1. How often should you clean area rugs?

a) Once a quarter

b) Twice a year

c) Once a year

c) While vacuuming area rugs is fine for typical maintenance, it doesn’t sterilize them, says Lynch. For that, you’ll need to use a steam vacuum, which you should do at least once a year for rugs that get regular traffic. Just be sure to dry-vacuum first — otherwise, you’ll make mud, “and mud is much harder to remove than dry dirt,” says Bruce Vance.

The rest of the time, says Richardson, the rule of thumb is to vacuum rugs on a weekly basis. In rooms that don’t get a lot of use, you can go about two weeks. Regular vacuuming prevents dirt from building up in the rug and ultimately breaking it down.