Problems
Dry rot is the one condition that can turn a wash into a disaster, and it is invisible until the rug is wet and lifted. Here is how we find it first, and how you can.
Cotton and wool foundation threads that have lost their strength, usually because the rug was wet and dried slowly, or sat on a damp floor for years. The name is misleading; it is caused by moisture, and it is permanent. The pile can look fine while the warps underneath have gone to powder.
Rugs that were flooded and dried in place; rugs stored in basements in Long Beach, Freeport or Lindenhurst; rugs that spent decades under a leaking radiator; and old Sarouks and Chinese rugs that were on the same floor since the 1940s with a plant pot on them.
A rotted rug that is immersed, lifted by its edges and spun can tear across the rotted area. This is why every antique rug at the Farmingdale plant is inspected for rot before water touches it, why fragile rugs are supported at all times when wet and blotted rather than spun, and why we will say no to washing a rug that cannot survive it.
A rug with a small rotted area can often be washed with the area supported and then lined or repaired. A rug with rot through most of the foundation can be cleaned by a low‑moisture method, lined for stability, and kept as a wall piece or a lightly used rug. We tell you which at inspection, with the rug in front of us, and we provide a condition report if you need one.
Drop‑offs welcome any day; call ahead and you can watch the dye test.
Small areas can be rewoven or lined; extensive rot cannot be reversed. The rug can still be conserved and used lightly.
Only where it can be done safely, with the rug supported and not spun. Otherwise we clean it low‑moisture and tell you why.
Never let a rug stay wet; never store one on a concrete floor or in a damp basement; and if it gets wet, get it to a plant within days.