What comes in on your boots
What the North Shore Leaves in a Rug
A North Shore rug collects a different mix than a rug downtown, mostly because of what's at the end of the street: forest, trails and a lot of dogs. Each of these needs its own step, and some of them only come out if they're dealt with in the right order.
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What's in the rug
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Where it usually comes from
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What we do
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What to expect
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Fine grey or brown silt |
Lynn Canyon, the Seymour trails, Mount Fromme, the dog's daily walk |
Remove as much as possible dry, before any wet cleaning |
Most of it comes out; silt that gets wet first turns to mud inside the pile |
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Fir and cedar needles |
Shoes, paws, a door left open in a windstorm |
Lifted out of the pile before cleaning, especially in shag and high pile |
They come out, but long pile hides them, so it takes a slow pass |
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Tree pitch (sap) |
Boot soles and dog paws after a walk under the conifers |
A spot treatment chosen for the fibre, tested on wool first |
Small spots usually lift; old, hardened pitch can leave a faint mark |
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Wet dog smell |
A dog that lies on the rug after rain |
Cleaning matched to the fibre, then a full dry |
The smell goes once the rug is clean and dry right through |
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Pet urine |
Accidents, often by the back door |
Pet urine treatment, priced separately |
The odour usually goes, unless urine soaked into the pad or the floor |
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Dark spots on the backing |
A rug that stayed damp on a cold floor |
We look before cleaning |
If it looks like mould, we stop and point you to a mould remediation company; we don't do mould removal |
If you’ve already tried something on a pitch spot or a stain, tell us what it was. Some household solvents spread pitch further into the fibre, and that changes how we treat it.
Dry first, then wet
Why We Get the Grit Out Before the Rug Gets Wet
The order matters more on the North Shore than almost anywhere else we work. A rug full of fine trail silt can look only a little dull, but once water hits that silt, it turns into a thin mud that settles at the base of the pile. So every visit follows the same five steps.
Read the back
We turn the rug over to see how it was made and what it’s made of. A label, if there is one, tells us the fibre.
Get the dry soil out
Silt, grit and needles come out before anything wet touches the rug. On a rug that sits by the door, this is the step that changes how it looks most.
Treat the spots
Pitch, pet urine and spills each get their own treatment, tested first on wool and anything brightly dyed.
Clean to suit the fibre
Hot water extraction for synthetic rugs that can take it; low moisture and WoolSafe Approved products for wool and hand-tufted rugs with glued backings.
Groom and set it to dry
The pile is brushed so it dries even, and you get drying advice for your room and the floor under the rug.
Canvas glued over the back?
Mention it when you book. That’s a hand-tufted rug, and the glue under the canvas softens and smells if it’s soaked, so it only ever gets the low-moisture method.
Priced by size
What Rug Cleaning Costs in North Vancouver
North Vancouver is inside our core service area, so rugs are priced the same as in Vancouver, with no bridge surcharge. You can work the number out yourself from the rug's size.
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Service
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Price
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Area rug cleaning |
$10 per 10 sq ft |
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Pet urine treatment |
Priced separately |
The price is confirmed at your door, after we’ve seen the rug, and nothing goes on your bill without your agreement.
A few examples
To make the rate easier to picture, here’s how common sizes work out:
Hallway runner, 2.5 by 8 ft
20 sq ft, $20
Bedroom rug, 5 by 8 ft
40 sq ft, $40
Living room rug, 8 by 10 ft
80 sq ft, $80
The wet months
Drying a Rug Under the Trees
Most rugs dry in 4 to 8 hours. On the North Shore, two things push a rug toward the long end of that from October onward: more rain than the city gets across the water, and houses that sit in the shade of tall firs and cedars for much of the day. Upper Lonsdale, Lynn Valley, Edgemont and Deep Cove have plenty of both.
Where the rug dries matters as much as how long:
- Upstairs beats the basement: If you have the choice, dry the rug on a main floor rather than in a below-grade room in Lynn Valley or Seymour.
- Air beats heat: A fan or a dehumidifier does more than turning the thermostat up.
- Off the floor until it's dry right through: The pile dries before the backing does, and a backing that's still damp can mark a hardwood finish.
- Keep the dog off it: Until it's dry. A clean rug that gets a wet dog on it the same evening picks the smell straight back up.
Before we cross the bridge
Four Things to Tell Us When You Book
We come from our office on Seymour Street, over the Lions Gate or the Ironworkers depending on where you are, so a few answers up front save a second trip.
Which side you're on
West of the Lynn or east of it. It tells us which bridge, and which half of the day, works best.
Each rug's size and a photo of the back
Length by width is enough. The back shows how the rug was made.
What gets tracked in
A trail dog, kids in muddy boots, a back door onto the garden. It tells us how much dry soil to expect.
Building access, if you're in a condo
Elevator booking, the buzzer number, and where a service vehicle can park. Around Lonsdale Quay and the Shipyards, parking is tight, so this one matters.
Same visit
Do the Sofa or the Carpet While We're Here
If the dog sleeps on the rug, it probably sleeps on the sofa too. Doing both in one visit means one bridge crossing and one afternoon of drying.
Upholstery cleaning
The fabric code is checked before anything else, and dog hair and wet dog smell come out of fabric the same way they come out of a rug.
Home carpet cleaning
Bedrooms, hallways and the short runs of stairs North Shore hillside houses tend to have. Three rooms and a hallway start at $129.
For everything else we do on the North Shore, see carpet cleaning in North Vancouver.
City and District
Where We Clean Rugs in North Vancouver
We clean rugs across both the City and the District of North Vancouver, from the condos by the water to the end of the road in Deep Cove.
- The City: Lower Lonsdale, Central Lonsdale, and the streets around the Shipyards and Lonsdale Quay
- District, west side: Edgemont, Upper Capilano, Canyon Heights, Pemberton Heights, Delbrook and Upper Lonsdale
- District, east side: Lynn Valley, Lynn Creek, Maplewood, Seymour, Dollarton, Deep Cove and Cove Cliff
Other areas we serve
Rug cleaning pages for nearby cities, and service area pages for the rest.
Book a visit
Book Rug Cleaning in North Vancouver
Send a photo of the rug and its back, the rough size, and which side of the Lynn you’re on. You’ll get the price on the phone, confirmed at your door.
