In this short video we'll answer the question,
how should you vacuum your area rugs?
Improper vacuuming can damage and devalue your rugs.
Vacuums with beater bars and brushes
can break the face yarns and distort the pile.
When it comes to vacuuming, it's important to know what to do
as well as what you should never do.
So let's talk about how to properly maintain
three different types of rugs.
First, we'll talk about sturdy, thick foundation rugs.
Second, we'll discuss thin foundation rugs.
Third, we'll talk about very delicate rugs.
And finally, we'll talk about dealing with fringe
on all types of rugs.
Be sure to turn your beater bar off or, at the very least,
use it at the highest setting.
The aggressive motorized brush can break
the surface fibers of your rug.
If you have a sturdy, thick foundation rug
and you're using a standard vacuum attachment,
whether the rug has a pile or not,
vacuum sideways across the width of the rug
and across the direction of the pile.
Regardless of the type of rug you have,
don't go near the fringe unless you
can shut your beater bar off.
Rotating brushes will quickly tear the fringe tassels.
You could also use an upholstery attachment
with these types of drugs, vacuuming
with the direction of the pile and picking the attachment up
after each stroke so you're never
pushing the attachment against the direction of the pile.
If your rug is a thin foundation rug with a pile,
use an upholstery attachment and vacuum with the direction
of the pile only.
Again, you want to pick the attachment up and not
push the attachment against the direction of the pile
on the return strokes.
If your thin foundation rug doesn't have a pile,
use an upholstery attachment and vacuum
across the width of the rug.
Don't be too aggressive or use too much pressure
with the upholstery attachment.
Even upholstery attachments can cause very delicate rug fibers
to become frizzy or damage very old fibers.
For this reason, if the face yarns of your rug
are delicate or very old, it might be best
to not use a vacuum at all.
Instead, just brush the surface fibers
by hand using a soft horse-hair brush.
With this type of rug, you'll want
to go across the width of the rug when you're brushing.
This type of delicate rug will not usually be on the floor.
They will often be hanging on walls.
And remember, the idea here is you're dusting off the dirt
and soil while it's still on the tips of the yarns
before it has a chance to penetrate to the deeper
layers of the rope.
So you don't need to be too aggressive with this step,
but be thorough and do it as often as you can.
Now, let's talk about how to properly deal
with fringe on any type of rug.
You want to vacuum or brush fringe
going with the direction of the fibers.
To reduce the possibility of any damage,
use an upholstery attachment in the fringe.
If the fringe fibers are delicate or very old,
use a soft brush, and again, brush with the direction
of the fibers.
So, how often should you dust your rugs?
Well, if it's been two years or more since her last rug
washing, then you won't be able to get ahead
of the curve in keeping the dirt out
of the foundation of your rugs, so get your rugs washed
and then begin this regular dusting routine.
If your rug has recently been washed,
then you shouldn't have very much embedded
soil in the foundation, so the goal
is to keep that build up of dust and grit as low as possible
until your next washing.
In general, you'll want to dust the front
of your rugs every week or two, depending on the traffic
they're getting and on the location in your home.
If they're in a high-traffic area
or if there's a lot of dirt, dust them more frequently.
If they're getting light traffic or if there's very little dirt,
dust less frequently.
Every other month, dust the back side of the road.
Go across the width of the rug using the same attachment
that you used on the front.
Remember to dust the back sides of hanging rugs as well.
If the rug is extremely delicate, use a brush,
but you should still dust the back side periodically.
This will disturb these areas and will
help to keep bug and moth activity down.
If your rug is woven, sturdy, and has
a fairly thick foundation, every six months
you should flip the rug face down and thoroughly
dust the backside of the rug going
across the width with the beater bar of your vacuum
at a low setting and switched on.
The idea here is to use the vibrations of the beater bar
to shake the dirt out of the foundation
and the base of the pile.
It's amazing how much dirt rugs can hold.
You might be surprised at what you're able to shake out
of your rugs with this method.
There's just one warning.
If your rug is a tufted rub, meaning
that it has a cloth backing on it like this rug here,
don't use this method.
Tufted rugs have a layer of glue holding them together,
and this process might do more harm than good.
Because rugs can hold so much dirt without even looking
dirty, it's important to have your rugs washed every two
to three years.
If you have any questions about proper maintenance
of your rugs, just give us a call
and we'll be happy to help you out.
And please let us know if you like this video.