You just removed a Persian or Oriental rug from storage and noticed a big crease running through it.
Chances are it was folded while in storage. Whether you folded it yourself by mistake or it’s a rug handed down to you from a family member, we’re not going to judge the person who readied it for storage. (But we will ask you to make an important mental note: never fold a rug for storage!)
Lay the rug out on a flat surface. If the corners won’t lie flat, fold them under the rug. Many rugs will simply flatten out under their own weight in a day or two. Some, however, with more serious creasing problems may take several weeks to straighten out.
Imagine if these folds never came out.
But, if you are impatient to get that crease out, and don’t want to wait for the passage of time, there a few things you can do to speed things up.
- Roll up the carpet.
You simply roll up the carpet in the reverse direction of the crease. Or you can fold the carpet in the opposite direction. Leave it this way for a few days.
- Place something heavy – but not too heavy – on the fold.
Put a piece of furniture or some other heavy object on the carpet’s crease or the entire carpet for a few days.
You can also put tape under the corners with carpet tape that has adhesive on both sides. Stretch the carpet out just enough to straighten out the imperfection. Tape the rug to a table or clean surface and let it lie there for a few days.
Put the carpet in the sun for a few hours. (Just a few; place it in sun for days and you could end up fading the carpet’s fibers.) You should only do this, however, when the temperature is 70 to 85 degrees. This is also an effective way to loosen the folds in the rug.
If none of the above work for you, try using a little steam from an iron.
Put a folded towel over the crease. You want to make sure you have at least one-half inch of towel over the rug to protect it from the heat.
Put the setting on the iron to medium heat with steam. Run the iron over the towel. The steam should move through the towel into the rug and straighten out the creases. Then hold the iron on the towel for five seconds. You can do this for each area of the rug that is creased.
- Call upon the professionals.
Finally, if none of these techniques works, you should take the rug to a professional rug cleaner. It can use a professional steam cleaning system to take care of the imperfections.
If you’ve noticed that the fold has effectively worn away the fibers of the rug, you’ll definitely have to take it to a professional. If this has happened to your Persian or Oriental rug, call upon the experts at Persian Rug Cleaner of Dallas. Contact us at 972-447-9600 for an appointment.
Image courtesy Joanna Bourne, via flicker.com
