Why Does My Area Rug Look Mottled? – Prescott Valley AZ
Hi folks, Ruthie here and today I wanted to talk about one of the conditions that we see in quite a few of the area rugs that come into us at Arizona Oriental & Specialty Rug Care – pooling. Pooling is found in a lot of rugs that have thick pile – we see a lot of Chinese rugs with pooling and both tufted and woven rugs are susceptible to pooling.
I know what you’re wondering - WHAT THE HECK IS POOLING?
Pooling is a type of pile reversal that often looks like water was spilled on the area rug in the area. Some people even call it watermarking. You can see in the photos shown here that it does sort of look like part of the rugs are wet. However, this isn’t the case! It’s actually a redirection of the face fibers that makes it appear mottled or wet.
Normal fibers stick straight up in the air. Eventually they will be worn down with foot traffic and wear, but in some cases these fibers begin to change direction. Instead of standing straight up like little soldiers, these fibers fold down on themselves and point more to the side. This causes light to be reflected differently off of these redirected fibers, creating the mottled appearance.
It also can look different depending on the angle from which you're looking at the rug! Take a look at this rug - this is the same section of the same area rug but taken from two different angles. You can see that the pooling area appears light from one end and dark from the other!
Because pooling effects the fibers of the area rug, it isn’t correctable by cleaning alone. Even the most expensive, oldest rugs are susceptible to pooling – it’s a condition that has existed for centuries and no one is entirely sure why it happens at all. This condition occurs in carpets and rugs made from all kinds of fibers.
That’s not to say that you shouldn’t have your area rug cleaned if it is showing signs of pooling, of course! Area rugs should be cleaned every 1-3 years, depending on the level of activity in your home. Give us at Arizona Oriental & Specialty Rug Care a call to get your area rug professionally and thoroughly cleaned! We are more than happy to discuss any concerns you may have and answer any of your questions.
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 Valley, Prescott, 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 what the mottling on your rug is and cleaning 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). (04-18-17)
