If your home has suffered fire or smoke damage, you may worry that your rugs will never be the same again. Soot and ash can cover everything in the house and the smell of smoke can linger in the air for months. But there’s still hope for your favourite rugs. Keep reading for some tips on how to restore a rug affected by soot or ash.

Soot, Ash, Your Home and Your Health

Soot can cause problems even if your home wasn’t directly affected by the fire. Fires in nearby homes and buildings can release soot and ash into the air, which can then enter your home through windows, doors and even your HVAC system. Once inside it can settle on the rugs, textiles and upholstered furnishings throughout your house. When inhaled, soot is known to cause sinus irritation and aggravate asthma symptoms. If your home has been exposed to a large amount of soot and ash, call Babayan’s in Toronto for professional carpet, upholstery and duct cleaning today.

Cleaning Up Soot and Ash

Once soot and ash have settled on your rugs, it’s important to act quickly. The longer you wait to start cleanup and fire restoration inside your home, the worse the damage will be. Soot and ash are both highly acidic and can eat away at a carpet’s fibers and cause irreversible discolouration. The following steps can help you minimize the damage caused by soot and ash and save your rugs:

1. Open windows to ensure proper ventilation.
2. Wear a dust mask to avoid inhaling fine soot particles.
3. Thoroughly dry any wet carpeting.
4. Sprinkle an absorbent powder like baby powder, cornstarch or baking soda over the affected area. Allow resting for one hour.
5. Gently vacuum the powder with a hose attachment. Do not use an upright vacuum with a beater bar or you risk pushing the soot further into the carpet.
6. Apply a small amount of carpet cleaning solution to heavily stained areas.
7. Gently blot stained areas with dry cloth. Do not rub or you’ll only make the stain worse.
8. Repeat steps six and seven as necessary.
9. Allow the carpet or rug to dry completely before walking on it.

If you’ve tried the above and your rug is still in need of repair, enlist the help of the friendly and professional carpet cleaning experts at Babayan’s. With over 115 years in business, we know exactly what your soot-stained rug needs in order to look its best again.