Washing carpets

Finland is a cold place in winter and that is why practically all Finnish homes have carpets on the floor. Because of the clumsy shoes in the winter and dirty weathers in the spring and autumn it is customary not to wear shoes at home. I did not even realize there was something funny about that before we had foreign visitors. Some people use soft shoes to keep warm but I always walk around barefoot, summer and winter.

The carpets get dirty eventually and summer is usually the time to wash them. Part of the carpets are not allowed to be washed with water and they have to be left to the cleaners, but usually all homes have home-made carpets also; at least inherited from parents or grandparents. They are made with a loom:

My mother had one and it is now in my storage in small pieces but I have never put it up. When I was younger and lived at home I have made carpets or more like rugs with that.

Last summer Piitu was a puppy and we took the carpets off. It was much simpler that way. Her little accidents were easier to clean. That is why it has taken two years since my last carpet wash. Last Sunday my son’s girlfriend came to the conclusion that their carpets needed washing and I joined them to wash the few we had stored for cleaning. There are rules concerning the washing. It has to be eco-friendly and that is why we usually use soap made of pine oil. In the old times it was always solid, but now there is also a liquid version.

My home town Kaarina has arranged places where people can wash the carpets and the water used does not go to the nature but the sewer system.

Here are some happy washers

A pleasant surprise was a mangle which had appeared since my last visit. It took at least half of the weight of the wet carpets.

Afterwards we left the carpets dripping for a while and went home to get some plastic for the boot of the car. Of course we had forgotten that :)

With this weather, sunny and a bit windy, the carpets were dry in one day hanging outside in our back yard. Now I think I have to clean the floors first to let the wonderful pine smell of the clean carpets take over my home.