Frequently asked questions
Thirty answers.
One honest atelier.
Forty-seven years.
Cleaning, repair, pickup, pricing, insurance — everything our customers ask first. If your question isn’t here, call us at (650) 675-8160 or send a message.
Cleaning
Eight cleaning questions.
How often should I have my rug cleaned?
Every three to five years for a wool rug in normal household use. Every two to three years for a high-traffic entry rug. Every five to seven for a low-traffic display piece. Vacuuming every two weeks and rotating one hundred eighty degrees twice a year is the most important care between professional washes.
How long does the process take?
Seven to ten business days door-to-door for wool. Ten to fourteen business days for silk — silk cannot be rushed through drying. Antique rugs are quoted on inspection but generally fall in the ten-to-fourteen window.
Will the colors bleed?
Every color field is swabbed and tested for fugitivity before a drop of water touches the rug. Silk acid dyes and certain late-19th-century synthetic dyes are the most reactive. We test, then choose the wash plan. Bleed-free on every silk we have washed in forty-seven years.
Do you steam clean?
No. We hand-wash by full immersion in cold filtered water. Steam cleaning applies hot water and detergent to the surface of the rug while it is on your floor — it cleans the top thirty percent of the pile and can set or bleed dye under heat. Our process gets every fiber from warp to tip.
What soap do you use?
WoolSafe-approved, biodegradable, fluorochemical-free wool shampoo for wool. pH-5.5 textile-grade silk soap for silk. Cold filtered water for both. No detergent, no enzyme cleaner, no oxidizing agent on the field of the rug.
Can you remove pet stains and odor?
Yes. Full immersion is the only way to extract pet urine from the foundation of the rug, where the odor lives. We pre-treat with an enzyme dwell, full-wash, and finish with an odor-neutralizer in the rinse. See pet odor removal ›
Can you clean an antique rug?
Yes — antique work is one of our deepest specialties. The protocol is the same cold-water hand-wash but with extra documentation, stated-value insurance, and a written certificate of cleaning. See antique rug cleaning ›
Do you offer a guarantee?
Yes. If a spot was missed, a fringe could have been cleaner, anything you are not satisfied with — bring it back, we redo it, no charge. The guarantee has been the same since 1978.
Repair
Six repair questions.
What kinds of repair do you do?
All ten common repair types: fringe repair, overcasting, resizing, restoration, knot-by-knot reweaving and patching, serging and binding, leather edge work, color re-dying, color run removal, and moth damage repair. See all repair services ›
How long does a reweave take?
Depends on the size of the missing pile and the knot density. A four-by-four-inch reweave on a Persian rug at 200 KPSI takes about a day; a one-foot-by-three-foot reweave can take three to four weeks. We quote each project after inspection.
Can you repair a rug with moth damage?
Yes. The work is treatment plus reweaving plus moth-proofing. We kill the active infestation with a cold-water wash, reweave the pile loss knot-by-knot, then apply a natural moth repellent. See moth damage repair ›
Will the repair be invisible?
On a hand-knotted wool or silk rug with matched yarn, an experienced reweave is invisible from a foot away and very difficult to detect on the back. On machine-made rugs the reweave will not be invisible — we are honest about that on inspection.
Can you fix a rug that has curled corners or is not lying flat?
Yes. Curled corners are a foundation issue and are flattened with a steam-and-stretch on the bench. Persistent waves or bubbles need a partial reweave to re-tension the wefts. Both are quoted after inspection.
Do you do insurance work?
Yes. We document damage with photographs, prepare a written restoration estimate, and bill the insurer direct on approval. Most homeowners’ policies cover sudden accidental damage; check your specific rider.
Pickup & delivery
Six pickup questions.
Is pickup and delivery really free?
Yes — free across the entire Bay Area from Sonoma down to South San Jose. No minimum, no surcharge, no fuel fee. Even on a single small rug.
How does pickup work?
You book online or by phone. We confirm a two-hour window. Our team arrives, helps move furniture if needed, rolls the rug onto a protective tube, walks it to the truck, and gives you a written receipt with stated value for insurance. Same in reverse on delivery.
Do I need to do anything before pickup?
Vacuum if you can. Move small items off the rug. Note any active stains so the team can flag them at intake. That’s it.
What is your service area?
San Francisco, the Peninsula (Daly City to Mountain View), the East Bay (Berkeley to San Ramon), the South Bay (San Jose to Gilroy), and the North Bay (Marin and Sonoma counties). See all 90+ service areas ›
Can I drop off at the shop instead?
Yes. The Newark atelier has street-level loading. We will help unload from your car and walk the rug to the bench for inspection. Hours are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Is the rug insured during pickup?
Yes — every pickup is covered under our stated-value insurance rider. The value is agreed on intake. Our insurance pays at full stated value for any loss or damage in transit or on the bench.
Pricing & payment
Five pricing questions.
How much does cleaning cost?
Pricing is per square foot, varies by fiber and knot density, and is always quoted in writing after inspection. Wool starts at one price, silk and antique are higher. There is no obligation on the estimate. See our pricing approach ›
Do you offer a written estimate?
Yes. Every job gets a written estimate by email after inspection — before any work begins. The estimate is itemized: cleaning, fringe, repair, treatments, pickup if applicable. Final invoice never exceeds the estimate without your written approval.
What forms of payment do you accept?
Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, Apple Pay, and check. Insurance billed direct on approved restoration claims. Trade and design partners are invoiced net 30.
Are there active coupons?
Yes. We run a winter special, a spring two-rug bundle, and a first-time customer discount most months. See current coupons ›
When do I pay?
On delivery. The rug is laid back into your room before any payment is exchanged. If you are not satisfied, you do not pay until we have addressed it.
Insurance & specialty
Five insurance questions.
Do you do appraisals?
Yes. Certified written appraisals for insurance, estate, probate or trade resale. Documents origin, age, knot count, materials, condition and replacement value. See appraisal service ›
Will my homeowner’s insurance cover restoration?
Often, yes — sudden accidental damage (water, fire, smoke, sewer, pet incident) and named perils are typically covered. Slow wear-and-tear is not. We document for the claim, prepare the estimate, and bill direct on approval.
Do you offer climate-controlled storage?
Yes. Moth-safe, climate-controlled storage in our Newark facility for short-term (renovation, staging) or long-term (estate, second-home seasonal) needs. See storage service ›
Can you treat a rug for moths or moth-proof a clean rug?
Yes to both. Active infestations are killed by the cold-water wash and a thermal pass. Preventive moth-proofing is a natural lanolin-safe treatment good for twelve months. See moth repellent ›
Do you sell rugs?
No. We are a single-discipline atelier — cleaning, repair, appraisal, storage, protection. The discipline focus is the point. More on our positioning ›
Still have a question?
Call us. We pick up the phone.
A real person at the atelier answers Monday through Friday, nine to five. Evenings and weekends, leave a voicemail and we call back the next business morning.
Ready to book?
The next step is the easy one.
Tell us about your rug. Free pickup within 24 hours. Written estimate before any work.