Put the rugs on the truck last so they come off first. That one change to the loading order fixes about half the rug problems we see after a move, because a rug that comes off first can go straight onto a clean, empty floor before anything heavy lands on it.
The other half is dirt the rug brought from the old house. Years of grit and pet hair roll up right along with the rug and ride to the new house. In a freshly cleaned room with bare walls and no other smells, you notice them in a way you never did before.
Our pick: clean it in the new house, before the furniture
We clean rugs where they lie, in your home. No pickup, no plant, no two-week wait. For a move, that gives you a choice about timing, and we have an opinion on it.
Clean the rug after it's unrolled in its new room and before the sofa, bed, or dining table goes on top. Here's why:
- The truck and the moving blankets put a little new dirt on it. Cleaning at the destination takes care of that too.
- An empty room means every inch of the rug gets cleaned, including the part that sat under a couch for six years.
- You're placing it once. Move the rug into position, measure it against the walls and doorways, get it cleaned, let it dry, then bring in the furniture.
Cleaning at the old house works too, especially if the rug has a urine problem you'd rather not move. Just make sure it's fully dry, back and front, before anyone rolls it. A rug that gets wrapped damp and spends two days in a hot truck in August will come out smelling worse than when it went in.
Finish the dusty jobs first
Most people do a little work on a new place before they live in it. Paint, a new light fixture, shelves in the garage, maybe patching where the last owner hung a giant TV. All of that throws fine dust, and dust settles onto soft surfaces.
Do the dusty work, then wipe high to low (shelves, sills, trim, baseboards), then clean the floor, then lay the rug. A freshly cleaned rug on a floor covered in drywall dust is just a dust trap with a nice pattern.
If the new house has wall-to-wall carpet, an empty house is also the easiest time for carpet cleaning. Do that, let it dry, and then bring in the area rugs.
Look hard at the pad
Moving is the one time you see the rug pad. Flip a corner and check it. A pad that crumbles, has dark rings, or smells when you put your nose near it is going to undercut a clean rug. Pads are cheap compared with the rug. If it's bad, replace it before the rug goes down.
Pet owners should look for one more thing: rings or stiff spots that line up between the rug and the pad. That's where urine went through, and it usually means the rug needs our enzyme pet treatment along with the cleaning.
Know what kind of rug you have
A machine-made synthetic rug from the family room and a hand-knotted wool rug from your grandmother's dining room don't get treated the same way. Check the label if there is one. If there isn't, and the rug is old, handmade, or matters to you, leave it alone until the technician has looked at it. Rental machines and strong spot removers are where wool rugs get hurt.
Wool and other handmade pieces get our gentler wool and oriental process, which is easier on dyes and fringe. Everything else gets standard rug cleaning. Both happen right there on your floor, and both are low-moisture, so the rug is dry in hours. Thick wool takes longer than a flat-weave.
Transport tips that actually matter
- Roll, don't fold. Folds can leave creases that take weeks to relax.
- Wrap it in something clean. A moving blanket that's been in ten other trucks is not clean.
- Keep it flat on the truck floor, with nothing heavy stacked on it and nothing wet near it.
- If it curls at the corners once it's down, give it a few days with a pad and furniture on it. Don't bend it backward.
Moving in on orders
A lot of families land in northeast Richland County on a Fort Jackson assignment, sometimes with only a few days between keys and the first day of work. If that's you, put the rugs at the top of the list of things to handle early. Once the boxes are emptied and the furniture is set around them, it gets much harder to clean under anything.
Our rug coupon is $25 off, and the rest of the current deals are on the coupons page. Once you know your move-in date, send a note through the contact page with how many rugs you have and roughly how big they are.