).
Anyhow, instead of focusing your attention on a righteous punishment for the guilty individual, it is important to attend to the stain as soon as possible to prevent serious damage.
In fact, the key to preventing permanent damage is… rapid treatment!
Admittedly, there is generally a sense of panic when there is a stain so you might need to take a deep breath and calm yourself before you do anything. But the worst thing you can do is nothing.
So put on your cape and become a stain demolishing hero.
Unlike most modern carpet fabrics, handmade Oriental rugs are not treated with a stain resistant coating. For this reason, it can be more difficult to remove a stain from a rug than your standard residential carpet.
The Rug Cleaning Golden Rule
Do as to others as you would like done to you. You would not want someone violently scrubbing you with a towel (unless you are in a Turkish hammam), so don’t do it to your meticulously crafted Turkish rug. If you scrub a towel, tissue or cloth on the stain, you are just going to spread the stain and additional dye will soak into the fibres.
Instead of scrubbing, think blotting with a clean white cloth. Blotting is a gentle motion that will help transfer the stain from the rug onto the cloth. It is important to only use a clean white cloth as dyes from towels can actually transfer onto the rug.
Identify The Stain
In most cases, you will know exactly what the stain is from and with a little detective work, who the guilty assailant is. Once you identify the cause of the stain, you can then come up with a prognosis.
A bit of simple Googling will help you find a lot of DIY stain removal guides, but you should be careful. Here is a warning from one of Sydney’s leading rug cleaning technicians:
“Searching online you will find many references to how you can remove spots and stains from carpets, rugs and upholstery. Some of these are sound suggestions and some are just plain destructive”.
Each stain needs to be treated differently.
The easiest way to remove stains, but you need to have it on hand first, is to use the Masterblend OneStep Spotting Kit.
The kit contains four pieces of valuable rug cleaning equipment:
- General spotter (all-purpose spot remover)
- Dry spotter (Stubborn greasy spot remover)
- Absorbent powder (Absorbs liquid spills and pet accidents)
- Spotting towels
In the carpet and rug cleaning industry, Masterblend has a reputation for producing class-leading products. This spotting kit is no exception and is approved by Woolsafe for use on wool and wool-rich products.
By following the instructions with the kit you will be able to treat most household stains. Here is a helpful rug stain guide that can help you identify the best treatment for a wide range of stains.
So what are the worst stains and how can you treat them?
How To Remove Red Wine From Your Rug
Arghh, not the wine! Whether it was a Shiraz, mild Cabernet Sauvignon or a subtle Merlot, there is nothing subtle or mild about a red wine stain on a Persian rug. What is the best treatment? There is a four-step process that will limit the damage.
1 – Apply cold water and blot
2 – General Spotter
3 – Absorbent Powder
4 – If the stain is still visible, call a professional rug cleaner
How To Remove Oil Paint From Your Rug
Whether your handyman splattered some paint while doing a feature wall or your amateur landscape painting skills ended with some paint from your palette on the floor, oil paint can be a very tricky stain to remove. What is the best technique?
1 – Dry spotter
2 – General spotter
3 – Absorbent powder
4 – If the stain is still visible, call a rug cleaning professional
How To Remove Bleach From Your Rug
Why would you even have bleach around your rug? Surprisingly, bleach stains are fairly common on rugs. Here is a simple treatment to prevent further damage from a bleach stain on your rug.
1 – Apply cold water and blot
2 – General spotter
3 – Absorbent powder
4 – If the stain is still visible, call a professional rug cleaner
How To Remove Pen Ink From Your Rug
Whether it was your cute niece doing some artwork on your rug or a leaking pen that seemed to have exploded everywhere, there is no hiding pen ink on an Oriental rug. The following technique is the best initial treatment for pen ink stains on a rug.
1 – Dry spotter
2 – General spotter
3 – Absorbent spotter
4 – If the stain is still visible, call a professional rug cleaner
How To Remove Shoe Polish From Your Rug
You feel proud as punch that your shoes now have a resplendent shine, but then your stomach sinks as you see the black shoe polish lodged in the fibres of your rug. What is the best technique for removing shoe polish from your rug?
1 – Dry spotter
2 – General spotter
3 – If the stain is still visible, call a professional rug cleaner
Should You Use Dishwashing Detergent?
There are a lot of online guides that suggest using dishwashing detergent to help eliminate stains, is this a valid option? While it seems reasonable, as we use clean soapy water to clean just about everything in our home, it is not a good option for cleaning stains from your rug.
Why?
Dishwashing liquid is oily. It has a high pH. Both of these factors mean that dishwashing liquid will actually damage the fibres of your rug and will cause re-soiling. Don’t use it, it is not worth the risk. Choice recently had an article outlining the dangers of using poor quality carpet and rug cleaning companies and products.
Who Can You Rely On For Professional Rug Cleaning In Sydney?
Oriental Rug Care is a locally owned and operated Sydney business that is raising the standard of professional rug cleaning in the region. With a team of highly skilled technicians, Oriental Rug Care provides reliable rug cleaning treatments for private and commercial clients in the Inner West, Southern Suburbs, Eastern Suburbs, North Shore and Northern Beaches of Sydney.
For a rug cleaning appraisal, call the team at Oriental Rug Care today.
Oriental Rug Care of Australia
Address: 23 Shepherd St, Marrickville NSW 2204
Phone: (02) 9018 1510
Website: https://orientalrugcare.com.au/