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Confessions of a Rug Addict

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How to identify rug types for cleaning

If you know me, you already know that I’m quite obsessed with, or even addicted, to rugs. However, if you don’t know me, let me introduce myself and explain how I became “hooked.”

I’m Ruth Travis — AKA the “Rug Lady” — and I’m a “rug-a-holic.”

I’ve been in love with fabric and textiles all my life and actually received a BS degree in Textiles from the University of Tennessee.

In 1985 I was hired as the manager of a Fiber-Seal franchise in Chattanooga, TN and, without taking any classes, started spot cleaning client’s furnishings and rugs. I soon learned that to be a good cleaner I needed some education. In 1988, my partner Ginger and I started our fiber care service. Not long after, we began our education through the IICRC and eventually I achieved Master Textile cleaner, Master Fire Restorer and Journeyman Water Restorer status.

In 1995, I opened a retail rug store called The Rug Exchange. That’s when my true obsession with rugs began. After all, you have to have an inventory to have a store. I owned the store for five years and became familiar with all types and styles of rugs.

After selling my share of the cleaning business to my partner in 2001, I shifted my focus to training and instructing others in the fiber care industry.  I eventually focused on rug cleaning and color repair and even wear “rug themed clothing” when I teach. A part of the rug cleaning course requires the instructor to have at least 60 or more sample rugs to display in the classroom. Of course, that was like adding fuel for the fire for me and gave me a legitimate excuse for collecting more rugs!

Over the years, I’ve taken just about every rug related course available in our industry. And although I’m a very good rug cleaner, each time I took a course, I realized how important rug identification was to becoming a great rug cleaner.

Knowing that blue weft yarns in Persian rugs can bleed, that Afghan rugs shrink like crazy, that many Pakistani rugs have post production side cords that can tear off during cleaning, that Stark wire Wilton rugs must be blocked because the jute foundation yarns shrink, and spot cleaning chemically washed 90-line Chinese rugs can cause color damage… it’s all very important.

I’ve been to Turkey, Australia and England and, of course, brought rugs home from every trip. I buy rugs on E-bay and Etsy and haunt rug stores for my next treasure.  Even my friends find rugs for me to buy. My rug collection has grown exponentially!

In 2013, I took the Master Rug Cleaner course and just last year completed the ARCS Certified Rug Specialist course, a five-day very intensive rug ID workshop. At the suggestion of my instructor Ellen Amirkhan, to help cram for the test (which included visual ID of more than 60 rugs) I created index cards which included the name, physical description and characteristics of the rug. I also took photos of the rugs on my phone. Being able to tie the descriptions to the photo was very helpful. The great news was I passed the exam.

I’m sure by now you’re wondering, “What’s your point, Rug Lady?” Well, Confucius said “True wisdom is knowing what you don’t know.”

If you are in the carpet cleaning business, I’m sure you’ve been asked by more than one client to clean their area rugs. It makes sense that, if you have the chemicals and equipment to clean their furniture or carpet, you can handle cleaning an area rug as well, right? Maybe not…

Can you properly identify the rug?  Do you know how it was constructed? Was it machine or hand-woven, hand-tufted, hand-loomed or machine loomed?  Do you know the fiber used in the pile or face, backing system yarns, filler yarns? Is it knotted, hooked, braid or chain stitched? Colorfast? Will it bleed, or dry or wet crock? What’s the dye system or type? What’s the country of origin? What about age?

There are thousands of different types of rugs being purchased by your clients these days. They can be purchased from discount stores, department stores, online, from catalogs, furniture stores and carpet retailers, as well as the finest Oriental rugs dealers in your city. They can be made of either natural or synthetic fiber, or even a combination of both. They can be tufted, hand-knotted or woven. The fringe may be sewn on, or may be an integral part of the rug’s construction. The combination of rug characteristics is endless.

Unfortunately, consumers don’t always know what type of rug they’ve purchased. Being able to identify a rug for your client is quite impressive, as well as informative. Conversely, not knowing what type of rug you’re cleaning can be quite costly. It’s up to you as a professional to know what you’re cleaning and the potential limitations or potential problems the rug may have.

Let’s face it, the best way to learn a subject is to really, really study it. So in January I challenged myself to create rug ID flash cards not only to help improve my rug ID skills but also as a training tool for my staff and technicians. My goal was to create 10 cards each month for a year.  Yes, 120 cards! I had no idea what I’d started.

And if collecting rugs wasn’t bad enough, I now dream about rugs, such as those I have in my collection… and the ones I don’t, but really need. I scour the Internet for more rugs to buy and then to justify my purchases, make new flash cards. No doubt, I am truly “addicted” to these beautiful examples of art for the floor.

To be perfectly honest, to be a good rug cleaner you don’t have to be a collector like I am (although I know quite a few who are), but you do need to have good working knowledge of rugs. Taking the time to learn your profession will not only keep you from ruining a rug but will also give your clients more confidence in your ability, and ultimately make you more money in your business.

Ruth Travis is the director of the WoolSafe Program in North America and an IICRC-Approved Instructor for Rug Cleaning and Color Repair. She is also a carpet inspector specializing in cleaning related issues and color correction.  She also works as a consultant for Chase Carpet and Rug Care in Denver where she oversees the company’s rug cleaning operation. For more information about Travis and her rug ID flashcards, visit www.rugladyseminars.com.

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Rug Shop Web/Social Media Impact a Feature at Rug Summit 10

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Rug Summit 10 in Michigan

ANN ARBOR, MI — Annual Rug Summit favorite Tim Miller will once again help attendees (September 29-30 in Oak Park, MI) reel in both customers and new prospects by intelligently increasing your Google ranking and super-charging the impact of social media tools and enhancements to your company’s website.

Today, the average consumer uses over 10 sources of information to make a purchase decision, up from just five sources in 2010.  Turning these highly educated consumers into buyers requires you to be in the right place at the right time in order to give consumers the information and confidence they need to make the decision to buy from you instead of a competitor.

Miller will discuss how using mobile sites, landing pages and social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube can accelerate customer acquisition and create powerful calls to actions that ring the cash register. He’ll also talk about the myriad factors that contribute to improving your Google and Yahoo search ranking and even how to properly deal with issues like an errant negative comment placed on the Internet by an unhappy customer.

For more info and to register, click here.

About Tim Miller

Tim Miller is the president and CEO of Local Search Essentials, based in St. Augustine, Florida. Miller feels there is nothing more rewarding than having the opportunity to listen to business owners, talk about their challenges, and use our knowledge and experience to help them become more successful. With his company’s Local Search Essentials packages, Local Search Essential provide what rug cleaning businesses need to find and keep customers. Everything is set up and synchronized for better results. His company allows you to automatically connect with more local customers in less time, and save money while doing it.

About the Rug Summit

Over the past 10 years, the Centrum Force Rug Summits have become one of the favorite events of rug cleaning pros, both large and small. This year’s Summit, to be held in the Detroit area September 29-30, will be a fun celebration of the event’s tenth anniversary. It will include a robust agenda that covers a wide variety of topics as well as highly informative networking. Rug washers from across the country (and internationally) will share their proven techniques and secrets. Says Tom Monahan, one of Centrum Force’s two founders, “The Rug Summits were designed from the beginning to be small, highly relaxing, highly informative get-togethers of peers in the business. It’s all about friendship, networking and the free exchange of ideas. It’s this relaxed yet informative atmosphere that truly what makes the Rug Summits different.”

Click here to see Rug Summit 10 opportunities for your company.

 

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A Rug to Run From: India Hand Loomed

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Cleaning issues with hand loomed viscose runners

For the past decade, the quick advice for consumers on how to know a “better” quality wool pile rug over a mediocre one has been to look at the back. If the back clearly shows the design and knots, then it is woven. If the back is covered up with material, then it is tufted.

If you go to the mass-market rug retailer websites and pull up a “tufted rug” for sale, you will inevitably see the care comments along these lines: “Shedding is natural and may be heavy. Odor is natural and may get heavy if wrapped in plastic. Colors may fade.”

None of these conditions are “natural” for a good quality wool rug. They are indicative of poor quality wool, poor dyes and poor adhesive holding these tufted rugs together.

Due to the large amount of negative reviews on tufted rugs, especially the worst ones coming out of India, there has been a shift to try to find a cheap way to craft rugs that “look” woven even though they are actually poorer construction than the tufted rugs they mean to replace.

This new rug type that is becoming a headache for both rug owners and rug cleaners is called India “hand loomed” and India “loomed by hand.”

These rugs are being presented as if they are hand woven rugs, and the prices imply they are good quality. However, these are wool and viscose rugs that more than any on the market today are being considered as highly flawed merchandise.

Corners are being cut

The structural problem with these “hand loomed” rugs is something that cannot be seen easily from the outside.

These rugs are crafted on a loom that is similar to a fabric loom, with levers pulling and pushing the fibers together, rather than a weaver actually “tying” (technically twisting) knots around two warps.

If you watch the “hand loom” process next to a “hand knotted” process you will see the construction quality differences. I encourage you to search YouTube for videos of both so you can see the processes with your own eyes.

A “hand knotted” woven rug will take months to weave, whereas a “hand loomed” rug can be crafted in hours.  There are consequences of corners being cut in the quality.

With a “hand knotted” rug, the warps are the fringe tassels of the rug. Wool knots are twisted/tied around two warps across the width of the rug. Then a weft, or several wefts, is used to interlace in front and behind each and every warp in order to hold that row of knots solidly in place. Then the next row of knots is tied.

With a “hand knotted” rug, the fringe tassels often have a kilim (flatwoven base), or tassel knotting, to hold those ends securely in place. The wefts are wrapped around the outer cords so that the sides also are securely held in place.

This is important to know because both the fringe and side cord securing is absent on a “hand loomed” rug.

A “hand loomed” rug production presses fiber strands together, connecting them with quite thin threading, and with no proper securing of the ends or sides. They are produced as flat woven rugs and pile rugs. Here is how to spot them.

‘Hand loomed’ rug identifiers

1. All edges are the same. No natural fringe.

These rugs all have a simple wrap finish around all four edges. If there is fringe it will be clearly added after the fact and NOT a foundation thread. These rugs are cut along the edges, and sometimes they have glue along the edge to try to help hold them together.

India Hand Loomed

Back corner of “hand loomed” rug. All edges look identical.

India Hand Loomed

Back edge view, glue along the edge to try to hold the rug together.

India Hand Loomed

Back corner of “hand knotted” rug. Fringe and sides are properly secured.

2. Easy to stretch. Stretch marks in field.

If you take any corner of these rugs you can easily stretch the rows and columns out of alignment. If the rug has been down on the floor for months you will begin to see “stretch marks” and wrinkles in the rug from it stretching apart.

India Hand Loomed

Back view of “hand loomed” rug, very easy to stretch.

3. On flat woven “hand loomed” rugs you cannot roll them from all edges.

These rugs have an especially heavy foundation thread running in either the length or the width, and as a result you cannot roll them from one direction. It acts like Axminster carpeting, which can only be rolled from one direction. A true hand woven flat weave will be able to be rolled from the end or the side equally.

India Hand Loomed

Flat woven “hand loomed” rug cannot be rolled in every direction because the fibers are too stiff.

4. Grin open pile “hand loomed” rugs to see large loose foundation tracks.

Grin the rug from the front side with the length and with the width to see if you can see the large foundation threading. You can take tweezers, or even your nails, and easily move and pull at the thinner threads. The stability of these rugs is incredibly poor. Foot traffic also moves these threads and eventually pulls the rugs out of shape and tears them.

India Hand Loomed

India Hand Loomed

India Hand Loomed

India Hand Loomed

Above four photos are all examples of grinning

5. Easy to pull out tufts, and they are “V” shaped.

You will be able to easily yank out a wool tuft from the face of the rug, exposing that it is the shape of the letter “V.” These tufts are pressed into place similar to how tufted rugs are, except that tufted rugs have glue applied on the back to hold them in place. In this case, nothing is holding these tufts in place except the pressure of the neighboring threads, and as they stretch and move apart these areas shed as they lose those tufts.

India Hand Loomed

Viscose tuft pulled easily from the front of a viscose “hand loomed” rug.

 

India Hand Loomed

Wool tuft easily removed from a “hand loomed” rug.

India Hand Loomed

A “hand knotted” rug is cut open to show the interior fibers and the wool knot that is tied around two warps. These knots cannot be pulled away from the rug without cutting it open first.

Problems with cleaning

These rugs are new to the market, and they exhibit problems after only months on the floor so they tend to come in because of wrinkling issues, tearing issues, shedding issues or accidental spills.

India Hand Loomed

“Hand loomed” rugs stretch apart in traffic areas.

India Hand Loomed

“Hand loomed” rugs develop wrinkling and stretch marks as they start to pull out of shape.

Due to the lack of stability in the foundation of these rugs you will be able to see the rug pulling loose and apart in the traffic areas. You will also be able to see the edges pulling loose.

Due to the loose construction, any spills will be fully saturated through to the backside because these rugs have no repellency to liquids.

Vacuums, extraction wands and bonnets will cause damage to these rugs. They cannot take the agitation that other rugs can.

When the interior thick fibers swell in the washing process, it is easy to pull these rugs apart. If the thick fibers run the width of the rug, then they are likely to pull apart as the rug is pulled through a rinser/wringer, and can pull apart in a centrifugal spinner.

All other extraction tools also can be too much stress on those thin connecting fibers, and any shifting in the tension can lead to the rug literally coming apart.

This is one of the few rugs that is high on the list of most rug facilities’ “rugs to run from” list.

Warn your customers

When you identify a “hand loomed” or “loomed by hand” rug from India, share your concern with the owner. They need to know that they have a rug that has structural flaws, especially if they paid thousands of dollars for it.

For your customers who are shopping for new rugs, you can give them a copy of this article to show them what to be on the look out for.  These rugs are poorly made and a horrible choice for use in high activity rooms or in homes with pets.

No one likes to be ripped off, so you can be the hero who helps protect them from wasting thousands of dollars on a rug that may only last them a few months before they discover it is flawed. If you become the source of rug education for your customers, then you can help them choose a quality rug that you can clean for them for decades.


 

Lisa Wagner is a second-generation rug care expert, a NIRC Certified Rug Specialist and an owner of K. Blatchford’s San Diego Rug Cleaning Company. She was recognized as the 2006 Cleanfax magazine Person of the Year for her industry contributions. For online rug course and training event details, visit www.RugClass.com.

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Rug Summit 10 News and Updates

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ANN ARBOR, MI — Rug Summit 10, scheduled for September 29-30 in the Detroit area, has updated its presentations and added two new speakers.

Jim Bardwell will be the featured opening presenter, at 8:45 a.m. Thursday. He will discuss the topic of “EmployeePrenur Philosophy” and address the following questions: Do you have Employees? Do you want to hire new Employees? Do you wish you never heard the word Employee? Do you want engaged Employees? Do you want productive Employees? Do you want Employees that get it?

At 11 a.m. Thursday, the Rug Summit team will welcome Paul Bakker, the chairman of The WoolSafe Organization, along with Dr. Ágnes Zsedna, the managing director. They will personally reveal test results of Di-Chlor dilutions during washing of wool rugs.

Friday’s concluding keynote address will feature Bardwell on “We came… We did… We’re done…Now What!” and discuss three things you must do (and one you shouldn’t do) immediately on your return back to life after this industry conference.

Rug Summit 10 in the metro Detroit area this September will offer a chance to learn how improve upon employee relations and other business-centric topics as well as a chance to experience legendary networking and learning opportunities.

To find out more or register, click HERE.


 

September’s Rug Summit 10 agenda now available

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Rug Summit 10

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rug summit 10

This year’s Centrum Force Rug Summit will be a fun celebration of the event’s tenth anniversary. Rug washers from across the country (and internationally) will share their proven techniques and secrets at the event. Some of the topics that will be covered at Rug Summit 10 will include:

  • The latest equipment and techniques for maximum throughput
  • Color stripping techniques
  • Color dye and color restoration
  • Over dye techniques to meet market demands
  • Discussion on chemistry usage: colloidal and various protectants
  • Panel of experts to handle questions and answers
  • Marketing changes and what to consider for the future
  • Maximizing your website’s and social media effectiveness
  • What interior designers are looking for from rug cleaners

The complete agenda is available HERE.

Included in the registration cost is entrance for both days, lunch and refreshments onsite for attendees during each day, and food and beverages Thursday night.

*Attendance size is limited.

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Rug Summit 10 Featured Innovation, Science and Trends

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Workshops for rug plant cleaners and owners.

OAK PARK, MI — Rug Summit 10 may be over, yet the 150 attendees took away enough information on innovation, science, trends and more to keep them busy moving forward as they build their businesses.

Highlights from the September 29-30 event in Oak Park, MI included Jim Bardwell’s opening presentation on empowering rug plant employees by inspiring them to develop the entrepreneur spirit. Rug plant veteran Byan O’Halek’s offered strategies based on his experience at Seattle-area D.A. Burns to improve the “inviting and trusting appearance” at their store, from outside to inside, when they hired an interior designer. Search engine optimization and website expert Tim Miller taught attendees utilizing Facebook campaigns how to better penetrate their marketplace.

In addition, and of special interest to attendees, founders of The WoolSafe Organisation explained the details of their scientific report on examining the non-effects of dichloroisocyanuric acid (dichlor) in the wash process when used in safe, controlled dilutions. You can see this information in an article soon at Cleanfax.com.

During the event, a panel discussion that included rug gallery owners, revealed the troublesome trends in rug manufacturing that cleaners are beginning to see in volume, including a rapid increase in viscose.

Rug plant veteran Robert Pettyjohn offered and presented the topic “From Doo to Donuts.” Part of the presentation included third-party science lab tests.

Hagopian was the host of the rug plant tour, sharing with attendees the company’s strategies and methods to build a successful rug plant.

Stay tuned for information on Rug Summit 11.

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To Chlor or Not to Chlor

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rug washing history with Centrum Force.

Many professional rug cleaners in North America, who use large capacity wash tubs, feel the need to sanitize the wash liquid to prevent cross contamination and to protect their employees.

They use a commercial product, di-chlor (or Dichlor, PoolSan, Aquasparkle, Clorox Pool&Spa, etc.), marketed extensively to disinfect swimming pools and spas.

The chemical behind these trade names is dichloroisocyanuric acid (or dichloro-s-triazinetrione), a colorless solid, and the chemistry-in-rug-cleaningactive ingredient in many commercial bactericides and algaecides. It is a strong oxidizer that reacts with water to form hypochlorous acid.

It is well known that high concentration chlorine bleaches cause damage to wool fibers and to the dyes used to color wool and other natural and man-made fibers. Therefore, concerns were raised that this practice by rug washers would damage the rugs they are trusted to clean, and The WoolSafe Organisation was asked for guidance.

The WoolSafe Organisation, in its cleaning chemical testing and certification program, does not accept chlorine-based bleaches in approved carpet care products.

However, as di-chlor is added to the washtubs at extremely low concentrations, we agreed to investigate whether or not it would still adversely affect the wool fiber, wool dyes or the structure of rugs – particularly hand-made oriental ones – during cleaning.

centrum-force-wash-tubAll tests and experiments were carried out in the WoolSafe laboratory under strictly controlled conditions, using internationally recognized procedures, test methods and equipment. By necessity, the “wash” equipment and volumes employed had to be scaled down from the large washtubs used in practice, but otherwise goods-to-liquor ratios, temperatures and additives (detergents included in the wash process) were kept virtually the same.

For the majority of the tests, hand-woven or hand-knotted rugs manufactured in Nepal, India and Iran were used. These covered a range of styles, pile fibers (wool and wool/silk blend), colors, textures and backings; as would be found in a typical wash load.

WoolSafe investigated the influence of di-chlor concentration and treatment times on:

  • the dyes
  • the strength of the (wool) fiber
  • the rug structure (loss of pile thickness)

The concentration of di-chlor generally used in rug washing is 6 oz per 1200 gallons (37.5 mg/liter), and the typical rug washing cycle lasts from 15 to 30 minutes. Tests were therefore carried out with di-chlor concentrations of 0 to 24 oz per 1200 gallons (0 – 150 mg/liter), and treatment times ranged from 30 minutes to four days. Key parameters were compared to those of the untreated rug samples.

Any adverse effect on the strength of the (wool) fiber was determined by exposing the rugs to the equivalent of up to five years’ wear in the Hexapod Tumbler Tester (ISO 10361) and monitoring the loss of pile thickness, a good indicator of wear and/or loss of resilience.

Change of color due to flattening and fading was also measured at the same intervals using a Minolta spectrophotometer.

Graph 1 shows the results of tests with double the recommended amount of di-chlor in the bath (12 oz/gallon). It is clear that neither the addition of di-chlor nor the length of time in the bath had any effect on the wear characteristic of the carpeting. Similarly, the color change due to wear was not significantly different on the treated and untreated samples.

Pile height
mm

chlor

Graph 1. Influence of time in the wash bath on wear

Possible fading and change in colorfastness as a result of exposure to di-chlor was investigated on rugs with bright, solid colors. None showed any discernible color change or increased color bleeding (transfer) after exposure to normal and double concentrations of di-chlor and for extended periods of time in the bath. The variation of ΔE values in Table 1 is within the tolerances and scatter of the instrument.

Table 1.  Results of colorfastness to water tests

no treatment ΔE carpet ΔE nylon ΔE cotton
1 37.5 mg/liter Di-Chlor; 30 min 3.24 8.52 8.64
2 75 mg/liter  Di-Chlor; 60 min 3.75 8.38 9.33
3 75 mg/liter   Di-Chlor; 1 day 3.20 7.56 8.36
4 75 mg/liter   Di-Chlor; 3 days 3.30 7.49 7.07

To take the investigations a level further, WoolSafe tested the effect of the same solutions containing di-chlor on new, unused wool carpet. Alkali Solubility Tests (ASTM D1283) were carried out on pieces that had been immersed in different concentration of di-chlor for a period of time and their alkali-solubility was compared to that of the original, untreated carpet. Again, we could not find any evidence of the fibers being weakened.

To find a chlorine concentration where noticeable change does occur, the in-bath di-chlor concentration was increased to four times the level used in the wash tubs.  When the exposure was also extended to three days, a yellowing of the fibers was observed. The yellowing was measured instrumentally (ISO 11664).

Table 2.   Color change due to treatment

treatment ΔE ΔL Δa Δb
no Di-Chlor; 3 days 1.65 1.19 -0.45 -0.25
75 mg/liter  Di-Chlor; 30 min 1.16 0.94 +0.18 +0.42
75 mg/liter  Di-Chlor; 1 day 0.67 0.20 +0.55 -0.19
75 mg/liter  Di-Chlor; 3 days 1.32 1.26 -0.17 -0.07
150 mg/liter  Di-Chlor; 3 days 3.71 2.26 -1.32 +2.55
150 mg/liter Di-Chlor; 3 days 4.44 3.35 -1.31 +2.58

No effect was detected if the di-chlor concentration did not exceed double strength, even after exposures of up to three days.

The conclusions of this series of experiments are clear:

  1. In our extensive investigations, no evidence of problems was found with color fastness, color fading or damage to rugs when processed within the prescribed parameters of concentration and length of treatment time.
  2. Care needs to be taken not to increase the concentration of di-chlor, as that can cause yellowing of the wool.
  3. However, nothing can negate the need for pre-cleaning inspection, as it is always possible that one day a rug will come into the cleaning plant that has such poor color fastness, or has been so badly damaged in manufacture or in use, that problems still occur.

The rule should therefore be: HIBERNICA LAUTUS CAVE! Rug cleaner beware!


The WoolSafe Organisation carried out this independent study, free of charge, in order to be able to advise the industry on the possible dangers of sanitising the water in wash tubs. It was not intended as a review of the WoolSafe chemical testing and certification program, which still does not accept chlorine-based bleaches in approved carpet care products.

agnes-zsednaiDr Ágnes Zsednai, a research chemist, is the Managing Director of The WoolSafe Organisation, based in Otley, Yorkshire, England. The WoolSafe Organisation is the worldwide testing and certification body for carpet, rug and furnishing fabric cleaning and maintenance products. It also carries out research related to the cleaning of carpets, rugs and furnishing fabrics. WoolSafe runs networks of Approved Service Providers and Registered Carpet Inspectors, offers a range of training courses, and provides information and advice on all aspects of the care of textile floor coverings.

 

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ARCS Plans 2017 Annual Conference

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SAN ANTONIO, TX — The Association of Rug Care Specialists (ARCS) is putting the final touches on its 2017 Annual Convention, and registration is open for attendees.

The convention, scheduled for April 18-21 in San Antonio, TX, features not only an expert slate of speakers and presenters, but also a rug tour of Aladdin Cleaning & Restoration, a San Antonio company that specializes in cleaning, repair and sales.

The theme of the convention is “Southwest Textiles/Sustainability – Energy Efficiency – Savings” and all the convention programs are specifically to help rug plant owners and operators with challenges they face with their businesses.

Click here for more information, including the agenda and list of speakers.

Click here for the registration page.

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Exploring Iranian Rug-Making

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By Aaron Groseclose

In the fall of 2016, Master Rug Cleaner hosted a group for a two-week-long Iranian rug tour sponsored by the country’s largest handmade rug producer, Zollanvari.

In part one of this article, we visited the nomadic Qashqa’i tribe in their winter camp and the Luri village in the Zagros Mountains to witness the women weavers. We also saw Zollanvari’s hand-dyeing techniques at its manufacturing facility in Shiraz.

See part one of this article here: The Beauty of Iranian Rug-Making

The next stop was Sirjan about 250 miles east of Shiraz. Our friends from Zollanvari also have a weaving and spinning operation in the Sirjan area. Luri tribe members do much of the weaving.

Detail of a Soumak Rug.

In Sirjan, weaving is done in a Zollanvari facility rather than in the villages. They offer bus transportation for the women, who can bring small children with them into work — which is the company’s answer to company-provided childcare.

During the time of our visit, Soumak rugs, a type of flatweave without a pile, were being woven.

As with the tribal villages we visited, Zollanvari provides the dyed wool for weaving, and the woven rugs go to the company’s finishing facility in Tehran.

Persian hospitality would not let us leave Sirjan without a very lavish home-cooked lunch. Like all other meals, there was more food than could possibly be eaten by our group. It was delicious!

A delicious, home-cooked lunch made for our group while in Sirjan.

We continued to the city of Kerman to stay overnight and see the local sights including rug shopping in the bazaar.

Kerman has a very old, established rug-weaving tradition. However, the city did not hold our interest like Shiraz.

During our stay in Kerman, we experienced the national holiday, “Down with U.S.A. Day.” Talking politics is unavoidable with the rocky U.S.-Iran relationship.
The demonstrators were high school students bused in for the day and given lunch. They were smiling and waving back at us.

Students take part in “Down with U.S.A. Day.”

All in all, the Persians are very friendly and hospitable. They hope for an evolution of their government, not another revolution that would destabilize their country like the region around them.

The desert city of Yazd.

We left Kerman going northwest to the desert city of Yazd, which was the most fascinating city we visited, due to the mud wall construction, the isolation of the location and the multiple faiths we observed. Besides the ubiquitous mosques, we saw a Zoroastrian Fire Temple, a synagogue, and an Armenian Church. Other faiths besides Islam are represented in the country, however, on a smaller scale.

Inside the fascinating city of Yazd.

Rugs are produced in Yazd but not to the degree of our next stops in Nain and Isfahan. Both cities are known for finely woven city rugs employing curvilinear designs.

A Nain weaver in her home.

In Nain, we were invited into a weaver’s home where she had a loom to supplement her income with part-time rug production.

Isfahan was once the capital of Iran under the Safavid dynasty. Today it is a cultural center of the country and a university town where a degree in rug design and production is offered.

A hand-drawn cartoon for a rug design.

We were invited to visit the rug-weaving facility of Haghighi. They create the design, first by hand, then digitize it into print cartoons that guide the weavers.
We watched the weavers work on a 20-by-34-foot Isfahan rug, which had an estimated completion time of four years.

Digitization of the cartoon design.

We departed Isfahan to Teheran to do a bit of sightseeing, and also to visit the Zollanvari washing and finishing facility south of town. It is a very impressive operation with most of the work done by Afghan refugees.

Washing within the Zollanvari finishing facility in Tehran.

The rugs are chemically washed to soften the colors and improve the sheen while also removing soil acquired during the weaving and shipping process.

Shearing a rug in the finishing facility.

Next, the rugs are sheared to sharpen the design and give the desired pile height. Then the rugs are sent off to the repair building where the ends and sides of the rugs are finally finished.

Workers finishing the ends

Rugs, as they come off the loom, do not look very attractive. It requires expert washing and finishing to unveil the beauty of these hand-woven works of art.
Of course, we had to stop the visit for yet another lavish lunch.

Unfortunately, we soon had to say goodbye to our new friends and the employees of the Zollanvari Company, and we headed to the airport for the long ride home.

The group bids goodbye to its new friends.


Aaron Groseclose is president of MasterBlend, a manufacturer of rug and carpet cleaning chemicals and equipment. He instructs carpet, upholstery and oriental rug cleaning seminars. He is the co-developer of the Master Rug Cleaner Program and co-author of A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental and Specialty Rug Cleaning.

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The Sentimental Area Rug [photo contest]

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sentimental area rug cleaning photo contest august eighteen

The photo contest winner this month is Rick Lewis of Lewis Carpet Cleaners in Redwood City, CA. His company will receive a chemical prize package from Solutions by Steam Pros worth $250.

Rick describes this particular job: “We had a client bring in this area rug, and she wanted to know if there was any hope in getting it to look better. We explained she could probably buy a new one for the same price as the cleaning. She said the area rug had sentimental value and asked us to do the best we could. We used our Rug Badger to remove dry soiling, vacuumed both sides, pre-sprayed with Procyon, shampooed with MasterBlend Oriental Rug Shampoo, cleaned and rinsed both sides with our HydraMaster CDS, applied fiber rinse, groomed it, and hung it to dry. The client was so happy, she had a tear in her eye when she picked it up.”

For an opportunity to win a chemical prize package from Solutions by Steam Pros (worth $250), send your images and a brief 100-word description on how you obtained your results to Jeff Cross, executive editor, at JeffCross@ISSA.com or 193 Purple Finch Loop, Pataskala, OH 43062. Contest rules available by request.

DID YOU KNOW

There is no such thing as true “dry” carpet cleaning, compared to “dry” upholstery cleaning. Dry solvent usage for carpet is limited to spot and stain removal, while dry solvent usage is acceptable for overall upholstery cleaning — with proper ventilation and personal protective equipment of course.

Although some consumers may claim they sense a formaldehyde odor with new carpet, the carpet manufacturing industry claims no formaldehyde is used in production.

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