Five of grandmother's tricks for cleaning a rug, from everyday upkeep to potato peelings, by way of sparkling water, white vinegar and shaving foam. Simple remedies for a textile that collects dust and dust mites.
Vacuum often
If you would rather not face a full deep clean twice a year, treat your rug as an everyday job: running the vacuum over it twice a week on the brush setting is about the easiest habit there is. One caveat — on an old or fragile rug, skip the brush setting, which will damage it, and vacuum gently instead.
An infusion of potato peelings
If calling in a professional to restore your rug is out of reach, brew a concentrated infusion of potato peelings and scrub the rug with a sponge soaked in it. Leave it to work for a few hours, rinse with clean water and a sponge, then let it dry without walking over it.
Sparkling water and bicarbonate of soda
If your rug has lost its original colour and shows a few marks, sponge it with sparkling water and scrub gently with a brush. Let it dry for half an hour, dust bicarbonate of soda over the whole surface, and once the bicarbonate is dry, vacuum it up.
Washing-up liquid and white vinegar
If the rug is dirty or marked with grease, pour white vinegar onto a clean cloth, rub the stain and leave it for 15 minutes. Then whip water and washing-up liquid into a foam (an electric beater or a whisk will do), work it into the rug with a brush, rinse with clean water, wipe with a clean cloth and let it dry.
Shaving foam on a stained rug
Surprising as it sounds, shaving foam is a real ally for lifting stains out of textiles: spread it on thickly, leave it at least an hour, then scrub hard with a sponge — or leave it overnight and vacuum in the morning.
