What Can Really Destroy Your Oriental Rug

Many people believe that if stain occurs on their gorgeous oriental rug this means the end of the world. But stains are possible to remove even with home made detergents. If however the stain is old, you can always call professional rug cleaners to help you get rid of the spot. But there are few more dangerous enemies of your oriental rug. And you should be careful about them.

Direct Sunlight

There is no other carpet that is more vulnerable to sunlight like original oriental rug. No matter if it is new or antique the technology that is used to dye the fibers is traditional and their colours are equally susceptible to direct sunlight. Even qualitative oriental could be ruined in months if placed close to sunlit window. Colour lightens and looses it's brightness. The best you can do is to lay your oriental in room that isn't so bright. The other option is to put thick curtains on the particular window or windows. There are also some products containing mylar. A thin film of mylar is being applied on the window's glass to stop ultraviolet light that ruins the dyes but it's use is controversial and has it's disadvantages.

Mildew

Its popular misbelief that oriental rugs cannot be washed. On contrary, they can because of their high quality woolen fibers. The catch is that after wetting your carpet you should dry it really well. If even a small area of the rug stays wet mold starts growing and weeks can pass before you notice it. By that time mildew can deteriorate fibers enough to be impossible to save the carpet. My advise is – wash and dry your oriental rug very carefully, if you have to store it – choose a proper place where the air isn't moist. Also – do not put any potted plants on the rug to avoid leaking from them.

Insects

Bugs are natural fibered carpets' major enemy. There are two kind of carpet eaters – moths and so called carpet beetles. They both like dark places to breed. The mature insects aren't danger, but their larvae are for sure. As any other insects, both carpet beetles and moths' larvae eat few times more than their weight per day, and their menu is – as you can imagine – your oriental rug. They are literally eating their way through the carpet and usually when you notice the damage it is too late to save your carpet. Carpet bugs love the places where they could be disturbed. So my advice is to rotate your carpet every now and then and to check often the areas placed under furniture. Regular vacuuming also is a must if you want to prevent insects' appearance. If you doubt that there are such intruders in your home you can treat carpets and furniture with pyrethrin containing spray.