How Often Do You Need to Clean Your Area Rugs

In many households, area rugs play an important role. They tie a room together, make the home more comfortable and act as a soft place for pets to sleep and children to play. They can be a major investment, passed down as an heirloom to future generations. As such, it is important to clean them regularly to make sure they last a long time and to help keep your home clean and free of pests. Here are some factors to consider when deciding how often you need to clean your area rugs.

Your Cleaning and Maintenance Routine

You can extend the time between cleanings by performing regular light cleaning and maintenance on your area rug. For most area rugs, you should vacuum once a week, using a vacuum cleaner without a beater bar. If you have kids or pets, or your rug is located in a high-traffic area, increase that to vacuuming twice a week. Clean up spills and pet accidents right away. The quicker you can treat a spot, the lower your risk of a stain that will require professional help. This will also keep your rugs smelling fresher longer. If spills are common in your home, consider treating your rug with a stain guard to make it easier to clean up. Most professional rug cleaning companies can do that for you as part of your cleaning.

The Location of the Rug

Your rug’s location is an important factor in how often you need to clean your area rugs, since that affects foot traffic, as well as the types of dirt and bacteria building up on the rugs. For bathroom rugs, we recommend choosing machine-washable ones and washing them every 2-4 weeks to prevent the buildup of mold, mildew, dirt, and bacteria. Some great materials for bathroom rugs are cotton, bamboo, and polyester. Living room and dining room rugs tend to see higher foot traffic than other areas of the home, as well as being prone to food and beverage spills. We suggest having these professionally cleaned every 12-18 months to keep them in great condition. Bedroom rugs can usually go longer between cleanings, especially if you avoid bringing shoes into the bedroom. Aim to have these cleaned every 1-2 years.

Children and Pets in the Home

Having children or pets in your home can affect how often you need to clean your area rugs. Pets come with accidents, as well as tracking fur and dirt from outside. They are also more likely to spend their time napping or playing on your area rugs than the adults who live in your home. Children can be messy too, of course, but there is another great reason for keeping your area rugs clean. It protects your children from bacteria that can build up in rugs if they go too long without cleaning. It also makes your rugs less likely to attract pests. Since children often spend time playing on the floor, putting their hands in their mouths and on their faces, it’s all the more important to keep those surfaces as clean and germ-free as you can.

Health Concerns

There are certain health conditions that can necessitate more frequent cleaning of your area rugs. If you have people with allergies in your home, you should clean your rugs every 6-12 months. Rugs, especially thicker ones, make a great home for pollen, dust mites, pet dander and mold spores, which can cause allergic reactions in those prone to them. This buildup can also trigger people with skin sensitivities and those with respiratory conditions, such as asthma. Cleaning your rugs once or twice a year and vacuuming once a week should help improve those symptoms and make your home a healthier place to live.

Special Circumstances

Aside from predictable factors in your household, sometimes things come up that require an urgent rug cleaning. Spills and pet accidents are the most common, and while these can often be handled at home, some stains and odors are more stubborn than others. If you have done all you can to get the spot out, it’s time to call a professional for a deep clean. We also recommend professional cleaning for more delicate or valuable rugs, since professional cleaners know exactly how to treat different types of rugs and are less likely to spread the stain or damage the fibers.

If you’re not sure what you’re doing, reach out to the pros. Though consistent rug cleaning and maintenance mitigates the risk of pests, it’s still possible to end up with an infestation of moths, carpet beetles, or other insects. In those cases, it is important to have them treated and cleaned immediately, before they spread to other rugs, upholstery, or clothing in your home.

Is it time to clean your rug?

In general, it’s a good idea to have your rug cleaned every 1-3 years. If you’re noticing more dust and dander in your home, or your rug has an odor, it is probably time. If you are in the Seattle or Tacoma area, Fuzzy Wuzzy Rug Cleaning makes it quick and easy. We will come to your home, examine and measure your rugs, give our recommendations on what they need and then take them away to be cleaned. A week later, we return to unroll your freshly cleaned rugs back where they belong. Get a free quote today!