Problems
The rug that comes to the plant looking scorched, stiff and shedding, with an owner who was told it was silk, is almost always viscose. Here is what it is, why water ruins it, and what a plant can and cannot do afterward.
Viscose is wood pulp dissolved and spun into a fiber. It takes dye brilliantly and shines like silk, which is why it is sold as art silk, faux silk, bamboo silk, banana silk, tencel, lyocell and modal, and often simply as "silk." Most of the shimmering ivory, silver and grey rugs sold on Long Island in the last decade are viscose or wool‑viscose blends. Dry, it is fine. Wet, it loses half its strength, the fibers swell and lock, and cellulose browns as it dries if any residue or alkalinity is present. The full page on viscose rug cleaning covers the fiber in detail.
Two checks. Walk around the rug under a lamp: real silk shifts color with the angle; viscose has a flat, uniform glassy shine. And the burn test: a fiber from the back that smells like burning hair is silk or wool; one that smells like paper is viscose or cotton. We do this at inspection and we are honest about the result. It does not change whether the rug is worth cleaning; it changes how.
Viscose is never immersed. It is dusted longer than any other fiber, because dry soil removal is doing most of the work; cleaned at low moisture with a mildly acidic solution that prevents browning; extracted uniformly so no edge dries ahead of the rest; dried fast; and brushed mechanically to separate the fibers. Existing browning is reduced with a treatment; stiffness mostly recovers; shedding does not stop but slows once the broken fibers are out.
Viscose cannot be made to behave like silk or wool, and a rug steam‑cleaned twice and walked on for five years will improve a great deal but not come back new. We say that at inspection, not after. Stain treatment on viscose is limited by the fiber, not by effort.
Blot spills dry and stop; never add water or a spot cleaner. Use a pad to reduce the friction that breaks fibers. And have it cleaned by someone who will tell you what it is made of before they touch it.
Drop‑offs welcome any day; call ahead and you can watch the dye test.
Probably not ruined: much of the stiffness is locked fibers and residue, and much of the yellowing is cellulose browning, both of which improve with the low‑moisture process. Some browning can be permanent.
Yes. Bamboo silk, banana silk, art silk, tencel, lyocell and modal are all regenerated cellulose and behave the same way in water.
That is between you and the seller. For cleaning purposes what matters is that we identify it correctly and clean it by the right method.