Did your carpet get dents in the past? Yes? You must know how awful they look, and you wouldn’t want them again. Hence, let’s follow the saying, “Prevention is the best cure”. Follow some of the most effective tips to prevent carpet dents.
There are several ways to prevent carpet dents. They are using furniture coasters, putting carpet squares under the furniture legs, moving cupboards and tables on the carpet regularly, etc. If you want to prevent carpet dents you should also consider buying the right carpet (both padding and high-density fibers) and hiring professionals for its installation. Read on to know, if the carpet dents are permanent.
What Causes Dents in the Carpet?
Before you start preventing the carpet dents, you should know the reasons, which cause them.
Heavy furniture pressure
The main reason for carpets’ dents (also known as divots) appearance is the pressure, which the heavy furniture items make on the delicate fiber. You may not even notice these dents for years while your heavy table or wardrobe is standing on the carpet. But one day you may decide to re-furnish your room – and you’ll be taken aback by the dents on the fragile surface of your carpet.
High one-direction traffic
The carpet, which lies in the high traffic area, like the entryway, hallway, or living room, can get dents after a while. The impact, which your home inhabitants and guests make on the fragile carpet fiber, may cause dents. They become especially noticeable if the traffic is always in the same direction (for example, the road from the corridor to the living room).
Wrong carpet storage
When storing or transporting the carpet, you may fold it like a sheet of paper – in half, in half again, etc. This is the wrong way to store a carpet, so it may cause dents over time.
Carpet pile properties
Some kinds of carpet piles are prone to gain divots. This unpleasant thing usually happens with long-piled rugs.
The too high humidity level
If the carpet is in a room with a high humidity level, like a bathroom or kitchen, it may gain dents on its surface. The same thing happens during the rainy season.
Now you know in detail, what causes the appearance of dents on the ideally smooth surface of your carpet. It’s time to learn, how to eliminate these reasons and prevent carpet divots.
How to Prevent Carpet Dents?
Carpet dents are a common problem in almost every other house. However, all is not lost as there are some prevention methods you can opt never to see these divots on your carpet.
Let’s take a look at each method in detail.
1. Use furniture coasters
These are flat disks that can be put under furniture legs. These provide a larger surface area and hence, distribute the weight of the furniture from each leg.
CasterMaster 3X3 (Set of 4)
[amazon fields=”B018H0NDRG” value=”button”]
Furniture Moving Kit (16 Piece)
[amazon fields=”B0757HTDG2″ value=”button”]
2. Use carpet squares
Always keep the leftover pieces of carpet from carpet installation. Those act as protection from dents when placed under the legs of furniture.
Those won’t look odd as they will be of the same color as the carpet. However, if you don’t have any leftover pieces left, no worries. You can get the closest colored carpet from your nearby store.
3. Move furniture regularly
This is a very essential tip that you should follow. You don’t need to move the furniture across the room. Just shift it a couple of inches. That’ll do the job.
4. Vacuum your carpet regularly
You shouldn’t only vacuum when your carpet is dirty but also hoover around to restore the look of fibers. This will prevent them from being crushed and dented.
Use the suction attachment on the vacuum to hoover the areas with deep indentations.
5. Select a high-density carpet
A high-density carpet will bear the strain and weight of heavy furniture better than a low-density carpet. It will also have a longer lifespan.
There is an easy hack to check the density. First, fold over the sample. Second, look for backing between the fibers. If the carpet is high-density, no backing will be visible.
6. Choose firm carpet padding
Always prefer to buy a firm yet thin carpet padding. You can get an idea of the firmness by pressing the padding with your fingers. The most ideally firm carpet will provide maximum resistance.
A thick carpet increases the chances of it obtaining dents. Also, if the carpet isn’t firm enough, it will be crushed way too easily and also very often.
7. Hire professionals for installation
Do you want an uneven and lumpy carpet that is dented too easily? No, right? Then, hire a professional carpet installer. They are trained to install carpets and hence, mostly do a great job.
8. Buy lighter furniture
If you already have bought your furniture, then the above 7 tips are for you. However, if you are contemplating the purchase of new furniture, remember to look for lightweight sofas, chairs, and tables.
A lighter item of furniture will cause less strain on your carpet and keep it from getting dents.
If, unfortunately, your carpet already has dents, get rid of them in just a few easy steps. Take a look at this detailed guide on how to remove carpet dents.
9. Keep to carpet storage instructions
If you do not use the carpet for some time, take care of its proper storage. Never fold the carpet as a sheet of paper. You should roll up your carpet and keep it preferably vertically in a dry place. Thus, no dents appear on its surface after you take it and lay it down on the floor again.
10. Monitor the moisture level in the room
Get a [amazon link=”B000MXWU58″ title=”hygrometer”/] to measure the humidity level in the room, where the carpet lies. If you see, that it is more than 60%, it’s time to use an air conditioner or [amazon link=”B08BYBNNDM” title=”dehumidifier”/] to decrease it. The normal moisture level in the room is 40%-60%. In this case, you can be sure, that the carpet pile won’t absorb the extra water from the air and won’t get dents. If there was a spill on the carpet fiber and it got wet, make sure you’ve dried it away carefully to avoid dents.
Are Carpet Dents Permanent?
My readers often tell me, that prevention is good, but sometimes it’s too late to talk about it. So, what should you do, if the problem has already occurred? Ugly dents have already appeared on the smooth surface of your carpet. Are they permanent?
The dents may become permanent if you do nothing to get rid of them. But if you are ready to struggle for the beautiful look of your carpet, then I am here to help you with it.
The carpet divots aren’t permanent if you take care of them. Just use these recommendations to move the carpet dents away.
Use a blow dryer
You can get rid of carpet dents, using a blow dryer and water. Just pour some cool water into a spray bottle and splash some drops of it directly on the dent. Then dry the damp surface with a blow dryer. After the carpet area gets completely dry, the dent will disappear. The only thing you need to do is to fluff the carpet pile with a [amazon link=”B01LZGIAGE” title=”rake”/] or with your fingers.
Use a spoon or a fork
Spray some water on the dent directly. Then get a simple spoon or a fork and rub the wet dent with it for 1-2 minutes. Move the spoon or fork slowly, gradually making the carpet pile straight. Then fluff it with your fingers.
Use double-sided tape
If there are dents at the corners of the carpet, it is possible to smooth them out with double-sided tape. Thus, you can stick the tape to the carpet corners and then fix the other side of the tape to the floor surface. You should know that the double-sided tape can’t keep the carpet glued to the floor for a long time. But it’s enough if the dents on the carpet corners aren’t too deep.
Conclusion
That’s a wrap. I know vacuuming more often and moving the furniture even by an inch aren’t pleasant chores. But patience, persistence, and prevention will save your carpet from getting dents.
Use the above-given tips to give your carpets a chance to thank you, LOL. If the dents have already appeared on the carpet surface, check my methods above to get rid of them.
If other carpet problems are bugging you too, I suggest you use a carpet repair kit to solve them.