How to Protect Your Carpet
Carpet is a beautiful and functional flooring type that has been enjoyed by homeowners for centuries. While luxury vinyl and other surfaces have become immensely popular in recent years, carpet has a warmth and comfort that is tough to recreate with any other material.
Unlike more durable flooring types, carpets can be extremely susceptible to damage. Its fragile, porous nature allows for liquids and stains to set more easily, and its texture can easily be altered by repetitive friction, especially in high-traffic areas. The key to preserving your carpet and extending its lifespan is properly protecting it against different situations that ultimately occur.
Here, we’ll look at some of the most common causes of carpet damage and what steps you can take to protect against them.
What Can Damage My Carpet?
As mentioned, carpet is more fragile than other flooring types and there are several things that can cause lasting damage. While carpet may not be the longest-lasting flooring material, it should still last for many years. Identifying common culprits of damage can help you take the preventative action you need to extend its life. Some of these include:
- Everyday Wear and Tear
- Pet Waste
- Furniture
- Home Projects
Protecting Your Carpet From Personal Use
The everyday wear and tear that your home goes through is undoubtedly the greatest factor in carpet damage. While you certainly can’t prevent normal use, you can take steps to prevent permanent damage. Here are some tips you can use to help protect your carpet.
Wear and Tear From Foot Traffic
Dirty shoes can bring an astonishing amount of dirt into your home. If not addressed, this will cause some serious staining on your carpet. Taking your shoes off at the door is the simplest method to maintain a clean carpet.
Consider turning your entrance into a mudroom where all outdoor footwear can be left. If your home is carpeted all the way up to the front door, you can place a shoe rack or boot tray to hold your family’s dirty footwear.
Excess traffic can also cause the carpet fibers to matt over time. Consider changing the layout of your furniture regularly so that new walking patterns are created around the home.
Children
Many homeowners choose to install carpeting for the comfort it provides for their children. Children love playing on the floor with their toys, and this can be quite uncomfortable if the floor is a hard surface such as hardwood. However, children can also be quite messy, leading to increased staining and damage to your carpet.
An easy way to reduce this damage is to install area rugs in their favorite play places. These rugs are much more affordable than commercial carpets bought from a distributor and easier to clean. Additionally, consider avoiding letting children eat snacks or meals over the carpet.
How to Protect Your Carpet During a Party
Everyone loves a party, but not the cleanup. If you’re planning a large gathering at your house, you may be concerned about the impact it’ll have on your carpet. The easiest way to prevent accidental spills is by having the party outdoors if the space and weather allow. If the party must be indoors, ensure that there are enough tables for everyone’s glasses and dishware so that spills are avoided.
While it may be an expensive investment, purchasing carpet protection film or shields may be worth it if you entertain often. These will help preserve your carpet entirely against accidental spills and excess traffic.
Protecting Your Carpeting From Pets
Pets are a lovely addition to any family, but they’re also a huge cause of carpet-related damage. From excess shedding to pet stains caused by bodily fluids, you’ve got your work cut out for you. While stains can never be predicted, taking a proactive approach to clean them will eliminate any issues. Knowing what cleaning solutions to use is critical.
How to Protect Your Carpet From Dog Pee?
Any animal urine that finds its way onto your carpet can be easily cleaned with a simple solution of ingredients found in your pantry: water, vinegar, and baking soda. The steps for cleaning it are straightforward:
- Soak up any excess pooled liquids
- Mix a solution of one cup of water, one cup of vinegar, and two teaspoons of baking soda
- Place in a spray bottle and apply to carpet until damp
- Allow to soak in for 5-10 minutes
- Blot with wet towels to rinse the area
- Blot with a clean, dry cloth until dry
Never use consumer steam cleaners or hot water with urine. This will only cause the smell to worsen and the stain to set faster.
It’s also worth noting that this ratio of water to vinegar will work well for bleach spots on your carpet. If you get to a bleach spot immediately, vinegar will stop the damaging process. However, you will still need to repair the carpet by redyeing it.
Source: OShousecleaning.com
How to Protect Your Carpet From Cats?
The process for cleaning cat urine is exactly the same as dogs, but what do you do about their overactive claws? Cats love to pull at anything that can become loose, and your carpet is no exception.
To prevent your carpet fibers from upending, purchase cat trees and toys that allow your pets a designated space to get this out of their system. Otherwise, they’ll likely be using your carpet and furniture instead.
Protecting Your Carpet From Furniture
Due to its weight, furniture can do a number on your home’s carpeting. This is a continuous inconvenience that you’ll have to deal with, as you surely can’t live in a home without furniture. Luckily, with just minimal effort, you can take steps towards safeguarding the impact your furniture leaves.
How to Protect Your Carpet From Heavy Furniture
Heavy furniture demands the most attention. No matter how light your couch or tables are, they’ll leave impressions on the carpet that can be difficult to reverse if they have been set too long. If left unaddressed, these impressions can leave ugly, matted flat spots on the carpet. There are two primary approaches you can take to lessen these spots:
- Furniture Padding: Furniture pads are placed underneath the legs of the furniture to help disperse the weight. Instead of it being centrally focused in one small area, it will be spread across a larger space, reducing the depth of the indentations.
- Moving Furniture Often: Instead of letting the furniture simply stay in one place, frequently shift it. Even the slightest change can help spread the wear across a larger floor space, drastically reducing the impressions that are made. It can also be a fun way to spruce up your living environment.
Source: Hunker.com (Article: How to Protect a Carpet From Heavy Furniture)
How to Protect Your Carpet From Office Chairs
Office chairs can be tricky on carpeting because of the rollers. If you work from home or use your office regularly, you likely noticed that these chairs may quickly leave marks. The best way to stop these marks is by placing an office chair pad at your workstation. These floor mats completely eliminate roller marks, and they also allow your chair to move better.
Home Remodeling: How to Protect Your Carpet When Painting
Home renovations open your carpet up to a whole range of damage, from snags and tears to spilled paint. If you’re conducting any significant work on your home, it’s highly recommended to invest in carpet protection films. These rolls of clear, cellophane-like material will safely cover your entire carpet so not a drop of paint gets on it.
3 Tips on How to Protect Your Carpet From Stains
Inevitably, you will have to deal with carpet stains. This is the most common type of damage that homeowners face. Unless you’ve invested in stain-resistant carpets, you’ll have to take action when a spill occurs. These actions make cleaning stains quite manageable.
1. Tackle Stains Immediately
No method is more effective at eliminating stains than facing them head-on. As soon as you notice a spill, get your cleaning supplies ready. Most stains are easily removable from carpeting when addressed immediately. It’s only when they’re left to sit for days (or weeks), that they become a challenge.2. Use Natural Cleaning Solutions. Most carpet stains can easily be treated with a natural solution of water, vinegar, and baking soda, as discussed above for pet stains. Some homeowners also swear by club soda. Reserve commercial carpet stain removers for serious, tough-to-remove stains.
2. Use Natural Cleaning Solutions
Most carpet stains can easily be treated with a natural solution of water, vinegar, and baking soda, as discussed above for pet stains. Some homeowners also swear by club soda. Save commercial carpet stain removers for serious, tough-to-remove stains.
3. Blot, Don’t Rub
Never rub a stain with a cloth or paper towel to remove the liquid. This will only spread it and cause further staining. Always use a blotting approach.
Maintain a Cleaning Routine
The number one way to prevent carpet damage is preventative maintenance. Develop a regular cleaning regime and stick to it. Daily and weekly cleaning can be as simple as vacuuming. Deeper cleaning and annual cleaning can be done with rented carpet cleaning machines or by professional carpet cleaners. This cleaning regime will ensure that your carpet remains in pristine condition for years to come.
Source: Today (Article: How to easily clean carpets and rugs — and how often to do it)
Learn more about carpet cleaning routines with our How to Deep Clean the Carpet article.
Invest in Quality Products
By investing in quality carpets, you can guarantee you’ll receive material built with durability in mind. This alone can be incredibly effective at withstanding damage. Additionally, many manufacturers offer stain-resistant carpets that will help protect your investment over time.
When it comes to carpets, you get what you pay for. Gauge, twist, pile height, and yarn resiliency are all key components of a carpet. Ask one of our sales professionals for assistance in finding the right carpet for your installation.
Protect Your Carpets to Maximize Longevity
While carpet is a great investment for your home, maintaining it is crucial to its overall lifespan. The more effort you put into protecting your carpet, the longer you’ll be able to enjoy it, before needing replacement. With the simple techniques outlined in this article, you’re prepared to handle even the worst carpet damage.
If you’re ready to have a world-class carpet installation done in your home, trust Stockdale Tile for the job. Browse our complete carpeting collection and reach out today to schedule your home flooring remodel.