How Can I Get Rid of the Rubbery Smell in My Area Rug? – Prescott Valley AZ
We at Arizona Oriental & Specialty Rug Care have seen – and smelled – our fair share of area rugs. It isn’t unusual for one of our clients to bring us a rug and ask us if we can remove the odors that have been keeping them from enjoying their treasure. The answer is usually yes for rugs that have either musty odors or those coming from animal urine accidents. However, for the rugs that smell like rubber or latex, there may be nothing we can do for the odors with just cleaning alone.
Rubbery odors are unique to tufted area rugs. Tufted rugs are made by pushing fibers through a foundation fabric (yarns aren’t knotted individually with these rugs), and then placing a layer of latex glue on the back to hold it all together. A piece of monkscloth is then glued to the back of the rug to make it look pretty and hide the messy latex. Depending on the quality of the glue that the manufacturer used, odors can become more noticeable either years down the road or very soon after purchasing the rug.
Low-quality glue creates this rubbery latex smell that can stink up a room in no time. I know it’s not the most appealing odor and certainly not something you want to have coming from a rug that you enjoy having in your home!
Unfortunately, there isn’t much that washing or deodorizing can do for these odors because the problem is with the construction of the rug itself. Arizona Oriental does a great job at getting other odors out, we can’t do much for odors that are caused by the glue holding the rug together.
Depending on the age of your rug and the integrity of the backing, our repair shop may be able to remove the current backing, scrape away the old glue, and then apply a fresh layer of higher-quality latex glue before placing a new piece of monkscloth over the back. Removing this old glue can help to lessen odors, even if they aren’t removed completely it may be able to help quite a bit. Unfortunately, this is only an option for rugs whose backing is beginning to detach and in need of a backing replacement already.
If you have a rug that has mysterious odors with unknown origins, feel free to give us at Arizona Oriental a call or stop by our rug washing facility at any time! We are more than happy to answer any questions you may have and help in any way we can.
Till next time, enjoy your beautiful art for your floor and remember a clean rug is a rug that can last you a lifetime!
Arizona Oriental & Specialty Rug Care serves Prescott, Prescott Valley, Sedona, and much of the Northern Arizona areas. We meet the highest standards in professional cleaning of area rugs with rug wash specialists having earned the highest training, including certification as WOOLSAFE FIBRE CARE SPECIALISTS through the WOOLSAFE ORGANISATION. Such extraordinary certification ensures the area rugs of our client’s receive the utmost in care.
Call us for more information on getting rid of area rug odors and quotes at 928-445-1718, visit our website at www.ArizonaOriental.com, or stop by Monday through Friday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at our rug washing facility at 565 EZ Street, Prescott, AZ 86301 (pick-up and delivery also available). (03-09-17).
