If you are still unsure if your carpet is vegetable dyed after reading
this post, bring photographs of your rug to our RugRag Forum!
In using the Rug Estimator Pro, if you don't know for sure about the dyes in your rug, select "No/Don't Know." Newer rugs are considered by many to be vegetable dyed if in fact 85% or more of the dyed wool is veggie dyed. Certain colors are not easily attained by natural dyes.
There is much debate about which is the superior dyeing technique - veggie or chemical. The bottom line depends on the colors used. Both veggie dye and chemical may run, and both can be colorfast. Veggie dyes tend to be more labor intensive and require a much more intimate technique. Nonetheless, vegetable dye is usually more costly.
Truly the best and most accurate way to check for your rugs type of dye is to purchase from a reputable dealer, and ask him outright what types of dyes are used. Unless they are the manufacturer or importer, they may not even know. Less reputable sellers may claim a rug to be veggie dyed even if the rug only has a fraction of a percent veggie dye or even none at all! Again, unless you are absolutely certain, the majority of rugs produced post 1900 are in fact synthetic dyes.
Again, for purposes of the Rug Estimator Tool, only use this selection if you are 100% certain that your rug is made with vegetable dyes.