Loose rugs are cleaned on a floor inside your home and never leave the building. Up to 3 square metres the price is £35; anything bigger is £51. Mention the fibre and the measurements when you call.
The rug stays in the room it lives in. The cleaner works on it where it lies, runs hot water extraction through the pile, brushes the fringes by hand and leaves it to dry on site. Nobody wrestles a soaking room-size rug down three flights to a car, and you are not without it for a week.
Fibres and dyes checked first
Wool is what most London rugs are made of. It takes a hot water clean well, though it holds moisture longer than synthetics do. Cotton flatweaves and dhurries can shrink a touch, and their dyes run more readily. Silk and viscose (often labelled art silk or bamboo silk) carry the most risk: water can leave rings, dull the sheen or turn the fibre a yellowish brown, and some of these rugs cannot be wet-cleaned at all. Jute and sisal also brown when wet. Before any water goes on, the cleaner dabs a damp white cloth on a hidden corner of each colour to see whether dye comes off. If it does, the cleaner stops there and talks it through with you. On the call, tell us what the label says, where the rug came from and whether it was made by hand.
Rug prices by size
There are two prices, split at 3 square metres. Multiply length by width in metres to find which applies.
| Rug | Price |
|---|---|
| Up to 3 square metres | £35 |
| Over 3 square metres | £51 |
A 2 m by 1.4 m rug works out at 2.8 square metres and takes the smaller price. One of 2.3 m by 1.6 m comes to 3.7 and takes the larger. A 3 m by 0.7 m hall runner is only 2.1, so for all its length it counts as small. One-off work starts at £67, so a single small rug on its own is priced from that figure; adding a second rug, a bedroom carpet or an armchair makes more of the visit. Paid parking near your door is passed on at cost and capped at £40. Half the total, paid up front, fixes the date.
Fringes, edges and backing
Fringes get a hand brush and a little solution, because a machine head snags them and can pull threads loose. On many wool rugs the fringe is the cotton end of the warp, and cotton that has yellowed with age may stay off-white afterwards. Bound edges are cleaned along with the pile. The cleaner also flips a corner to inspect the back. A latex backing gone brittle, or a rug stuck to a rubber underlay, needs a gentler hand, and moth damage is easiest to spot from underneath. Tell us about bare patches or small holes on the call so they are no surprise on the day.
Drying a rug where it lies
The rug dries in your home, so it is out of use for a few hours. Crack a window or put the heating on, and keep chairs and tables off it. On wooden or laminate boards, damp can linger between rug and floor. After a few hours, lift a corner and feel the back. Still cool? Prop that edge on something dry and give it longer. Furniture goes back only once the underside is dry. A thick wool rug in a cold January room is the slowest, and a thin cotton one in summer the quickest.
Questions about rug cleaning
Does my rug have to go anywhere?
No. It is cleaned indoors, where it lies, and never leaves your home. A rug too heavy to move is cleaned exactly where it is.
Will a stain come out of my rug?
Food, drink, mud and general dullness usually lift from a wool rug. Bleach spots, dye that has already run, sun fading and old pet stains that soaked into the backing do not, and the cleaner says which marks are likely to remain before starting. A fresh spill comes out more readily than one left for months.
Can a rug on a fitted carpet be cleaned on the same visit?
Yes. The cleaner does the rug first, then shifts it onto a hard floor while the fitted carpet under it gets its turn. Room prices are on the carpet cleaning page, and carpet and rug cleaning covers booking a whole home in one go.
Is it possible to add the sofa?
Yes, the same machine handles fabric furniture. Sofas are priced by the seat under sofa and upholstery cleaning, and every figure we charge is listed on our prices page.