Natural wool carpet is a beautiful addition to any room and is a popular homeowners’ choice because of its durable fibres. Buying a wool carpet is a reasonable investment due to its stain-resistant and eco-friendly material. There are so many different things that you should consider when choosing a carpet.
To help you decide whether the wool carpet is best for you, let’s take a look at the pros and cons of it.
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What is a wool carpet?
People have produced wool carpets for more than eighty centuries. When civilisation first adopted cattle and learned how to shear their soft wool, the resource was implemented into different works of weaving.
Wool carpets are predominantly weaved from sheep’s fur.
Today, New Zealand’s breed, the Merino, is thought to be of best quality by many, but other breeds, such as the Shetland Wool from the Scottish Highlands, and the Merino sheep in Saxony, Vermont, South Africa and the island of Tasmania are no further behind.
Other than sheep wool, you can find different carpets weaved from the hair of other animals, such as llamas, alpacas, goats, camels and angora rabbits. Wool carpets are naturally resistant and highly durable. And, guess what – the material is a replenishable amenity.
The pros and cons of wool carpets
Did you know that wool smells like it smells when it’s wet, because of the sulphur – one of the key ingredient elements that build up the structure of the fabric. Below we’ve weaved several more benefits and drawbacks of a wool carpet.
The distinctive smell of wet wool is due to its sulphur contents. And here you can take a look at some of the positives and negatives that come with wool carpets.
Advantages of wool carpet
- Durability. Wool is resistant to heavy use and even if flocks of people stomp a wool carpet every single day, it will still appear beautiful. As long as you bought a well-made one.
- Inflammability. Wool might start to melt under high temperatures and fire, but in no way, it will burn. Therefore, thanks to its flame concealing features, wool carpets find their place in many commercial buildings around the world.
- Absorbency. Wool comes in a variety of different dyes, so it’s easy enough to create wool carpets in different colours and shades, suiting to the admirer’s eye. This makes a wool carpet retain its shades over the years, and it simply looks pleasant. However, this is a double-edged sword – the absorbency works for any kind of liquids, including the undesirable ones such as wine or ink.
- Moisture resistance. Wool fibres are excellent at holding and releasing water. If liquids are poured onto the woollen carpet, its fibres will naturally swell, but when the moisture is released, they return back to normal size. Due to its natural draining properties, wool carpets do a wonderful job at protecting the wooden floors from warping in more humid climates.
- Dirt resistance. This doesn’t mean the dirt will magically stay away from your carpet. However, the particles will get lost inside the wool, unlike the situation with other types of materials. It’s all due to the matte opaque structure of the fibres. They simply can’t reflect the light the same way as artificial materials do.
- Insulating quality. This is due to the indigenous ruffles of the wool.
Disadvantages of wool carpet
- High price. Whereas wool is not the most expensive product on the market, the costs for production and maintenance of the wool carpet make it a commodity for the affluent.
- No resistance to chemicals. If exposed to alkaline substances for a longer period of time, the carpet will lose its colour and the hair will harden. Another chemical that reacts in a dooming way with the wool is chlorine-based bleach. These facts make it a bit difficult to find a carpet cleaning solution with a fitting pH balance – something that won’t spoil the quality of the carpet but be effective enough to deal with stubborn stains. A neutral, water-based cleaning detergents that rank between 5 and 8 pH are recommended by our Fantastic carpet cleaners.
- Stain prone. As we mentioned before, it’s very easy to dye a wool carpet and the colour will stick with it for a very long time. However, that can become an issue if you spill red wine, or ink on the carpet.
How to clean a wool carpet yourself
Something truly unique and authentic, such as a wool carpet, will also require truly unique and precise cleaning methods. Keep your durable soft coverings spotless for years with some useful tips on how to clean a wool carpet at home.
Vacuum it regularly
To prolong the life of your wool carpet, it’s important to vacuum it on a regular basis using a high-quality vacuum cleaner with soft bristles and good suction. Bear in mind to run a vacuum at least once a week in low-traffic areas to remove any dust or dirt that moves through the air. Areas on your wool carpet that see a lot of foot traffic should be vacuumed twice a week.
Remove stains ASAP
The crucial thing when it comes to carpet stain cleaning is to not let the stain soak into the wool fibres. You should act immediately and tackle the affected area asap. Here is an effective cleaning method on how to remove stains from wool carpet:
- Scratch up solids and blot spill right away. Although the wool prevents liquids from absorbing into its fibres, it’s recommended to blot the spillages with a dry, clean paper towel.
- Soak the stained area in a solution of ¼ cup of white vinegar, ½ teaspoon of mild liquid dishwashing detergent and 2 cups lukewarm water.
- Lightly scrub the spot and use a water-dampened sponge to remove the homemade cleaner.
- Blot dry the area with a clean cloth and let it air dry for several hours.
Get professional carpet cleaning
Whereas in most cases, hiring a professional carpet cleaning company is the most efficient solution to justify cost and value in return. That’s why we decided to offer you an interesting way to tackle the dirt on your, say, oriental wool rug.
The first thing you got to know, a deep clean of a wool carpet is not an activity that must happen every week. You can adopt a 6-month cycle and, especially if you have the advantage of having a real winter with lots of snow.
Book professional carpet cleaning right away!
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How to clean a wool rug with snow
So, we decided to show you one fantastic method that’s completely natural and eliminates bacteria and dust mites. It works with hand-made and antique wool carpets, but you’re going to need an extra pair of hands if you are going to clean a larger floor covering.
- Dust out the carpet well, then hang it outside so that it adapts to the low temperatures outside – it needs half an hour tops.
- Place the carpet in the snow. Be careful! For the method to work, you need deep snow cover because otherwise, the carpet will get dirty. See if you have enough space around you so you can work freely.
- Sprinkle snow on the carpet using a shovel. Cover it with a thin layer of snow and wait for it to start working. The combination of snow and ice-cold air will freeze all microbes, bacteria and annoying dust mites, which are nesting in your precious Persian rug.
- Let the carpet stay buried in the snow for around 20 minutes. After that, clean the snow from above and turn it back so that you can repeat the same procedure all over again.
- Shake it well and hang it for around half an hour.
- Take the carpet, shake it again if there’s more snow on it and bring it back to the room. Due to the low temp and the snow’s structure, the carpet will be almost completely dry.
That’s a clever and sparing way of carpet cleaning. As you might know, the snow has the power to kill microbes that are exposed to it for a longer period of time. Results – freshness and no damage to your Persian rug.
Thanks for this comprehensive guide! I’ve been contemplating on getting myself a wool carpet recently, but I just can’t decide if it’ll be too much for me or not.. Do you think Hot water extraction will work even for wool?
https://blog.fantasticcleaners.com/hot-water-extraction-cleaning-methodology-alternatives-benefits-for-carpets-and-upholstery/
I left some wool in the rain and it got mildewed. I was going to put it in the trash, but the mildew smell just went away forever. Wool is amazing.