This past weekend, I decided to try my very professional hand at washing a rug in my driveway. I remember a time (long, long ago) when this was the only way our newly minted company could wash area rugs. In our ignorance, we thought we were awesome.We were not awesome. Growing pains can be big, but I digress. The management at MNC is composed of experts, and I am at the head… but I wanted to play.
Now, mind you, this is a washable rug of sorts. It is not a high-quality Oriental antique or a valuable Tibetan rug that I decided to experiment on. Washable rugs are all the rage, and despite manufacturers’ claims that they can simply be thrown into your washing machine, they are not always so easy to wash yourself!
This particular rug is a 9' x 12'. While it is relatively easy to wipe spills off, it is partially white and gets dirty fast. But there is NO WAY a fabric this size is going into a household washing machine without risking damage to the machine. So, in the interest of finding out how easily it would actually clean up, out to the driveway I went.
Step 1: Inspection
What? You thought I forgot? Inspection is always the first step in professional rug washing. You need to know what you are working with before you start introducing water and cleaning products.
In this case, I live with this rug. I look at it every day in my dining room. I know exactly what it is made of and what condition it is in, so I gave myself a pass on the formal inspection.
But for a true DIY project, don’t skip this step!
Step 2: Dusting
The second step in any rug washing process is to DUST the rug — remove as much dry soil as possible before adding water.
Before I even moved the rug outside, I vacuumed it thoroughly and slowly.
Step 3: Full-Immersion Washing
I pulled out the garden hose and sprayed the rug down. This is NOT a good idea for a high-pile wool rug, anything with delicate fibers, or any manufactured rug with a fabric backing. For a full list of rugs you absolutely should not try to wash at home, check out my earlier post.
The key here is saturation and rinsing. Luckily for me, we have very high water pressure at our house, which made short work of this step.
Next, I used a household garage style broom to give the rug a good agitation, brushed the dirty water off, and soaked it again.
Remember: If you soak a thick rug, it will take forever to dry — and it will weigh a TON. This method should only be attempted on a thin, inexpensive rug that you purchased from a big-box store and are willing to take a risk on.
After spraying a liberal amount of our own Citrus Clean onto the rug, I gently agitated it with my broom and allowed the product to dwell for about 10 minutes. Then I saturated the rug again and used my big broom as a squeegee to push the water off.
For this step, I agitated more aggressively to work on the spots and stains. I also targeted a few stubborn areas with additional Citrus Clean before giving the entire rug a thorough final rinse.
Fortunately, I have a gently sloped driveway, which helped tremendously with getting the majority of the water off the rug. In the shop, we do this in a giant machine called a centrifuge - it spins the rug at mach speed in a cylinder - similar to the spin cycle on your washing machine. It is really the only way to remove water from a thick natural fiber rug.
Step 4: Controlled Drying
This is where things can get tricky. Luckily, I have a large, strong, tall fence around my property that isn't made of stained wood. After removing as much water as I could, I rolled up the rug and walked across it, moving down toward the bottom of my sloping driveway. This helped squeeze out even more water.
Then I called in my husband to help pick it up and hang it on the fence. The rug stayed outside all day on a HOT and DRY day. I rotated it once so both sides could take advantage of the full sunlight. Roughly 10 hours later, it was dry!
I must remind you again, though: my rug is very thin. You cannot dry a thick wool rug outside in the Bay Area. Like at all… and if you have to lay it flat, you also have the added challenge of the water sitting in there - whereas in hanging, the water can run out.
Step 5: QC
And the final verdict? It looks pretty good! Would my professional carpet cleaning company do a better job? Absolutely.
But I'm not ashamed to say that having them clean this particular rug would cost more than the rug itself. So, in this case, I prefer to take the task on myself. And that, my friends, is the difference between DIY rug washing and professional rug cleaning.
Know what you're working with, know the risks, and most importantly, know when to call a professional!
PS - PRO TIP! Want to save even more money on carpet and rug cleaning?
I have a 10 foot walk off rug in my mudroom (the most used entrance to the house) and I wash that outdoor style rug every other month the same way as described above. This traps most of the dirt coming in on feet and on the breeze that accompanies every visitor. Keeping this clean, keeps the carpets and floors in the house cleaner for MUCH longer.
Have Fine Rugs That Need Real Expert Care?
While a driveway hose-down works for cheap entryway mats and thin synthetic runners, your valuable wool, silk, and heirloom rugs need specialized, climate-controlled care to prevent damage.
Skip the heavy lifting and let the experts at Mother Nature's Cleaning restore your delicate rugs safely!
📞 Call us today at 415-991-0500 or send us a message through our contact page to schedule a professional rug pickup.
