★★★★★ 5.0 from 440+ Google reviews · Family-owned San Diego rug cleaning since 1956
A wooden-handled brush spreading white cleaning foam across a red and blue patterned Oriental rug during a hand wash.

Antique Rug Cleaning & Restoration in San Diego

Antique rug cleaning rewards a patient hand and a trained eye, and our family has washed fine rugs exactly that way, by hand, since 1956. An old rug carries the record of the loom it came from, its knots, its dyes, its wear, and it deserves to be read before it is touched.

Age changes everything. The foundation can be brittle, early vegetable dyes can bleed the moment they meet water, and a rug may already carry repairs from a previous owner. We test first, wash gently, and can rebuild worn fringe, edges, and thin spots so a piece you inherited is ready to hand down again.

  • ✓ Pickup and delivery across San Diego County
  • ✓ Full immersion hand washing, never surface scrubbing
  • ✓ Third generation family craftsmen since 1956
  • ✓ Free written estimates before any work starts
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No obligation · pickup & delivery countywide

The facts, in brief

Zeytounian Rug Cleaning & Repair is a family-owned rug cleaning and repair company founded in 1956.

Zeytounian Rug Cleaning & Repair cleans and restores Oriental, Persian, Turkish, wool, and silk rugs in San Diego, California.

Zeytounian Rug Cleaning & Repair washes every rug by hand at its Kearny Mesa storefront at 7343 Ronson Road, Suite U.

Zeytounian Rug Cleaning & Repair is run by the third generation of the Zeytounian family, brothers Alexander and Anthony.

Zeytounian Rug Cleaning & Repair cleans rugs through a nine-step full-immersion wash rather than surface steam cleaning.


San Diego Antique Rug Cleaning Specialists

The oldest rugs are also the least forgiving. A foundation woven a century ago can hide dry rot, the wool can be dry and brittle, and hand-ground dyes may sit only a wash away from running. That is why antique rug cleaning at our facility begins with testing, not soap. We read the age and condition of each piece, confirm the colors will hold, and then hand-wash slowly with all-natural soaps so the rug comes clean without any stress on the weave. Antique and Persian rug hand washing has been done this way at Zeytounian since 1956.

Why Antique Rugs Deserve Expert Care

An heirloom rug usually carries two kinds of value, the money it represents and the family it belongs to. For insurance or an estate, we can also prepare a written rug appraisal of what a piece is and what it is worth. Harsh detergents and high-pressure equipment can flatten those old dyes and pull apart a foundation that was already thinning, and none of that can be undone. Once a hundred-year-old warp snaps under pressure, it is gone.

Three generations of our family have cleaned and repaired antique rugs by hand since 1956, and that continuity matters with old weaving. Our artisans can reweave a worn field, secure a loose selvage, and rebuild fringe, so heirloom rug cleaning and antique rug restoration happen together on the same piece rather than in separate hands.

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Rug cleaning technician applying foam to a traditional Persian rug for deep cleaning.
Squeegee pushing foam across a blue rug patterned with fish

Antique Rug Types We Clean in San Diego

No two old rugs age the same way, so no two are washed the same way. Before any water touches an antique, we identify where and roughly when it was woven, then set the fiber-safe soap, water temperature, and handling to that specific piece.

We work regularly on hand-knotted and handwoven antiques of every origin, including Persian, Turkish, Afghan, Moroccan, Chinese, Caucasian, and Indian rugs, along with tribal kilims and flat weaves. Fine older pieces are the heart of what we do.

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Antique Persian Rugs

Old Persian rugs are hand-knotted in wool or silk and often colored with hand-ground vegetable dyes that were never meant to sit in water. Indigo and madder reds are the usual culprits for bleeding. We test every color on an antique Persian rug before washing, hold the water cool, and keep agitation light so the pile, the foundation, and the palette all come through the wash intact. These are among the most valuable pieces on our floor, and they are handled accordingly.

Antique Turkish, Caucasian & Tribal Rugs

Village and tribal antiques from Turkey, the Caucasus, and beyond were woven for daily life, so many arrive with genuine wear, old repairs, and soft, sun-touched colors that are part of their character. Flat-weave kilims add their own challenge, since a slotted, backless weave shows every misstep. We map the weave and any prior mending first, then wash by hand at a pace the piece can take, preserving the age and history the rug has earned rather than scrubbing it away.

Antique Wool Rugs

Wool from an older rug can behave two ways. Where the natural lanolin survives, it stays resilient and cleans beautifully, and full immersion brings the color and softness back. Where decades of dry heat have leached that oil out, the wool turns brittle and needs a gentler touch to avoid cracking fibers at the base of the knot. We judge which we are dealing with during inspection and adjust the wash so an antique wool rug is refreshed without pile loss or distortion.

Antique Silk Rugs

Antique silk is the most fragile thing we handle. The fibers are extremely fine, the dyes are often original and unstable, and heat or a strong chemical can dull the sheen for good. We hand-wash old silk with mild low-pH solutions, keep water pressure and heat off it entirely, and dry it slowly under watch. Cleaned this way, a silk rug keeps its luster, its drape, and the fine detail that made it worth keeping.

Vegetable-Dyed Antiques

Before synthetic dyes arrived, weavers colored wool with plants, insects, and minerals, and those early dyes are gorgeous and unpredictable in equal measure. A reactive red or blue can migrate into the ivory ground during a careless wash and leave a permanent stain. Colorfastness testing is not optional on these rugs. When a dye reads unstable, we switch to a controlled, low-moisture method that lifts the soil without letting the colors travel.

Rugs with Dry Rot or Prior Repairs

Some antiques come to us already fragile, with dry-rotted foundations from a long-ago flood, moth-eaten patches, or old repairs that no longer hold. A weak rug cannot survive an ordinary wash, so we stabilize it first. Our artisans can reweave lost knots, rebind edges, and rebuild fringe, turning a piece too fragile to use back into one you can put on the floor. Cleaning and antique rug restoration are done together, in the same shop, by the same hands.

Watch Our Wash Process

Before & After Rug Cleaning

Antique Persian rug with intricate floral patterns and signs of wear.

Hand knotted rug in soft beige and rose with a central star medallion

Medallion rug with a grey soiled cast laid out flat

Clean ivory medallion rug with apricot accents and white fringe laid out flat

What Changes When the Rug Is an Antique

Two points of our full nine step immersion wash process carry extra weight on an antique. Decades of dry grit are vibrated out of the foundation before any water is introduced, because once wet that grit sinks in as sediment no rinse pulls back out, and every early vegetable dye gets its own wet test before the bath, since one unstable red or indigo moves the whole piece to a gentler low-moisture cleaning. Any repair work is blended into the surrounding pile during finishing, so a rebuilt area sits down evenly with the rest of the rug.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, when the wash is built around the rug’s condition. We inspect the foundation first, test every dye, and keep the hand washing slow with all-natural soaps. A piece too fragile for immersion is stabilized by our repair artisans before cleaning, or cleaned by a low-moisture method instead.

Not if the dyes are tested first, which is why colorfastness testing is a fixed step in our process. Stable dyes go through the full immersion wash. If a color shows any tendency to run, we switch to a controlled low-moisture clean that keeps every color inside its own lines.

Yes. Our artisans reweave worn areas, secure loose selvages, and rebuild fringe in the same shop where the rug is washed. Repair and cleaning are planned together during the inspection, and finished repairs are blended into the surrounding pile before the rug goes home.

A dry-rotted foundation cannot survive an ordinary wash, so we stabilize the weak areas before anything else. The inspection tells us where the rot is, the repair work reinforces it, and only then does the rug move on to a wash matched to what the foundation can take.

We do. Pickup and delivery are available anywhere in San Diego County, and the rug is measured and quoted with a free estimate before any cleaning begins.

Authentic handmade rugs with intricate patterns and vibrant colors.

Testimonials from Our Clients

All Testimonials

Excellent
5.0
Jerman Ruiz
17 hours ago
Five stars! They cleaned my rug perfectly. Fast, professional, and I’d definitely recommend them.
Casandra Anders
2 days ago
Exceptional service that surpassed my expectations! They did an amazing job on my 35+ year-old area rug. Older stains I thought could never be removed, are gone! My rug looks like new, great experience from start to finish.
Melisa Mitchell
3 days ago
They really know what they are doing. I wouldn’t trust my hand knotted wool rugs to anyone else. They wash them the right way and your rugs are CLEAN!!!
nicole wyne
3 days ago
My rug was pretty gnarly from a bad coffee spill. I guess the rug was also in the show room for some time because it looks even brighter than when I bought it👌🏼 Thanks fellas!
Andy Nickerson
7 days ago
Amazing experience from start to finish. Tight communications & fast service. Great value.
James Endicott
1 week ago
Let me add my recommendation for Zeyrtounian Rug Cleaning to the list of happy customers . Zeyrtounian brothers were recommended by the couple Wiazi who repaired a very old and in poor shape Turkish rug (they did an amazing job) that has been in the family for almost 100 years. Zeyrtounian brothers brought the rug back to life. They gave me a great deal and completed the cleaning in a timely manner. They are both very friendly and want their customers satisfied. Highly recommended. James
Leonardo Perez
1 week ago
They are great to work with, honest and helpfull. I made the right choice specially when they revealed my rug was an authentic persian rug. Thank you for helping me out
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for the kind words, Leonardo! It was a pleasure working with you and helping you learn more about your rug. Discovering that you have an authentic Persian rug is always exciting, and we're glad we could share some of our knowledge with you! We take great pride in being honest, transparent, and helpful with every customer. We truly appreciate you choosing our family business and trusting us with your rug. We look forward to helping you again in the future!
Caitlin Kaplan
1 week ago
We had six rugs cleaned (including a large Persian Hamadan) plus new rug pads, with pickup and delivery. We hit some scheduling challenges on our end, and they were so understanding and helpful working around them, and never made us feel like a bother. The rugs came back beautiful. Really glad we went with a family business that clearly takes pride in the work. Highly recommend.
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for the thoughtful review, Caitlin! It was a pleasure working with you and caring for your beautiful rugs, especially your Persian Hamadan! We're so happy to hear that you're pleased with the cleaning and new rug pads. We understand that schedules can get hectic, and we're always happy to be as accommodating as possible. As a family-owned business, we take great pride in both our craftsmanship and the relationships we build with our customers. Your kind words and recommendation truly mean a lot to us. Thank you again for trusting us with your rugs!
Sharon Wasserman
1 week ago
The brothers are great. Service was very professional and within my budget. Highly recommend them.
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for the kind words, Sharon! We’re happy to hear you had a great experience with us. We truly appreciate your support and recommendation. It was a pleasure working with you, and we look forward to helping you again in the future!
Sharon Duke
2 weeks ago
Linda Beach
2 weeks ago
I can't enough about the brothers that own this business. Alex and Anthony are 3rd generation rug sellers, cleaners and offer repair services. Their knowledge of the various rugs is extensive. The business itself is a vast improvement over the prior vendor who serviced my rugs. They have a 9-step process for cleaning the rugs and the drying system ensures a good, dry, flat rug, without any evidence of trapped mildew or moisture. I have a lot of pets, my rug came home from the cleaning looking almost new. I've referred friends and neighbors, who want to maintain and preserve their Persian, Turkish, Afghani rugs to Zeytounian. Everything about the business it top of the line.
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for this incredible review, Linda! It truly means a lot to both of us that you recognize the care, knowledge, and attention to detail we put into our work. As a third-generation family business, we take great pride in continuing our family's tradition of caring for fine rugs. We're so happy to hear how pleased you are with the results! Your trust in us and your referrals to friends and neighbors mean more than you know. Thank you again for your continued support, and we look forward to caring for your rugs for many years to come!
Leticia Taufahema
3 weeks ago
They did a great job cleaning two of my Karastan rugs, I would highly recommend
Photo from customer review
Response from the owner:Thank you so much, Leticia! We're happy to hear you’re pleased with how your Karastan rugs turned out! We take great pride in caring for every rug that comes through our shop, and we truly appreciate you trusting us with yours. Thank you for your kind words and recommendation. We look forward to helping you again in the future!
Louise McDevitt
3 weeks ago
Zeytournian has been cleaning our area rugs for the last 30 yrs of pet stains, odors, and spilled drinks Have always been highly satisfied.
Response from the owner:Thank you so much, Louise! It truly means the world to us that you and your family have trusted ours with your rugs for the past 30 years! As a third-generation family business, we're incredibly grateful for longtime customers like you who have supported us throughout the years. We're so happy to hear that you've consistently been pleased with our work. Thank you again for your loyalty and continued trust in us!
Emily Cheney
4 weeks ago
Adore them. Never going anywhere else to have my rug cleaned
Response from the owner:Thanks Emily you're the BEST!
Jo\ Anne Hacker
4 weeks ago
Wow these guys are truly amazing. So friendly, competent, accommodating. Simply could not ask for more. And…my carpets are soooo clean!
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for the wonderful review, Jo-Anne! We're thrilled to hear how happy you are with your freshly cleaned rugs! We take great pride in not only delivering exceptional cleaning results but also making the entire experience as easy and enjoyable as possible. Your kind words truly mean a lot to us, and we're grateful you chose our family business. It was a pleasure working with you, and we look forward to caring for your rugs again in the future!
Shinar Zoldi
4 weeks ago
It was a medium wool area rug that needed cleaning as well as a repair in one of the corners. It’s an old repair that was unraveling and eaten by dry rot. Anthony and his crew were very upfront about what they can and can’t do, but it certainly exceeded my expectations. The rug looks beautiful. Thank you.
Photo from customer reviewPhoto from customer review
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for the wonderful review, Shinar! We're thrilled to hear that both the cleaning and corner repair exceeded your expectations. We always believe in being upfront and honest about what can realistically be accomplished, especially when working with older rugs that have existing damage. It means a lot to us that you trusted us with your rug, and we're so happy to hear how beautiful it turned out. Thank you again for your support, and we look forward to helping you in the future!
Jerry G
1 month ago
Brought in an Egyptian layer weave cotton rug to be treated prior to installation. The facility is run by the Zeytounian brothers, very friendly service and with suggestions for the care of the rug. I also purchased their recommended rug padding. They were helpful in unloading the loading the rug in my RAV4. Strongly recommend, no issues with the rug, it was beautiful. Photo attached. Any marks on the rug are from 3 and 5 year old grandchildren playing on it!!
Photo from customer review
Response from the owner:Thank you so much for the wonderful review, Jerry! It was a pleasure meeting you and helping you prepare your beautiful Egyptian cotton rug for your home. We're glad we could offer some helpful care recommendations and get you set up with the proper rug padding to protect it for years to come. We love hearing that your grandchildren are already enjoying it! After all, rugs are meant to be lived on and enjoyed. We truly appreciate your trust in us and your recommendation. Thank you again for supporting our family business!
Stewart Polk
1 month ago
I took our rug to Zeytounuan Rugs for cleaning after watching their short video. The rug is gold and ivory, and one foot on either side of the rug was dark brown from dirt. When I left it with Anthony I was hopeful that I may see some color where the walking paths were. Eight days after leaving the rug Anthony called to say the rug was ready for collection. I took it home and opened what looked like a new rug! The colors were bright and it is so, so very clean. You could never tell the rug is 20 years old. So happy!
Response from the owner:Thank you, Stewart. Twenty years of foot traffic on gold and ivory is about the hardest thing anyone hands us, so getting the colour back out of it was satisfying on our end too. Glad the video brought you in, and Anthony will be pleased.
Marcia Sorini
1 month ago
Zeytounian Rug Cleaning and Repair have been my go to rug cleaners for the past 25 years. Kind, courteous, timely and through. My rugs are beautiful and will last forever with the care the Zeytounian family gives them. Call them now!?♥️♥️♥️
Response from the owner:Thank you, Marcia. Twenty five years of rugs between us is something we don't take lightly. Looking after them so they outlast all of us is the whole idea. We appreciate you saying so.
Sarah Federman
1 month ago
Loved working with them. Not only did our rugs come back beautiful and clean, they taught us more about the history of the carpets. Ours was likely woven by two women over 100 years ago in Persia. They say it took them two years. I feel more connected to these women.
Response from the owner:Thank you, Sarah. Reading where a rug came from is half the pleasure of this work, and a piece like yours carries a lot of hours in it. Glad it came back clean and that you know a little more about it now. We appreciate you taking the time.
Adrian Montfort
1 month ago
This is one of those dying breed of amazing family businesses that make this country great. Friendly service, that old school way of doing business where you feel understood and appreciated. Cleaning service was great and delivered on time, communication was beyond great. I absolutely recommend this place for area rug cleaning.
Photo from customer review
Response from the owner:Thank you, Adrian. Three generations in, the old school way is really the only way we know. Glad the rug came back on time and that you always knew where things stood. We appreciate the recommendation.
Adam Salter
1 month ago
Zeytounian Rugs did a great job repairing and cleaning a Turkish rug I’ve had since I was a teenager. The corner has been chewed and damaged by my dog many years ago, but they fixed it right up. After the repair and a clean it looks like new, I’m so pleased. The guys are super friendly and knowledgeable, just a pleasure to work with.
Response from the owner:Thank you, Adam. A chewed corner on a rug you've had that long is worth repairing properly rather than hiding, and Turkish weaves take the repair well. Glad it looks like new again.
Reid Perry
2 months ago
Friendly, professional, hardworking brothers. Had two chinese ivory wool rugs cleaned. One large one smaller. One with a few spots i did not think they could get out, but they did. Very pleased. Would highly recommend them.
Response from the owner:Thank you, Reid. Ivory wool is unforgiving, so spots on it are the ones people assume are permanent. Glad we could prove otherwise on both. We appreciate the recommendation.
Vincent Carson
2 months ago
Knowledgeable, hardworking, kind, and professional. What else can I say.
Response from the owner:Thank you, Vincent. That's plenty to say, and we appreciate you taking the time.
patricia arbaugh
2 months ago
I had three rugs cleaned and service was outstanding! Very professional and personable. My rugs look brand new! Repaired fringe on one of my rugs and did an excellent job. Pick up and drop off is so convenient! Would highly recommend!!!
Response from the owner:Thank you, Patricia. Fringe repair is slow work and it's the detail most people notice afterwards, so it's good to hear it came out right. Glad the pickup and drop off made it easy. Three rugs at once is our favourite kind of day.

What Changes When the Rug Is an Antique

Antique handling compared with a standard wash
  Antique and heirloom rug Newer rug
Foundation Already thinning, and a hundred year old warp that snaps under pressure is gone for good Sound foundation with more tolerance
Dyes Old dyes flatten under harsh detergents and high pressure, and none of it can be undone More stable under a standard wash
Equipment Hand washing only, no high pressure equipment Hand washing, wash read to the fiber
Repair alongside cleaning Worn field rewoven, loose selvage secured and fringe rebuilt on the same piece Cleaning usually stands alone
Who handles it Three generations of the same family, by hand since 1956 The same facility, same hands

Related Rug Cleaning Services

Persian Rug Cleaning · Silk Rug Cleaning · Rug Restoration · Request a free estimate

Contact Us for Professional Antique Rug Cleaning

★★★★★ 5.0 · Google Reviews

Drop your rug off, or we can pick it up. Our shop is at 7343 Ronson Rd Ste U in Kearny Mesa, open Monday to Friday 9 to 4 and Saturday 9 to 2. Coming by freeway, Kearny Mesa connects straight off Highway 52 and Interstate 805, and the drive runs about twenty minutes from Coronado, twenty-five from Chula Vista, and twenty-five from Encinitas.

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