Pit washing cotton backed rugs..

[Mikey P]

Can it be done with out the latex letting loose?

I had to clean a Tea Wash/ Cotton Backed rug with enough pee in it that the owner risked a pit washing.

Sure enough the cotton came real loose and that damn tea dye bled through like crazy.

The face looks fine but lord almighty the back is a mess.

WWRHD?

 

[The Great Oz]

Can it be done with out the latex letting loose?

Only if you limit the time in the pit to less than five minutes and get the rug 90% dry in the next minute.

I had to clean a Tea Wash/ Cotton Backed rug with enough pee in it that the owner risked a pit washing.

You're supposed to be the trusted expert. Next time you see one of these in this condition offer to throw it away for them at no charge. These cost about $5.00 psf to buy new so are barely worth a regular-price cleaning, and by the time this type of customer brings them in they're at the end of their five-year lifespan anyway. I've found that even if the customer pays and pretends to be happy, they'll be upset they wasted the money spent on cleaning and they'll blame you for not giving them better advice.

Sure enough the cotton came real loose and that damn tea dye bled through like crazy.

The color probably isn't a tea wash it's color from the latex. You were fortunate that you didn't have to spend half a day removing the color with dry cleaning solvent.

A good excercise though. Now you can tell the next customer what you've seen happen and they'll be more likely to let you throw it away.

 

[Mikey P]

Five minutes?

Might as well HWE it..

 

[The Great Oz]

For most of these a less intensive cleaning that won't harm the marginal construction is a better choice. Guys that do immersion washing can rail that extraction cleaning a rug isn't right, but ruining a rug to get it clean and then blaming the rug isn't a way to endear yourself to the rug owner.

 

[sweendogg]

Remember most of the cotton backed rugs are tufted and as such its sometimes better to treat like you would a urine job in a house except you have a wool face fiber instead of the usual synthetic. If you pit washeda tufted synthetic carpet you would probably see delamination as well. for those types of rugs.. fire up your mighty vortex and have it.

 

[GRHeacock]

Maybe- just maybe, do it with a bonnet or encap system instead.

Gary

 

[Ron K]

You can pit wash these we do all the time with no problems. Like you said the back may look bad but the front is fine. If they are really dry and sound crackly and crunchy you might have to go with another method.

Elvis had a rug with a cotton back rug.... I don't think its worth 5.00 a foot anymore.

 

[rhyde]

LOL….You cant get a rug clean in 5 minutes most rugs aren’t even completely permeated with water in five minutes.

Qualify the client & wash it or throw it away.. but don’t surface clean a rug like this if it’s full of piss you’re doing a disservice to the client and your integrity. We used to wash all of these until the vortex now we wash really soiled ones with piss or other issues if not bad we offer extraction at a discounted price.


There’s a trick to making the backing look ..not so bad sometimes even good ..maybe I’ll post some pic later

 

[Mikey P]

Yeah well...



The backing is 90% loose and the latex is pure dust. Fringes are coming off and I'm pissed at you all for not warning me.



I quit.

 

[Terry]

how will you handle this problem in the future?, not take it or use hwe combo method, not doing very much with the back unless of course you fell very generous and put new canvas and latex backing

Terry

 

[Mikey P]

The Power of the Vortex.

 

[rhyde]

Yeah well...



The backing is 90% loose and the latex is pure dust. Fringes are coming off and I'm pissed at you all for not warning me.



I quit.

you hung it to dry didn't you.....

 

[Mikey P]

Nope, flat dried it on plastic pallets with air movers under it.


Give this hack some credit.

 

[Doug Cox]

Suddenly I'm not feeling like such a hack anymore.