DrapeCare / Rug cleaning
Wool & fine rug cleaning
We clean hand-knotted wool, Persian and oriental, silk and viscose rugs after checking the fiber and testing every dye. Rugs in good shape get a maintenance clean on site; heavily soiled, pet-damaged and delicate rugs get a full wash in our shop, with pickup and return around Orlando.
On site, or in the shop?
Maintenance clean, at the house
For a rug that's in good shape and just needs freshening. Low-moisture cleaning, dry in a few hours, and often done the same visit as the drapes.
Full wash, in the shop
For heavy soil, pet accidents, odor, silk and viscose. The rug is dusted to drive out embedded grit, washed front and back, rinsed until the water runs clear, dried flat and groomed. Turnaround is usually 7 to 14 days.
Fibers we handle
- Hand-knotted wool, including Persian, Turkish, Indian and Tibetan
- Hand-tufted and machine-made wool
- Silk and wool-and-silk blends
- Viscose, art silk and bamboo silk
- Cotton flatweaves, kilims and dhurries
- Jute, sisal and seagrass (cleaned dry)
Before we touch a rug
Every rug gets the same intake, whether it cost $400 or $40,000.
Burn-free fiber check
Wool, silk or viscose decides everything after. We check by feel, sheen and the back of the rug, never by cutting it.
Dye test on every color
A damp white cloth pressed on each color shows which ones might bleed.
Condition report
Worn areas, moth damage, dry rot, old repairs, fringe and binding are photographed and written down before cleaning.
Clean, dry, groom
On site or in the shop, then the pile is groomed and the fringe straightened.
Rug questions
Not sure what your rug is made of? Here's how to tell wool, silk and viscose apart.
How often should a wool rug be cleaned?
A wool rug in a busy room or with pets: a full wash every one to two years, with a vacuum once a week. A rug in a formal room that sees little traffic can go three to five years. Waiting too long lets grit cut the fibers at the base.
Can you get pet urine out of a wool rug?
Usually, if it hasn't sat for months. Urine has to be flushed out of the foundation, not just cleaned off the surface, which is why it's a shop wash rather than an on-site clean. Old urine can permanently change dye colors, and we'll tell you if we see that at intake.
Why did my rug turn brown after it got wet?
That's almost always viscose, also sold as art silk or bamboo silk. Viscose browns and loses its sheen when it gets wet or is cleaned with the wrong chemistry. We handle it with very little moisture and an acid rinse to limit browning.
Is pickup and delivery included?
Pickup and return are included for shop washes in the Orlando area over the visit minimum. We roll and tag each rug, photograph it at pickup, and give you a receipt.
What about moths?
Moths go for wool in dark, undisturbed spots like under sofas. We look for larvae and bare patches at intake and can treat the rug as part of the wash.
Send a photo of the rug
A photo of the front, the back corner and the label is enough for a price. Tell us the size and whether pets or spills are involved.