Re: Weekly rug #4-ID & Clean it! It's hard to tell from the picture, is it silk? If it is silk I cean it by turning the truckount down almost to idle and use about 100 psi and low vacuum. find which way the nap is laying and only clean in that direction. after cleaning use a soft brush to groom, I actually picked up a "smooth surface" push broom which has super soft bristles to brush out my area rugs. Dry the rug and then I brush it again, first going aginst the nap and then again with the nap to soften up the pile.
Re: Weekly rug #4-ID & Clean it! Looks like what I would call an AMO - American oriental (hard to tell by the pic though). Fringes sewn on? Nothing special about this one unless there is something I can't see in the pic - clean as normal.
Re: Weekly rug #4-ID & Clean it! Hi Rob, Can't tell from this picture. Could be viscose which is a pain to clean or it could be a Karastan which is easy Then again with this picture it could be... ? Best wishes, Barry http://www.PersianCarpetGuide.com
Re: Weekly rug #4-ID & Clean it! Looks like a machine made Karastan, made in America. Wool pile, sew on fringes. Most of the time, bulletproof, but always bleed test regadless. This rug will clean up perfectly in most cases with any process that you have to clean with.
Re: Weekly rug #4-ID & Clean it! Thanks. It cleaned up easily and looks great. I am really loving Chem-Tex products!
Never use high PH on wool fibers. High or low PH levels can compromise the integrity of the rug and damage the structural components of the fiber. You'll want to stick with nearly neutral PH chemicals when dealing with wool. There are hundreds of products out there that are formulated with an emphasis on detergency, rather than PH levels. I like to use Avenge products for any natural fibers, because they are manaufactured the to be safe on a multitude of fiber types with a PH level of about 7.5. If you damage a rug during the cleaning process, you could possibly end up buying that rug.
According to my IICRC instructor, leaving the post-clean pH level slightly on the acidic side will leave the carpets feeling much softer to the touch. I really stress this to my guys, and I follow up on occasion with a flat-surface pH meter so that I can see if any residues were left behind or steps skipped. I cleaned my bosses carpets the other day, which a previous tech had screwed up on. One of the rooms had a rough/brittle feel to the fibers. pH level before any cleaning was at 9. I know this is getting technical, but most soils are on the acid side of the pH scale. The acidic pH level of the soils is mostly how they chemically bond to the carpet fibers. Countering that pH level is a very effective way of breaking that bond and creating a 'free flowing state'. If you look at the pH levels of most presprays or detergents, you'll find a similarity of about 10 +/-. Soap attracts dirt; mainly because of the high pH level (polarity - opposites attract one another). I use an acid rinse (pH 3, buffered) to neutralize this post-clean. It serves two purposes: leaves the carpets feeling soft to the touch and neutralizes the detergents preventing rapid resoiling. When I found that the pH was at 9 after a tech had cleaned the carpets a couple months ago, that told me he either didn't apply the rinse properly or at all. As I stated earlier, though, you wouldn't want to use any of these pH levels on wool. I know; I got off on a tangent...
It says Karastan in the subject line - LOL. Karastan makes good quality rugs, machine woven wool, and these are NOT cheap-o rugs - they retail around $30-35 per sq ft. I have several clients who collect the good ones, which is unusual considering they are machine made. And we've had ones from the 1940s come into our shop, still in great condition. Have one in now that has a bit of wear throughout it, but the owner loves the rug, and is paying $1,500+ to reknot the worn areas. You never know, with the sentimental value, what some people will want to do versus others. Value is always in the eye of the beholder. But these are good rugs, good wool and good dyes. Might bleed if it's got long term pet urine exposure, but other than that, should wash up well. Lisa
Hi Rob, Chem-Tex products? Good products but do they have a wool line? Barry http://www.SpongoBongo.com
This is very good & healthy discussion on silk carpet cleaning .I suggest that use only soft brush & less hard cleaning products for costly rug. Orbit Group Industrial Cleaning perth
