Help needed for cleaning classroom rug!

[Byrd]

I have a very nice classroom rug from Lakeshore Learning that has been in my classroom for 4 years. Well since they only vaccuum once a week,I do borrow the vaccuum and clean it a couple of times too, it was starting to look dirty.

I had my husband bring our Hoover carpet cleaner to school Friday afternoon to clean it before leaving. I thought it would take me 30 minutes. This rug is divided into squares with the 1st row purple, next row blue, then green, orange and last red.

I started on the orange row and after a minute of two I look and there is blacklike smears all over the area I'm cleaning! I panic! I keep cleaning that area and it is finally coming up. Time to empty the tank. It was dirt and practically mud! It took me an hour to clean just the orange row. Now I'm out of cleaner and it is time to leave due to the school alarm being set in a few minutes. I still have 4/5 ths of the rug to clean.

When I got home my husband said if it was that dirty I should have just rolled it up, put it in the car, and we could powerwash it on the driveway!

I dread cleaning the rest of that rug! It will take days! Should I take my husband up on the offer? It sounds crazy, but it might work.

Please tell me how to clean this without spending hours and hours, on this.

 

[eeyore45]

No expert - but I'd take dh up on his offer and powerwash it!!

Doesnt most rug cleaners push the dirt through to the bottom, then pull it up again? So if you power wash, you dont need to pull up the dirt, just throw it down the driveway??

I would think it would take a very long time to dry... maybe after powerwash use the machine to pull up some of the water???

Good Luck - I'm sure it will work out beautifully!!

 

[waltsgirl]

I would take it to a professional to have it cleaned.

 

[AprilShowers]

Yep, I'd call a professional carpet cleaner and have them do it. It won't cost that much for an area rug. They just steam cleaned the store for me for $100. Only took an hour.

 

[minnieandtink]

I tend to prefer to clean mine myself for that reason. I can clean it until I am satisfied that I have gotten all the grime out. It may take longer the first time but do it more often and it will not take that long. Good Luck!

 

[Byrd]

The school won't pay to have it cleaned and I want it cleaned I have to take the responsibility. I don't think I could get anyone in to clean it for the miles they would have to drive for the cost that will keep it reasonable.

I will keep trying to find a good solution to this problem. I just didn't realize just how dirty it was. I should have known as when I was my kitchen rugs every other week the water in the washing machine is very dirty. Of course it is nothing like the water I was getting up from the classroom rug!

If anyone has experience with this problem please let me know.
Thanks