A Comprehensive Guide to
Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning
Ellen Amirkhan Aaron Groseclose
Third Edition
Master Rug Cleaner, LLC g Dallas
ii
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning
About the Authors Aaron Groseclose is a graduate of Woodbury University with a B.S. in International Business and Golden Gate University, Los Angeles, with an M.B.A. He is a past owner of California Carpet Care, Woodland Hills, California. He is President of MasterBlend, a Colorado-based manufacturer of rug and carpet cleaning chemicals and equipment. Aaron is a Senior Carpet Inspector, Master Textile Cleaner, and Certified Rug Specialist (CRS) from the Association of Rug Care Specialists (ARCS), and develops and instructs carpet, upholstery, and oriental rug cleaning seminars in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Australia. He is also a regular columnist for Installation and Cleaning Specialist magazine and co-developer of the Master Rug Cleaner Program. He has five adult children and resides with his wife in Southern California. Ellen Amirkhan is a graduate of Texas Woman’s University with a Bachelor of Science degree and Southern Methodist University with a Master of Liberal Arts degree. She is President of Oriental Rug Cleaning Co., Inc., in Dallas, Texas, a business started by her grandfather in 1911 that specializes in cleaning, repairing, appraising, and selling oriental rugs. A past president of the Association of Specialists in Cleaning and Restoration (ASCR)—now the Restoration Industry Association (RIA)—Ellen develops and teaches oriental rug schools for the International Society of Appraisers (ISA), and other recognized groups across the United States England, and Australia, and is a co-developer of the Master Rug Cleaner Program. Ellen is a founding member of the Association of Rug Care Specialists (ARCS). In addition to appraising, she consults and serves as an expert witness for the legal profession. Ellen holds the designations of Certified Rug Specialist (CRS) from the Association of Rug Care Specialists (ARCS), Certified Appraiser of Personal Property with a specialty in oriental rugs from the International Society of Appraisers (ISA), and Certified Rug Appraiser from the Oriental Rug Retailers of America (ORRA).
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental and Specialty Rug Cleaning
Preface Though many books have been written on oriental rugs, the emphasis is usually on history, structure, culture, and identification with cleaning and its associated topics as an afterthought. Many of these authors are experts in the aforementioned subject matter but have limited firsthand experience with the challenges of day-to day commercial rug cleaning and repair. We do not consider ourselves the final authority in this field; however, we want to share what we have learned over the past 30 years in such depth and detail as has never before been done. There are cleaning/repair experts in the industry who have differing methods, opinions, experiences and philosophies, but as we have said many times to our students, rug cleaning is both art and science. Our goal is for this book to be a reliable source of information for the professional oriental and specialty rug cleaner.
Acknowledgements This book would not have been possible without the encouragement, expertise and friendship of the following people: Inez and Mirza Amirkhan, Drs. Nelson and Robin Amirkhan, Valentina Arbab, Tom and Leslie Atiyeh, Paul Bakker (WoolSafe), Michael Bradford, David Brasure (Brasure’s Carpet Care), Dr. Bill Brown, Dr. Eric Brown (Cleaning Research International), Joan Cabellero, Wes Connelly (Wools of New Zealand), Armen “Buzz” and Louise Dohanian (Bon Ton Rug Cleansers), David and Soloman Bassalely (Eliko Antique Oriental Rugs), Barbara Groseclose, Paul Iskyan (Rug Renovating), Jeff Jones (Sani-Sheen Systems), Brant Laird, Dr. Doug Lay, John Lumpp (Windgate Design), Robert Mann (Robert Mann Oriental Rugs), Brian Marantette (Atiyeh Bros.), Morning Star Galleries, Lucy Neiman, Susan Nelson (editor), the staff of Oriental Rug Cleaning Co., Holman Padgett (Advance Cleaning and Restoration), Linda Colby, Price-Dewey-Galleries, Sotheby’s, Dr. Steven Spivak, Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, David Zahirpour, Cliff Zlotnik (Unsmoke), International Society of Appraisers. All photographs are by the authors except those used with permission from other sources. Maps, illustrations and cover design are by John Lumpp, Windgate Design. Technical review by Dr. Steven Spivak, Dr. Eric Brown, Valentina Arbab ISA CAPP, ASA, and Cliff Zlotnik CR, CMH, WLI. We especially want to thank our editor, Susan Nelson, and our guru of layout and design, Linda Colby (Real Images), for their patience and their tireless efforts in seeing us to the finish line.
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Table of Contents
v
Contents Introduction 1 Chapter 1 g History of Oriental Rugs
3
Rugs Today. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Chapter 2 g Fibers and Dyes
7
Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Wool. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Other Hair Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Silk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Cotton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Bast Fibers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Leaf Fibers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Fruit Fibers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Regenerated Fiber. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Synthetic Fibers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Fiber Identification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Dyes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Color and Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Natural Dye vs. Synthetic Dye. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Rug Dyes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Dyeing Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Chapter 3 g Construction: Machine-Made Rugs
33
Tufted Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Machine-Woven Rugs and Carpet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 History of Machine-Woven Rugs and Carpet . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Types of Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Notable U.S. Manufacturers of 20th Century Woven Wool Area Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Chapter 4 g Specialty Rugs
55
Animal Skins. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Pre-cleaning Inspection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Braided Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 CarouselÂŽ Carpet Mills. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning vi s Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Flatweaves. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Dhurries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Kilims. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Cotton Chenille Flatweaves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Chinese Aubusson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Soumak. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Flokati Rugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 German or European Hooks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Hand-Hooked Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Hand-Tufted Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 India. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Edward Fields, V’Soske, Scott Group, Hokanson, Stark Carpet, Tai-Ping. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 KarastanŽ Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Kashmir Chainstitch Rugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 La Montage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 Navajo Rugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 The Weaving Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Identification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Contemporary Regional Styles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 Needlepoint Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Portugal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 Greece. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Table of Contents Rag Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Sisal/Coir/Sea Grass And Other Plant Based Fiber Rugs . . . . . . . 91 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 Spanish Wilton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Cleaning Considerations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Chapter 5 g Hand-Knotted Rugs: Classification, Construction and Design 95 Construction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Materials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Looms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Warps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Wefts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Cartoon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Knots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99 Rug Pile Direction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 Knot Count . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Knot Count/Quality Grading Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 End Finishes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Side Finishes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Finishing Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 Chemical Washing Of Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 Oriental Rug Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Medallion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 Repeating Motifs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 All-Over Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 Open Field . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Panel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Pictorial. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 Directional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Saph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Wagireh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Individual Design Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 Border Designs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 Signatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 Dates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
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A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning viii s
Chapter 6 g Persian Rugs
123
Persian Curvilinear Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Ahar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Bijar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Hamadan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Isfahan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 Kashan Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 Kerman. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 Lillihan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 Mahal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 Malayer, Southeastern. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135 Meshed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 Nain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Qum/Ghoum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 Sarouk. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 Senneh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 Tabriz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 Veramin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151 Persian Rectilinear Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 Ardabil/Meshkin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 Bijar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 Hamadan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 Heriz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159 Joshaghan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163 Karaja. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164 Malayer, Northwestern. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 Senneh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166 Serab Iran. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167 Tabriz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Chapter 7 g Tribal Rugs
169
Bakhtiari. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169 Baluchi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 Turkoman. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173 Shiraz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 Afshar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 Gabbeh Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Chapter 8 g Other Countries Producing Hand-Knotted Rugs 179 Afghanistan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
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Caucasian Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182 China . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 Peking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 Tientsin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 Modern Wool Production. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 Modern Silk Production. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190 Egyptian Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 France. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 Savonnerie. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 Aubusson . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 India. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 Moroccan Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Moroccan and Tunisian Flatweaves. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 Pakistan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Mori Weave. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208 Pakistan Persian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210 Peshawar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211 Pakistan Kazak. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212 Romania. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213 Spain. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 Tibetan Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215 Turkey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 City Production. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 Village Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 Why Rug Identification Is Important to the Rug Cleaner. . . . . . . . 229 Why Cleaners May be Afraid of Rug Identification. . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Chapter 9 g Road Map to Rug Identification
229
Road Map to Rug Identification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 Differences Between Hand-Knotted and Machine-Made Oriental Design Rugs:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 Components of Identification for Hand-Knotted Rugs. . . . . . . . . . 232 Technical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Chapter 10 g Chemistry of Rug Cleaning
235
Rug Soil. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 The Makeup of Rug Soil. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235 Cleaning Theory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Cleaning Principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 Polarity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 Solvency. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning x s Surface Tension. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Detergents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238 Emulsification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 pH. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239 Cleaning Guidelines by WoolSafe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 Chemical Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Hazard Communication Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246 Information contained in a Material Safety Data Sheet . . . . . . 247
Chapter 11 g Pre-Cleaning Inspection
249
Classifying Area Rugs Before Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249 Pre-Cleaning Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 Abrash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Animal hair. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Animal stains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251 Bleach stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Blood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Bordered rug. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Browning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Buckles, puckers, out of square. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 Burns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Cat scratches. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Chemical wash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Color bleeding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Creases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Crocking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Crush marks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 Curled sides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254 Detached side selvage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254 Detergent residue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254 Discolored, oxidized. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Dry rot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Dye stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Faded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Felting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Fiber content. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Filtration lines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Fold wear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Fringe worn/rotten. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Furniture stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
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Gum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Holes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256 Irregular shape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 Lazy lines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 Mildew/Mold. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257 Moth and insect damage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Odor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Over-dyed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 Painted foundation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259 Photobleaching. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Pot plant damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Previous repairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Pulled tufts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Rug reduced in size. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Rust. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Shading, pooling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Shrinkage/potential shrinkage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Slits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 Smoke/fire damage/nicotine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Spots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Sprouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Stains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Stencil marks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 Tea wash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263 Test for colorfastness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263 Texture distortion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Traffic lane soil. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Urine stain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Water damage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Water stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Wax. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Weak places . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Wear: ends, sides, interior. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Wet rot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 White knots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 Yellowing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Chapter 12 g Rug Cleaning
267
Introduction to Rug Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267 Pre-Cleaning Steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning xii s Determine the fiber content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 Identify the rug. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 Inspect rug for pre-existing conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 Check for colorfastness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 Determine the cleaning method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 Dry Soil Removal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268 Vacuum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269 Portable Rug Duster. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269 Dusting Machine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270 Compressed Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270 Pre-treatments of the rug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 Fringe Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271 Rug Cleaning Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Absorbent Compound Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Absorbent Pad Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273 Dry Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274 Mist and Brush Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 Rotary Shampoo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275 Hot Water Extraction Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 In-plant Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278 Combination Cleaning Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282 Rinsing the rug. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Grooming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Drying. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284 The Dry Room. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284 Dry Room Techniques — Air Engineering for Rug Cleaners. . 285 Fundamental Factors of Rug Drying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286 Five Steps to Increase Rug Drying . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287 Good Air Contact with Rug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288 Drip Dry Method. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288 How to Set Up a Mini-Plant Dry Room. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288 Quality control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 Fringe Correction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291 Roll, Tie and Place in Storage. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294 Sample Cleaning Procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294 Cleaning Green. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Chapter 13 g Plant Operations And Procedures
303
General Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 Example Of Operations Procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
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Pick-up and Delivery. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303 Cash and Carry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304 Plant Layout. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305 Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307 Consumer Care Tips. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307 Pricing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
Chapter 14 g Rug Spotting
309
Principles of Spot Removal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309 When to Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310 General Chemical Solutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310 Types of Spots and Stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312 Actions Used in Spot Removal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312 General Spotting Procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313 Testing for Colorfastness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314 Unknown Spot Procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 Heat Transfer Dye Stain Removal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 Specific Spotting Procedures and Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315 Solvent Soluble Spots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316 Synthetic Resins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317 Urine Stains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317 Wax. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317 Chewing Gum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319 Tannin Stains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319 Protein Stains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Dye Stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320 Rust Stains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321 Mildew Stains. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321 Bleaches and Reducing Agents/Strippers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321 Bleaches and Strippers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322 Oxidizing Bleaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323 Reducing Bleaches and Strippers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324 Spotting Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326 Mystery Spots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
Chapter 15 g Problems and Solutions
329
Cellulosic Browning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330 Crocking. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning xiv s Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330 Dry Rot/Mildew. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331 Dye Bleed Removal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332 Fringe Cleaning/Correction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333 Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334 Insect Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335 Pile Stiffness After Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336 Powdered Carpet Deodorizer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337 Problem – Impacted Powder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337 Rug Discoloration/Color Changes/Yellowing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Problem – Discoloration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Problem – Fume/Light Fading. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Problem – Yellowing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Shading/Pooling/Pile Reversal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Cause . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Shrinkage of Custom Bordered Rugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340 Texture Distortion from Cleaning Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341 Problem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341 Solution. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
Chapter 16 g Additional Services
343
Blocking Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343 Steps in Blocking a Rug, the Bon Ton Way. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
Table of Contents
xv
Deodorizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346 Real Odor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346 Psychological Odor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347 Influencing Factors of Real Odor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347 Products Used in Deodorizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348 Animal Odors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350 Other Odors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352 Disaster Restoration and Damage Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353 Handling a Fire or Water Damaged Rug Prior to Cleaning . . . 353 The Cleaning and Restoration of Oriental Rugs Exposed to Smoke Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354 The Cleaning and Restoration of Oriental Rugs Exposed to Sewage Intrusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357 Mold Remediation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358 Tracking Rugs in a Restoration Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358 Clean It Yourself Or Sub It Out?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359 Fabric Protectors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359 Silicones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Fluorochemicals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Insect Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360 Rug Display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361 Rug Pad. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363 Rug Repair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364 Materials and Tools You Will Need:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367 Wrapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
Chapter 17 g Oriental And Specialty Rug Appraisals
371
Determining The Value Of An Oriental Rug . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373 Determining Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374 Factors Affecting Value. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374 Determining Age. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376 How much is it worth? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377 Investigating and Documenting an Area Rug Claim. . . . . . . . . . . . 378 Initial Inspection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378 Questions for the Insured . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378
Chapter 18 g Resources
381
Absorbent Compound Cleaning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381 Brushes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381 Chemicals/Supplies and Equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382 Dye Bleed Correction Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning xvi s Marketing Materials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382 Non-Immersion Dry Cleaning Equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383 Oriental Rug Book Suppliers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383 Oriental Rug Repair Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383 Periodicals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384 Retailers of Oriental Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384 Rug Cleaning Schools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Rug Padding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Rug Storage Tubes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386 Rug Washing/Dry Room Systems/Centrifuge/Rug Dusting Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386 Rug Websites. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387 Specialty Matting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387 Spotter and Grooming Tools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388 Supplies/Equipment/Brushes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388 Trade Associations and Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388 Wholesaler of Oriental Rugs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391 Wrapping Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
Glossary 393 Recommended Reading
417
Chapter 1 g History of Oriental Rugs
3
Chapter 1
History of Oriental Rugs Russia
Portugal
s
Mediterranean Sea
Azerbaijan
Turkmenistan
Syria
Morocco
Iraq
Kirghizstan Kyrgystan
ea
Turkey
Uzbekistan
nS
Armenia
Greece Tunisia
Kazakstan
ia sp
Black Sea
Bulgaria Spain
Cauca sus Mo u Georgia ntain
Ca
Romania
France
Iran
Tajikistan
China
Afghanistan
(Persia) Algeria
Tibet
Libya
Pakistan Egypt
Arabian Sea
The Rug Belt The Rug Belt The origins of rug weaving are literally “lost in antiquity” and cause for much speculation. Because the materials used in weaving are not as durable as materials used in other art forms, such as buildings or paintings, and the function of rugs subjects them to harsher wear, the number of extremely old pieces that have survived is very limited. The oldest, nearly complete hand-knotted rug dates from the 4th or 5th century B.C. and is known as the Pazyryk rug. This rug was discovered in 1949 by Soviet archaeologists inside the burial tomb of a nomadic tribal chief near Pazyryk in southern Siberia. The rug was protected from disintegration in the permafrost. The rug’s design and construction is relatively sophisticated indicating that rug weaving had been developing for hundreds or even thousands of years. This rug measures 6 feet x 6 feet 6 inches (180 cm x 195 cm) with a wool pile/foundation and has 225 symmetrical knots per square inch. The Pazyryk rug is currently housed at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. Pazyryk rug, detail
Nepal India
Chapter 2 g Fibers and Dyes
Chapter 2
Fibers and Dyes Fibers Rugs can be made from most any fiber; however, the primary face yarn is wool with cotton being the common foundation fiber. Because some specialty rugs are made from synthetic fibers, we will look at both natural and man-made fibers and will be addressing cleaning considerations of both types throughout this book. Natural rug fibers come from animal hair, such as wool; plants such as flax and the cocoon of the silk worm. Synthetic rug fibers are derived from chemical solutions that are formed into fiber.
Wool General Information The type of wool selected is critical in a rug or carpet. The quality of wool determines the rug’s appearance as well as its resiliency and ability of the pile to withstand abrasion throughout its life. The subtle beauty of the wool’s luster and how it absorbs and displays dye colors depends solely on the qualities of the wool used. The importance of the quality of the wool used in making a rug could be compared to the importance of the quality of wood used in making furniture. Traditionally, carpet wool comes from mountain sheep with coarse, heavily medullated (medulla is a hollow, core-like structure within the fibers) wools such as those found in India, China, Spain and Wales. Today, New Zealand wool is generally considered the best for general carpet manufacturing. Special genetic characteristics of different sheep have been developed through breeding specifically to meet the demands of the textile industry. Wool and silk are both protein fibers. Wool is comprised of 19 amino acids, forming the protein keratin, and grows from follicles in the sheep’s skin, like hair which grows from human skin. Sheep are a 24-hour a day fiber factory, each fiber growing 0.008 inches per day. A merino sheep has
7
Chapter 2 g Fibers and Dyes
9
fibers range in length from 50–75 mm (2–3 inches) up to 150 mm (6 inches). Grading of fibers also takes into account the strength which must be considered in relation to fiber length. Wool fibers used in the woolen spinning system for carpets should be no longer than 170 mm (7 inches) with the mean length after carding being at least 60 mm (2.4 inches). One of the positive characteristics of wool fiber is its resilience or recovery from deformation. This permits each fiber to return instantly to its natural position. Wool can be stretched up to 30% of its original length without breaking. The fiber strength is evident as it can be flexed 20,000 times without breaking. Silk breaks after 1,800 bends, rayon after only 75.
Bulk Fiber crimp is the major factor affecting yarn bulk — crimpy wools produce more bulky yarns and is a result of sheep breeding. High and low bulk fibers can be blended to give the desired bulk of the yarn. Wool grows permanently crimped and this natural crimp gives the fiber bulk and allows it to absorb noise. The air trapped between the fibers provides natural insulation and gives good resiliency. Wool also has a moderate resistance to abrasion and wears well in high traffic areas. Synthetic fiber manufacturers have attempted to simulate these natural characteristics through mechanical processing with satisfactory results.
Fiber Structure Looking at a cross-section, each wool fiber consists of a three-part outer layer and an absorbent core. The outer layer has a thin protective membrane called the epicuticle which gives wool its ability to shed liquids Fiber cross-section
Chapter 2 g Fibers and Dyes
29
light as they do not mellow and age like natural dyes. The dye system used is determined by the color desired, its intensity and the fiber’s ability to accept dye. The class of the dye (molecular structure) and the dye methods has more to do with colorfastness than anything. Frequently, the colors in a hand-made rug may vary in tone or hue within one color area. These horizontal variations in shade of the same color are called abrash and may be an unintentional result of dyeing yarn in small batches. It gives many subtle differences in color intensity that add to the rug’s appeal.
Rug Dyes A wide variety of dyes are used in the manufacturing of rugs today. For the most part, wool rugs made after World War II have been dyed with synthetic acid dyes. In 1980, the Turkish government was the first to reintroduce natural dyes to the rug weaving industry with the DOBAG project. Other countries have followed suit with output still being relatively small.Textile dyeing is a very precise science, and the textile chemist and colorist must match the physical properties of the fiber to the appropriate dye. The end result must be a colorfast fiber that will hold up to all types of environments. Dyes must possess an affinity or chemical attraction to the fiber to which it is applied and form a chemical bond with that fiber.
Natural dye vats in Turkey
Dyed yarn drying in the sun
Acid (Anionic) Dyes Acid dyes are used extensively for dyeing wool, silk and nylon. The dyes are anionic (negatively charged) and are dissolved in hot water. The fiber becomes swollen in the hot solution thus opening its pores so the dye molecules can enter the pore openings. Sometimes the penetration is quite rapid and the dyes combine with the wool fiber unevenly. This effect can be retarded by adding a neutral salt which causes the acid dyestuff to strike evenly. This is called a leveling action.
Abrash
Chapter 3 g Construction: Machine-Made Rugs
33
Chapter 3
Construction: Machine-Made Rugs Machine-made rugs can be produced using a variety of methods. We will start with the most common method use for rugs made in the United States.
Face Yarns
Primary Backing
Latex
Machine-tufted
Tufted Rugs A tufted rug is constructed much like a sandwich consisting of face yarns that are stitched into a primary backing with adhesive and a secondary backing. It can be loop or cut-pile construction. • Face Yarns — consist of a broad range of fibers, e.g., nylon, wool, olefin, etc., in various pile constructions. Undyed tufted face yarns are called greige goods. • Primary backings — usually woven or non-woven polypropylene; sometimes woven jute is used. • Adhesive — a layer of latex holds the primary and secondary backings together. • Secondary backings — applied to give a carpet dimensional stability, which refers to the capability of the carpet to retain its size and shape.
Secondary Backing
Chapter 4 g Specialty Rugs
55
Chapter 4
Specialty Rugs In the first half of the 20th century, rug cleaners worked with a limited variety of rugs such as orientals, Axminsters, Wiltons, hooks, and braids. In the last fifty years, things have changed. There has been an explosion of new types of specialty and decorative rugs. The materials and the combinations of constructions used in these specialty rugs can present problems for the modern rug cleaner. The following list is not comprehensive, but a representation of popular specialty rugs.
Animal Skins There are many different types of animal skins that are brought in for cleaning. These include sheepskin, alpaca, zebra, cowhide, bear and other exotic animals.
Sheepskin
Pre-cleaning Inspection 1. Is the animal hair rotten? If the hair is rotten, will it come off the skin with any type of agitation? 2. Is the skin stiff, dry, stained, rotten, and/or cracked? 3. Is the fur oxidized (yellowed)? 4. Is the fur matted?
Cleaning Considerations If the skin is structurally sound, the safest method to use is a Lieb Non-Immersion Process machine. This machine is a tumbler that uses dry absorbent compound as the cleaning agent. This machine is also used to clean fur coats. The longer-haired skins such as sheep and alpaca do best in this machine. Exotic skins or any skin with a fully intact head should not be cleaned in a Lieb machine.
Zebra skin
Most skins can be wet cleaned with an upholstery tool. The same principles apply as those used for cleaning Navajo rugs. Do not over wet as the skin can become stiff and brittle.
Lieb Non-Immersion Machine
Chapter 4 g Specialty Rugs
69
Sequence of Production of Hand-Tufted Rugs
1. Primary backing fabric stretched over frame. 2. Design drawn on backing
3. Tufting 4. Checking before latexing 5. Latexing (no picture) 6. Finishing 7. Finishing
Illustration courtesy of Hofmann Handtuft-Technik
Chapter 5 g Hand-Knotted Rugs: Classification, Construction and Design
Chapter 5
Hand-Knotted Rugs: Classification, Construction and Design Traditionally, an oriental rug was defined as any hand-knotted pile rug made in the Near East and Asia. Today, the term oriental rug is used for any hand-knotted rug, regardless of origin, and flatweaves from the Near East and Asia. Flatweaves refer to hand-woven rugs from any country that have no pile. Flatweaves include, but are not limited to, Navajos, dhurries, kilims, and soumak rugs.
Oriental rugs can be classified as: 1. Court Rugs: These are very old rugs that were commissioned by a royal Persian, Chinese, Turkish or Mughal (India) court. An example is the Ardabil Carpet, which is on display in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and is approximately the size of a tennis court. These pieces, which can be large, are considered major works of art. Rugs on this scale, with a few exceptions, have not been produced for more than 200 years and will not be encountered for service by commercial cleaners. 2. Workshop/City Rugs: Workshop rugs are the most commonly encountered hand-knotted rug. Most were made from the 1920s to the present. These rugs are woven on permanent looms in large factory environments with a design style that is generally curvilinear with floral patterns. These factories can produce large numbers of rugs in many sizes with similar designs and color palette. Today, most commercial rugs are produced in these factories. Examples of Persian city rugs would be Sarouk and Kerman. 3. Village: Village rugs are woven on vertical looms with no cartoon to guide their design. These designs tend to be more geometric and less sophisticated. An example is Persian Hamadan. 4. Tribal: Tribal rugs are woven by nomadic or settled tribes, often on horizontal looms. These rugs are generally characterized by a wool foundation, small sizes and lower knot density. Only recently have some of these rugs been made on a cotton foundation. In addition to rugs, these tribal weavers also make utilitarian pieces such as saddlebags, storage bags, quiver bags and other items for personal use or barter.
95
100
A Comprehensive Guide to Oriental & Specialty Rug Cleaning
TURKEY
The Caucasus
Caspian Sea
Maku
Karaja Ahar Meskin Heriz Ardabil Tabriz Serab
Sauj-Bulak
an ev
TURKMENISTAN Merv
ns ma Bujnurd
o
k Tur
Rasht
hs ha Zenjan Kazvin
Quchon
Sabsawar
S
Nishapur
Tehran
Bidjar
Kur
Veramin
Senneh
Turbat-i Haidari
Kashmar
Hamadan
ds
Sarouk Qum Arak Malayer Kashan Lillihan Seraband Kermanshah Joshaghan Natanz
Turbat-i-Shaikh Jam
Tabas
Qain
Nain
Herat
Gonabad
Firdaus
AFGHANISTAN
Birjand
ri
tia
kh
Ba
Isfahan
Sarakhs
Meshed
IRAQ
Turkish Knot
IRAN
Yazd
Abadeh
Lurs
Baluchis Ravar
i
ga
sh
Qa
T
AI W
KU
Bushire
Shiraz
seh
Kham
Abadan
Kerman
Afshari
PAKISTAN
Persian Knot BALUCHISTAN
SAUDI ARABIA
Persian Gulf Map of Iran: With a few exceptions, left of the dashed line uses symmetrical knots and right of the dashed line uses asymmetrical knots
Symmetrical knot
Asymmetrical knot, open left
t
War p
Wa rp
Wa rp
arp e of C gth Len
p
WARP
WARP
WARP
Warp
Wa rp
Le
Wa rp
Wool P ile
et rp Ca of th
rp Wa
le
p War
l Pi Woo
Warp
ng
Wool
Wool
Width of Carpet
WARP Weft
WARP
WARP
WARP
Wool
WARP
WARP
Non-Dep ressed Symmetrical Knot, Non-depressed Aymmetrical Knot
Weft
r Wa
Warp
WARP
l Pile Woo
Width of Carpet
101
Woo l Pile
Chapter 5 g Hand-Knotted Rugs: Classification, Construction and Design
WARP
Wool
Open Right
Asymmetrical Knot, Non-depressed, Open Right
WARP
Chapter 6 g Persian Rugs Curvilinear
139
Qum/Ghoum The city of Qum is 90 miles south of Teheran and is one of Iran’s holiest cities. The weaving tradition in Qum is relatively new, only dating back to the early 1930s. The weave is similar to Kashan but more irregular on the back. Qum also produces more all- silk rugs than any other city in Iran.
Characteristics Knot: asymmetrical Warp: cotton or silk; depressed Weft: cotton or silk, two shoots; cotton may be dyed blue or light gray Pile: wool or silk Ends: bottom of rug has twisted uncut loops; top end has kilim with knotted fringe. Sides: single cord; overcast in wool or silk Design: floral; garden panel; repeating boteh; central medallion with or without corners; prayer; hunting Colors: red, medium blue, ivory, gold, brown Sizes: 4 x 6 feet (122 cm x 183 cm) and smaller; occasionally 8 x 10 feet (244 cm x 305 cm)
Silk Qum
Pre-Cleaning Inspection 1. The black, blue and red dyes are usually not colorfast on silk rugs. 2. The dyes are not always lightfast on both wool and silk rugs. Check for fading.
Cleaning Considerations 1. If the black, blue and red dye are not stable, clean with low moisture procedure in Chapter 12 Rug Cleaning.
Back, Qum
Back, Silk Qum
Qum, garden panel design
Chapter 8 g Other Countries Producing Hand-Knotted Rugs
179
Chapter 8
Other Countries Producing HandKnotted Rugs Russia
Portugal
Armenia
Greece Tunisia
Turkey
Mediterranean Sea
Morocco
a Se ian s sp
Black Sea
Bulgaria Spain
Kazakstan
Cauca sus Mo u Georgia ntain
Ca
Romania
France
Uzbekistan
Azerbaijan
Syria Iraq
Kirghizstan Kyrgystan
Turkmenistan
Iran
Tajikistan
China
Afghanistan
(Persia) Algeria
Tibet
Libya
Pakistan Egypt
Nepal India
Arabian Sea
The Rug Belt The Rug Belt
Afghanistan The majority of Afghan rugs brought to a cleaning plant were made after World War II. Most are made on a wool warp and weft with traditional Turkoman guls on a red field. The wool warps are either cream or dark gray in color. Some have an all-cotton foundation and occasionally a linen warp.
Characteristics Knot: asymmetrical Warp: wool; occasionally cotton or linen Weft: two shoots; cotton or wool Pile: wool Ends: plain kilim with knotted fringe Sides: two or more cords wrapped in dark brown or dark blue wool or goat hair. Design: repeating guls
Chapter 9 g Road Map to Rug Identification
231
Road Map To Rug Identification Hand-made or machine-made?
Axminster
Wilton
Tufted (by hand or machine)
Other specialty construction
Aubusson
Navajo
Dhurrie
Navajo look-alike
Kilim
such as Zapotec or Chimayo
Afghanistan
Ireland
Pakistan
China
Nepal
Romania
Machine-made
Look at back of rug to determine construction Hand-made
Hand-knotted or hand-woven?
Hand-woven
Soumak
Hand-knotted
Persia (Iran) or another country?
France
(made in Nepal by Tibetan refugees but referred to in the trade as Tibetan rugs)
India
North Africa
Bakhtiari (not all)
Karaja
NW Malayer
Hamadan
Lillihan
Senneh
Ahar
Kerman Mahal
Qum
Other country
Egypt
Iran
Single Wefted?
Curvilinear or rectilinear design?*
Curvilinear
*Bijar Isfahan
Southeast Malayer
Kashan
Meshed
Persia (Iran)
Sarouk
(American or Ferahan)
*Veramin
Ardabil
*Joshaghan
Meshkin
*Bijar
*Mahal
Serab *Tabriz
Heriz Tribal (mostly rectilinear)
Nain
*Tabriz
Rectilinear
Persia (Iran), Tribal or Caucasian
Spain Turkey
**Caucasian (mostly rectiliniear)
Afshar
Kamseh
Turkoman
(Iran)
(Iran)
Bakhtiari
Quashqai
(Iran, Afghanistan, or Turkmenistan)
(Iran)
(Iran)
Baluch
Shiraz
Derbend
Kazak
Shirvan
Gendje
Kuba
Talish
Karabagh
Moghan
*Veramin
Note: are not all-inclusive. (Iran orLists of rugs/countries (Iran)
*Afghanistan) Some rugs are made in both curvilinear and rectilinear designs or may incorporate both designs in the same rug. ** Caucasian rugs are not made in Iran, but in the Caucasus Mountain region, north of Tabriz, Iran.
Chapter 11 g Pre-Cleaning Inspection
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Chapter 11
Pre-Cleaning Inspection Classifying Area Rugs Before Cleaning The first principle of area rug cleaning is it should not be done onlocation in the customer’s home. Because rug cleaning can include the occasional surprise, it is best to do the work in a controlled environment. It is understood that sometimes circumstances dictate cleaning a rug “onlocation,” but it should be the exception rather than the rule. The first step in the pre-cleaning inspection is to determine the construction of the rug. See Chapters 3, 4 and 5 for details on rug construction. Machine-made rugs are usually woven on a Wilton or Axminster loom or are tufted. Woven rugs can usually be identified by looking at the back for visible white warp yarns running the length of the rug. On hand-knotted rugs, the weft yarns running the width of the rug are often visible from the back.
Hand-knotted rug back
Machine-woven rug back
Machine-made rugs can range in value from very inexpensive or as costly as some oriental rugs. Tufted rugs manufactured by Edward Fields, Lacey Champion, the Scott Group and others can be expensive. A good habit for any rug cleaner to develop is reading labels on the backs of rugs.
Chapter 12 g Rug Cleaning Methods
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Chapter 12 Rug Cleaning Introduction to Rug Cleaning The Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) Standard S-100 states that, “When practical, the preferred system for cleaning rugs is to remove them from the customer’s home or business and clean them in a controlled ‘in-plant’ environment.” This could be anywhere from a garage to a large cleaning plant where a variety of cleaning methods, or combination thereof, may be used. It is understood that sometimes circumstances dictate cleaning a rug “on-location” in the customer’s home or business. Under these conditions, it is important that the technicians are trained in techniques for inspecting, testing, evaluating and selecting the proper cleaning method. Standard S-100 continues, “Failure to perform specialized procedures may result in permanent damage to the rug and/ or flooring under and around the rug. Incomplete soil removal may occur due to the inability to vacuum both sides of the rug adequately. Improper wet cleaning causes prolonged drying, texture change, cellulosic browning, dye migration, mildew, and/or dry rot.” Fringe cleaning is nearly impossible in an on-location environment. Cleaning a rug in the customer’s home is the exception rather than the rule. This chapter presents the principles of the cleaning process that should be used on all rugs in conjuction with the appropriate cleaning method(s). These basic principles are common to all the methods available to the professional rug cleaner. Four sample cleaning procedures utilizing these principles will also be examined.
The Professional Rug Cleaner’s Checklist