Wool Rug Cleaning & Care

K-Tech Kleening is concerned with the health of your home and your property. Oriental Rugs are an investment and can be destroyed easily without the right type of care. Are your Oriental and Wool Rugs being cared for properly?

Wool rugs are woven to last HUNDREDS of years. In our industry, rugs are not considered to be “antique” unless they were woven before 1900. 

How to Care for Your Wool Rug

Antique rugs were made to last, and many of them do when properly cared for. However, you put a rug in the wrong conditions, with exposure to bugs, and you can lose that rug in under a year. Eaten away by moths, carpet beetles, or other bugs feeding on other contaminants the rug fibers are holding on to. Pesky insects so small you hardly notice them may be doing damage to textile items in your home. Generally, you aren’t aware of them until it is too late. If left long enough bugs will reproduce and those young bugs are the culprits-eating their way through your wool rugs wall hangings and needlework as they mature. Their mothers and fathers do no damage except to leave behind their eggs from which the hungry larvae hatch.

Most people know that moths can do considerable damage, but carpet beetles can cause extensive damage if they are not controlled. Moth larvae are usually found on their food material. Carpet beetle larvae are more adventurous and may crawl from one room to another.

Adult carpet beetles are attracted to the sunlight and are known to feed outdoors on pollen of flowers. The most common adult carpet beetles are small, oval-shaped insects that are black with varied patterns of orange and white. They are sometimes mistaken for common garden lady beetles because of their similar size and shape.

Moths and carpet beetle larvae feed in quiet, dark areas-closets, attics, bureau drawers, storage trunks or boxes. Items that are stored for long periods are especially at risk. Such pests seldom infest items used on a regular basis. They do not damage rugs and carpets in regular traffic areas or where routinely vacuumed. Areas next to the wall or under furniture are likely targets for these hungry insect pests.

Some dried herbs and other natural materials are thought to help repel insects such as cedar, eucalyptus, penny royal, lavender, and tansy. Care should be used with such products because some of them are toxic. Always read the label and follow instructions carefully.

Cedar-lined closets and cedar chests can help prevent infestation if they can be sealed tightly. After several years, however, the volatile oils that provide the protection may dry up and no longer be effective.

The best way to protect your rugs from damage from fabric-eating insects is to use the following measures:

Practice good housekeeping so the insects do not have a chance to lay eggs, which hatch into hungry larvae.

Call in a team dedicated to preventing the pesky bugs from destroying your valuable rugs and textiles. K-Tech Kleening has highly trained professionals, with the best techniques to maintain and extend the life of your rugs and textile treasures for you. It is important to have your rugs cleaned regularly by a team of professionals to prevent damage and extend the life of your rugs.