Hi there, Ruthie here with Arizona Oriental and recently, I read a question on the internet that was posted by Amanda in New York City regarding how she could clean her area rug in her small NYC apartment.  She shared that she vacuumed her rug regularly and blotted up any spills as they happened, but she has noticed that her rug has become dingy over the last year with the lighter parts of her rug looking noticeably dirty.  Amanda further explained that she doesn’t have a lot of outdoor space to take her rug to for a cleaning and what little space she has would be a hassle to get to.  She has a patio, but if she shook her rug out on that patio, the dust would then go down into her neighbor’s patios and windows and she would surely be not making any new friends that way!  She knew even if she did find someone on the property grounds, she couldn’t do a very deep cleaning

Unfortunately, there aren’t really any easy solutions to Amanda’s dilemma.  The fact remains that rugs require proper maintenance and proper cleaning, which she will never be able to do in the living room of her small apartment – sorry Amanda.  Both high quality, woven or hand-knotted wool rugs and inexpensive rugs like Amanda described hers to be, require a proper cleaning from time to time!

Amanda also needs to be aware of the type of floor that her rug is sitting on.  If it is wood or a natural stone floor, cleaning the rug in place is not an option - unless you want to damage the floor beneath your rug.

The best advice that Arizona Oriental & Specialty Rug Care can give individuals in Prescott that are in a similar situation to Amanda’s is to be super diligent with vacuuming.  If you vacuum frequently, you can stay on top of the dry soil and get it off of your rug before it builds up.  This alone will extend the time required between professional cleanings.  This is not a replacement for deep cleaning, though!  If your rug is looking dingy like Amanda described hers as being, that’s an indication that your rug is begging for a DEEP cleaning.

Arizona Oriental recognizes that, regardless of a rug’s value, proper cleaning is needed for area rugs.  This includes dusting (removing dry soil that’s embedded itself in your rug’s fibers) and matching the cleaning method to the rug’s specific construction or dye migration concerns, and then selecting the cleaning solution that is developed specifically for that rug’s fibers.

Here’s my suggestion not only to Amanda, but to all of my readers: skip trying to clean your area rug yourself and instead get an estimate from a professional rug cleaning facility to clean your rug for you. I understand Amanda’s predicament of it being inconvenient to take the rug somewhere to clean outside of her apartment – it’s a common problem which I know is a bit of a hassle, however, there are many great and professional rug cleaning choices both in New York City and all across the country, many of which offer pick-up and delivery.  Take Arizona Oriental & Specialty Rug Care in Prescott, for instance.  We understand the needs of our consumers – which is exactly why we offer pick-up and delivery to our clients.  We’ll even set the rug up right back in place under the furniture it was in before we picked it up.  We strive to make rug cleaning a good experience for our clients from start to finish.

Fine rugs that you have invested money into are obviously worth the cost to clean them by a credible cleaning service.  But honestly, even what some folks consider inexpensive rugs are really worth cleaning– especially if they fit your décor and are in good condition or, even more importantly, YOU LOVE IT.

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 additional information on why cleaning your rug at home is a bad idea 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).