05/01/2019

Why Does My Oriental Rug Have White Knots?

When you first brought your Oriental Rug home, you were mesmerized by it.  You loved the way it looked both in the room and with the décor, and you were so pleased by the warmth and color it added to the space.  Fast forward a few years and now your beautiful rug has seen a couple cleanings, has some wear, and is now showing little white knots.  Is there something wrong with the pile? Or the dye? Just what gives?

The little white knots are rug foundation fiber tie off points and are part of the weaving process.  There are two reasons for tie off points: first, the fibers come in various lengths, so pieces need to be knotted together to make the proper length; and second, sometimes a foundational fiber will break during the building process.  To keep the foundation strong, pieces will need to be spliced together, and that creates additional knots.  The weaving process continues, and the knots become camouflaged by the longer pile.  While the rug is new and has seen little use, the longer pile continues to hide the knots, but with wear, age, and cleaning, the knots become visible.

Why is it that these white knots show up immediately after a cleaning?  Before the cleaning process, they were concealed by dirt and soil.  The cleaning process removes the dirt and grime, making the knots more noticeable.  There’s not much you can do about these little white knots but realize they are a normal part of using an Oriental Rug.  If they really trouble you, a professional might be able to push them through to the backside of the rug.  Another option might be to touch up the areas with dye or color, but this is only a temporary solution.  In either case, call Greg at 336-804-0045 for guidance. One final word of caution -- never cut any of these knots because you could end up making a hole in the foundation of the rug. 

Oriental Rugs are one-of-a-kind handmade unique pieces of art, and as a result, they are going to display distinctive characteristics.  If you can accept the fact that the white knots are simply part of the rug’s aging process, great!  If not, check out the solutions listed above.  Of course, no matter what you decide, A Cleaner World is here to help you keep your rugs clean and ready for whatever comes your way. Learn more about our Oriental & Persian Rug Cleaning.