Tufted Rug Repair

We have a wool rug in our back entry hall that I bought about 15 years ago (I don't even remember where- maybe Marshall's Home Goods?) to replace a degrading polypropylene runner. This rug fits the back hall and adjacent boot mats perfectly as it's 23.5" wide and 64" long. For some time, it's been beginning to fall apart on the back of the rug, both the twill tape on the edges and the backing loosening from the rug and generating dust beneath it. I'd tried to hand sew the twill tape back on, but it just wasn't holding. It's pretty common with these types of rugs that the latex glue they use is pretty low quality, and that crushed rock dust is mixed in to use less glue. I started shopping for a replacement, but finding a wool rug with these dimensions proved impossible. I ordered one off Amazon listed as 27" wide, but when it arrived it was actually 28.5" wide and didn't fit. I had to package it up again and return it. 

I decided to try to rehab our current rug. With a little research, I learned that there are few types of rug adhesives that can be used. I bought this quart of Roberts 6700 at Home Depot for $12.

I removed the twill tape and backing from the rug, which was pretty easy as the previous adhesive was pretty well shot. I vacuumed the back of the rug with our utility vac to get as much dust and old adhesive as I could.

Pulling backing away

Backing removed

I used a disposable plastic putty knife to apply an even coat of the adhesive across the entire back of the rug, then carefully laid the backing down again, smoothing it and lining it up well. Definitely needed rubber gloves. I let a fan blow on it for 24 hours, then the next night used my hot glue gun to adhere the twill tape around the edges, and let it dry under the fan for another 24 hours. 

After repairing

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