We clean area rugs of every kind across Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky — wool, Persian and Oriental, synthetic, silk, and cotton flatweaves. Whatever is on your floor, we match the cleaning to the fiber.
A rug is not the same as the carpet stretched wall to wall in your living room, and it should not be cleaned like one. The good news: getting it right is mostly about patience and knowing what you are looking at. That is the whole job.
Rugs need different handling than wall-to-wall carpet
Wall-to-wall carpet is glued or stretched down over a pad, and most of it is synthetic and built to take a beating. An area rug is a different animal. Many are made from natural fibers — wool, cotton, silk — and finished with dyes that were never meant to sit in standing water.
Soak a fine rug the way you would clean a hallway carpet and you risk the colors bleeding into each other, the foundation staying wet for days, and the fringe fraying or browning. The dyes matter. The drying matters. The fringe matters.
So we slow down. We test the dyes before we wash, we control how the rug dries instead of leaving it damp on your floor, and we handle the fringe by hand. No fake certificates on the wall — just the real work, done in the right order.
How we do it
The process, plainly
Inspection and dye test. We look the rug over for wear, weak spots, and existing stains, then test the dyes in a hidden area to make sure the colors are stable before any water touches it.
Dusting and pre-treatment. Most of what is in a rug is dry soil buried deep in the pile. We work that loose and out first, then pre-treat stains and traffic lanes so the wash has something to grab.
A gentle wash matched to the fiber. Wool gets a wash built for wool. Synthetic gets a firmer clean. Silk and antiques get the softest touch we have. The method follows the material, not the other way around.
Controlled dry. A rug that dries too slowly can grow mildew and brown at the edges. We dry rugs in a controlled way so they come back fully dry, flat, and fresh.
Grooming. Last, we groom the pile so it lays right, and we finish the fringe by hand. You get the rug back looking like the rug you remember buying.
What we clean
Rug types we handle
Wool rugs
Durable and forgiving, but wool holds soil and can felt or brown if it is over-wet. We clean wool with a wash built for the fiber and dry it under control.
Persian & Oriental hand-knotted
Hand-knotted rugs are often decades old and irreplaceable. We dye-test, dust thoroughly, wash gently, and protect the fringe every step of the way.
Synthetic & machine-made
Polypropylene and other synthetics take a firmer clean and dry quickly. These are often the rugs we can clean on-site when the situation calls for it.
Delicate & antique
Silk, viscose, and older heirloom rugs get the softest methods we have — and an individual quote, because no two are the same and we would rather look before we price.
Pets happen
Pet accidents on rugs
An area rug soaks up a pet accident like a sponge, and the odor works its way into the foundation where surface cleaning never reaches. That is why the smell keeps coming back — and yes, that stain too.
We use enzyme treatment that breaks down the source of the odor instead of covering it with fragrance. On a rug that has been fully saturated, we can flush it far more thoroughly in-plant than anyone can on your floor. We will be honest if a stain has set permanently, but most of the time we get there.
Dealing with more than a rug? Our pet stain & odor removal covers carpet and the whole room too.
What it costs
Rug cleaning cost
Most area rugs run $3–$8 per square foot. Synthetic and machine-made rugs sit at the lower end ($2–$4); wool and Persian or Oriental rugs run $4–$8. Delicate and antique rugs are quoted individually after we see them.
Every rug is different, so the honest answer is that we quote once we know the size, the fiber, and the condition. For the full breakdown, see our rug cleaning cost guide.
Where it happens
On-site vs in-plant cleaning
On-site. A sturdy synthetic or machine-made rug that just needs freshening can often be cleaned right in your home, the same way we clean your wall-to-wall carpet. It is quick and the rug stays put.
In-plant. Wool, Persian, Oriental, silk, and antique rugs come back with us. In-plant we can dust the rug fully, wash it by hand, flush out pet accidents completely, and control the drying — none of which can be done properly on a floor over a pad.
When you reach out, tell us what the rug is and we will tell you which makes sense. No guesswork, no pressure.
The proof
Years of foot traffic, lifted out
A rug that has faded under years of dust often is not faded at all — it is just dirty. Once the dry soil is out and the pile is groomed, the color comes back brighter than most people expect.
We have seen worse than yours, and we can bring it back.
Before
After
Good questions
Rug cleaning FAQ
It depends on the rug. Sturdy synthetic and machine-made rugs can often be cleaned on-site. Wool, Persian, Oriental, silk, and antique rugs are best cleaned in-plant, where we can dust them fully, wash by hand, and control the drying.
Most area rugs run $3 to $8 per square foot. Synthetic and machine-made rugs land at the lower end ($2 to $4), while wool and Persian or Oriental rugs run $4 to $8. Delicate and antique rugs are quoted individually.
Usually, yes. We use enzyme treatment that breaks down the source of the odor rather than masking it. Heavily saturated stains that have soaked the foundation may not come back to new, and we will tell you that up front before you spend money.
We test the dyes before any water touches the rug. If a color is unstable, we adjust the wash and use cooler, controlled methods to keep the dyes from bleeding. That dye test is exactly why rugs need different handling than wall-to-wall carpet.
Ready to bring your rug back to life?
Tell us what you have — the size, the fiber, and what you are dealing with — and we will send you a real price. It takes about a minute.
