Lisa, just wondering

[Kenny Wright]

I've only got 3 CC competitors here in Mayberry RFD. Two of them do oriental rug cleaning fairly regularly. One doesn't use or have any kind of pool to put the rugs in. Isn't that like playing Russian Roulette with your insurance premiums or is there some safe dry cleaning method for orientals that I haven't heard about?

[LisaWagner]

Kenny - when a method is "safe cleaning" it does NOT mean that it is EFFECTIVE cleaning. Of couse there are safe dry cleaning methods for rugs, but they are a night and day difference from washing rugs. If your competition does not wash rugs, then if you get the right experience you can outclean them all day long.

When you are using surface cleaning methods - a portable, a truckmount, encap, dry compound - you are cleaning the surface fibers of what soil you can reach. If you are not dusting thoroughly, you are leaving mud in the foundation fibers. If you are not rinsing thoroughly (or not at all), you are leaving residue and a tacky feel We encap cleaned a rug at my last cleaning clinic, and it looked good, but the residue, and the soil in the foundation fibers was just unacceptable.

Everyone I have trained from starting with a surface cleaning method, to going to washing rugs, has never gone back. It is really difficult, if you care about quality, to experience a COMPLETE clean versus a SURFACE clean and not wash every rug you can.

That said - you need to learn what to watch out for, and how to handle different fibers and construction types and dyes and pre-existing conditions (like pets).

My problem with deeming something "safe" is that this does not equal effective or thorough. It also implies that other solutions are UNsafe. Considering just about every longtime rug operator I know does not seek out any solutions because they are "woolsafe" branded - but rather seeks out the solutions that they know works the best - it becomes an issue that most of the professionals in the rug cleaning arena completely ignore.

In rugs especially, it is not the solution doing the cleaning that is important - it is the CLEANER making the decisions that matters. Great rug cleaners bring their experience and knowledge to their decisions on handling antique, semi-antique, and contemporary rugs.

But back to your question - YES there are safe dry cleaning methods for cleaning rugs - this just does not mean it is EFFECTIVE or COMPLETE cleaning. At our plant we wash everything we can. If we can't do it right, we don't do it. So we don't surface clean rugs. We thoroughly clean everything we take in.

Hope that answers your question,
Lisa

www.TheRugChick.com

[Kenny Wright]

Thanks for the answer. I guess that's why I've had a number of customers tell me that they really weren't happy with that cleaner's oriental rug results.

[LArugcleaning]

Thanks for the answer. I guess that's why I've had a number of customers tell me that they really weren't happy with that cleaner's oriental rug results.

at least now you know Mr. Kenny.. good speed on your rugs business Mr. Ken..