Your beloved area rug brings warmth and adds comfort and personality to your home. However, just like carpets, upholstery, or anything else, they also need proper care to stay fresh and beautiful.
From high foot traffic to spilled coffee, a number of factors can affect the frequency of cleaning your rugs, and it is important to consider them to ensure your rug thrives for years to come. Hence, read this blog and dive into the key factors and frequency recommendations for cleaning your area rug.
Factors Affecting The Frequency Of Cleaning Your Area Rugs
Soil Level
The level of soil on your rug plays a crucial role in determining how often you need to clean your area rugs because accumulated dirt, dust, and other contaminants are readily visible and may deteriorate the rug’s aesthetics.
Soil level is usually determined by the number of people or pets in your family, so based on that, you must use a vacuum cleaner or deep clean your rugs accordingly and help prolong their life for years to come.
| Soil Level | Vacuuming | Deep Cleaning |
| Normal (Family, including kids and older folks) | Once or twice a week | Every 6-12 months |
| Heavy (Families with pets) | 2-4 times a week | Every 3-6 months |
| Extreme (Families with multiple pets) | Every day | Every 2-3 months |
Material Type
Different materials have varying abilities to accumulate and retain dirt, dust, and other contaminants. For example, natural fiber rugs like wool rugs or cotton rugs trap dirt and allergens easily within their fibers, requiring more frequent cleaning. Meanwhile, synthetic fibers, which include materials like nylon, often have smoother surfaces that resist these contaminants, allowing for less frequent cleaning.
So, if you have rugs with delicate fibers like wool, or cotton rugs, ensure you have professional steam cleaning every 1-2 years. However, if you have rugs with more resilient fibers, such as nylon, consider getting them a professional cleaning every 2-3 years.
Foot Traffic
The amount of foot traffic on a rug impacts how frequently it needs cleaning, mainly for two reasons. The first is dirt accumulation, and the second is visible wear and tear. The more a rug witnesses high foot traffic, the more it needs cleaning in order to prevent loose dirt from becoming trapped dirt, or early wear and tear.
Hence, rugs in high-traffic areas, such as living rooms or kitchens, should be vacuumed daily or deep cleaned by a professional every 6-12 months. On the other hand, rugs that witness minimal foot traffic should be vacuumed every 2-3 days or cleaned professionally every 12-18 months.
Allergy Issues
Allergy sufferers and the frequency of rug cleaning go hand in hand because rugs act like reservoirs for allergens. They collect dust, dirt, pollen, and other tiny particles, including some that can trigger allergies like dust mites, pet dander, and mold spores.
Therefore, if you have a family member who is potentially sensitive or has allergies, make sure you vacuum your rugs every 2-3 days. Also, get them deep cleaned by professionals every 3-4 months, as cleaning the rugs simply by vacuuming or any other method can only remove surface dirt particles.
Deep cleaning, however, penetrates deep within the fibers and tackles these contaminants to the core, ensuring your rugs and the air quality of your home remain safe and healthy.
What is the best way to clean your area rug?
Deep cleaning is something that we would typically recommend going to a professional rug cleaning service for, especially if you have large rugs, with delicate natural fibers. However, for smaller rugs, it is possible to manage deep cleaning yourself.
Option 1: Check the tag
Depending on the type of rug, you may have cleaning instructions or a care label. Not all rugs come with these, especially handmade rugs, so head to the next option if your rug doesn’t have a label for instructions.
If you do have a label, you’re one of the lucky few. Carefully read the instructions and determine what steps to take. Some labels will be explicit and state “cold water only,” and some may say “machine washable.” This is similar to upholstery tags.
Cold water implies the rug may shrink if warm water or hot water is used, so spot treat with cold water only, and if you do turn to a professional carpet cleaner, ask them to follow that direction.
Washing machine-safe rugs make for an easy cleaning. Place the rug (if it’s small enough) into the washer, with the appropriate cleaning product. Then, once the wash cycle is done allow the rug to air dry. This is a very important part of the cleaning process, especially when you use a machine. Using heat to dry the rug may lead to shrinking or yellowing of the fibers.
Option 2: Spot Treatment
Not necessarily a deep cleaning, spot treatments can work wonders in extending the life of your rugs between your other regular cleaning services. We have many cleaning guides available on our blog, especially for spot-cleaning area rugs, but we’ve included some basic tips here as well.
Tip 1: Avoid aggressive cleaning products
Aggressive cleaning products imply chemical-based carpet cleaning solutions that are designed to “magically remove stains.” Many of these products use hydrogen peroxide, which brightens the colors of fibers but if allowed to sit for too long, can also cause lasting damage. This is especially true when these cleaning solutions are not thoroughly flushed from the carpet.
Tip 2: Use clean and soft tools
This might sound both obvious and counterintuitive. You’d want to use clean tools. In this case, you would want clean towels to blot up excess water as you treat the spill. That said, you should use a clean white towel to avoid any chance of transferring colors from your clean cloth to the rug. Microfiber cloths are also good for these purposes. You likely already have some at home, but if not they are very easy to find online.
Soft tools are what might sound backward. You’re scrubbing out a stain, shouldn’t you want a strong tool? The answer, of course, is no, but why? Well, first off, you should never scrub the carpet. Any professional cleaner will tell you that scrubbing the carpet will damage the carpet fibers. That said, special carpet brushes do exist entirely for this purpose. Apply your cleaning solution and gently agitate with a soft bristled carpet brush. The point is not to scrub the carpet, but to work the product into the fibers.
You can also do this by attaching your soft brush to a broom handle and scrubbing the entire surface. But again, be careful not to put too much pressure!
Tip 3: Spot cleaning can set in stains
This is an unfortunate truth. Sometimes, treating stubborn stains at home with any variety of products can set the stain in. One surefire way to avoid this is to understand that you may not remove the stain completely during your treatment. This is okay, you’ve at least removed a heavy amount of the staining. If you try again, the product might burn into the fibers causing irreparable damage.
Your best bet with stains and spills is to blot up as much of the spill as possible (or scrape up the mess with a dull knife if needed), then pour a generous amount of baking soda or salt onto the area to soak up any remaining liquid. After a few hours, vacuum up the salt and inspect the spot.
Many times you’ll notice either the disappearance or the lightening of the spot. If the spot still remains, we recommend pouring a small amount of warm water over the area, just enough to reengage the spill, before blotting again and reapplying the salt or baking soda.
Option 3: Professional Steam Cleaning
Professional area rug cleaning services exist for just this reason. This is especially crucial when you consider delicate handmade rugs or rugs with non-fast colors. Professional cleaning services have special tools and cleaning processes to provide each rug with the extra attention it needs.
Cleaning area rugs is a delicate task as each rug is very different and requires a different process. So, for example, the colors in handmade Persian rugs tend to bleed when treated with water. The right company will be able to protect the rug and your investment and prevent this from happening.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the care of your area rug is not just about maintaining its appearance, but also about extending its life and ensuring it continues to enhance the comfort and beauty of your home.
Remember, each rug is as unique as its owner, and its maintenance needs will vary depending on various factors like foot traffic, material type, and exposure to allergens.
Whether you choose to manage spot treatments at home or opt for professional cleaning services, understanding and addressing these factors will ensure that your area rug remains a cherished part of your home for years to come.
Don’t let the daily wear and tear compromise the beauty of your rugs—stay proactive in their care, and they will continue to add warmth and style to your living space.
