Cleaning an area rug is more difficult than regular carpet cleaning. It contains tightly woven fibers and delicate fabrics. Cleaning process becomes more challenging if you have hardwood floor. But, there are ways to clean an area rug without damaging hardwood floors.
How Do You Know It’s the Right Time to Clean an Area Rug?
The right time to clean an area rug for residential owners is late autumn or early spring. Also, you must wash the rugs in coldest and wettest days of the year because molds and mites require damp and cold places in the house such as rugs’ fiber. Modern equipment removes more than 90% moisture from residential area rugs. Therefore, you can clean your rug whenever you want.
Meanwhile, people clean area in offices and shops more often. Since there is higher foot traffic than residential areas, dust accumulation is higher. Many businesses and shops prefer a professional rug cleaning company to clean their area rug. They don’t have enough time and budget to spend on hiring employee and equipment to clean the rug. They let the professionals do their job.
Ways to Protect Your Hardwood Floor While Rug Cleaning
Hardwood floors are abrasive and delicate materials. So, if you want to clean an area rug, you have to be gentle. You can damage the rug even if you leave damp rug on it. But, if you want to clean a rug on hardwood floor here are few tips you can follow:
1. Consistently Clean the Rug
Dirt and dust on the hardwood floor can scratch the delicate material. Fixing these scratches can cost you fortune. Therefore, you must protect the floor while cleaning. Whether you are vacuuming or brushing the dirt and debris off the rug, make sure to clean the floor as well. Keep a vacuum cleaner in the room all the time and consistently suction the dust from the floor.
2. Place Plastic Sheets
Buy a huge plastic sheet that fits inside the room. Fold the dirty rug from one side and place the sheet on the floor. Now fold the rug from other side and cover the floor with the sheet completely. The plastic sheet will hold the water on the top. Also, the dust and debris from the rug won’t scratch the floor.
3. Clean the Rug’s Bottom
You must remove the dirt from the rug’s bottom before placing it back on the hardwood floor. Leaving the dirt under area rug will scratch the floor when the rug moves. Vacuuming the bottom will take a little time, but it will save you from an expensive damage.
4. Clean the Rug Outside
If you have hardwood floor in house, cleaning an area rug outside would be the right decision. Rug cleaning can cause costly damage to the floor. Therefore, you should take the rug outside for cleaning. Don’t forget to clean the floor once you remove the rug.
How to Clean an Area Rug without Damaging Hardwood Floors
You can use plastic sheets to cover the floor before cleaning the area rug. If you don’t have plastic sheets, you must consistently clean the rug with vacuum or wet cloth. Once you took care of the floor, follow these steps:
1. Apply Sodium Bicarbonate
If you have stains and spots on the rug, it would be better to clean those sections only. Add sodium bicarbonate on the stains and brush it to let the chemical dig deep inside. Now keep the sodium bicarbonate for 15 minutes and clean it with wet cloth. Also, you can vacuum the residue to remove water and stain.
2. Use Carpet Shampoo
If you want to clean an area rug without damaging hardwood floors, use environmental friendly carpet shampoo. Many rug cleaning solutions contain harmful components. Many brands add chemical free tag on their products to tell their customers that their product is safe to use.
3. Steam Clean the Rug
Steam cleaning is an effective technique to clean an area rug without damaging hardwood floors. Steam cleaner doesn’t create a mess. Therefore, the damaging components won’t fall on the floor. If you want to keep the floor safe, don’t use brush or sponge to apply the cleaning solution. Instead, you should perform steam cleaning.
Conclusion
Area rugs are good investment, but compromising your expensive hardwood floor for rug cleaning doesn’t make sense. Therefore, you must follow protective measures to clean an area rug without damaging hardwood floors.
You can hire a reputable rug cleaning company to clean your area rug without damaging the floor. A professional rug cleaning company such as NYCleaners use advanced tools and techniques to clean and area rug without damaging the hardwood floor. Our team has skills and experience to clean the rugs under any condition. Give us a call if you want to clean your rug with professionals.
