Why Your Small Carpet Needs a Rug Pad

You’ve found the right rug and you’ve found the perfect place to place it in your home. The salesperson asks if you need to buy a mat to rest under the carpet. Do you need one, or are salespeople just trying to “upsell” you with add-ons?

The answer is: Yes, you need a mat under your carpet! No matter what type of floor your area carpet will cover, a carpet mat is essential for a number of reasons.

What Is a Rug Pad Used For?

Think of your carpet as your indispensable protection. It protects you, your carpets, and your floors. Some of its benefits include:

• Prevent carpets from slipping or curling underbody, as well as other serious tripping hazards
• Extend the life of your carpet by minimizing wrinkles or spreading out the edges
• Protect your floors from unnecessary scratches or indentations from heavy furniture
• Add another layer of cushioning and extra softness with every step
• Reduce noise
• Isolate the room from the cold subfloor

Prevent Slipping

Carpet mats help to keep area rugs flat and fixed in one place. Carpet mats vary; some are designed for use on hard-surface floors, while others are best laid on a wall-to-wall carpet.

Warning: A good carpet mat can hold the carpet in place and prevent it from slipping. Even carpets that are fixed to furniture can move, causing them to bend, build, and increase the risk of falls.

Wear It for a Longer Period of Time

Just like a mat under a carpet, a good rug mat can absorb most of the impact of foot traffic, helping to protect area carpet from wear and tear. The mat is designed to compress and bounce back (even a sturdy pad can do this slightly), relieving pressure on the carpet fibers. If there is no mat underneath that acts as a shock absorber, the fibers in the carpet area will be crushed and the carpet will show signs of wear and tear more quickly than a carpet with proper mating.

Protect the Floor Underneath

It doesn’t matter what type of flooring you have underneath your rug. It still needs to be protected. The backing of area rugs can be rough and can cause scratches on hardwood, laminate, and other types of surfaces. Other factors that can pose a risk to the subfloor include color transfer of the carpet, small stones or other sharp objects getting stuck under the carpet, and abrasive wear on the subfloor surface due to the movement of the carpet area with foot traffic.

Carpet mats provide a protective barrier between the rug and the floor underneath. Even if you lay your carpet on a wide carpet, you’ll still need a carpet mat.

What Type of Carpet Mat Is Best for My Flooring?

As you can imagine, many materials are used in the construction of carpet mats, from natural fibers like jute and horsehair to synthetic materials like grippy PVC and memory foam. The best type of carpet mat is made of felt, rubber, or a combination of both. Felt cushions best, while rubber grips the carpet and floor, holding both in place. To determine the best carpet mat for your needs, you should be guided by the style or pile height of the carpet in your area. A low-profile rug should have a thin, barely available layer of cushioning. A small rug with shag or heavy wool can accommodate thicker mats. You don’t want to be too thick – you don’t want to add too much height to your carpet mat so as not to create a tripping hazard.

Memory foam has a soft texture and is perfect for crawling and toddlers in nurseries. Felt rubber mats are often a safe choice for hardwood flooring. Never use these carpet mats outdoors. If you’re looking for a carpet mat for outdoor use, go for PVC. Polyvinyl chloride is a synthetic plastic material that is resistant to rain and natural elements, however, it can release volatile organic compounds (VOCs), so don’t use it outdoors. Felt doesn’t waterproof well, so if you need an indoor carpet mat (bathroom, kitchen, or pool area) that splashes frequently, it’s best to use a carpet mat with an all-rubber structure.

Tip: Avoid using colored carpet mats as it can stain the floor and fade it. Also, avoid any carpets that use adhesives, as glue can damage the finish of the floor.

The work of a carpet mat is tough, and as a result, over time, it wears out and you may need to replace it. Carpet mats have a lifespan of about three or four years. Therefore, it makes no sense to invest in an expensive type because you need to replace it in about the same amount of time as the cheaper type.

How to Use a Carpet Mat?

The edges of the carpet mat are finished, while the other carpet mats can be trimmed. If you’re buying a trimmed variety, buy a rug that’s slightly larger than the one you own so you can tailor it perfectly to your room and area rug. You have to completely hide the carpet mat under the carpet. When you’re ready to put it down, the rug mat should be about 1 to 2 inches smaller than the rug at all edges, or 1 to 2 inches smaller than the perimeter of the rug if it’s round or oval. When trimming carpet mats to your specifications, use a felt-tip marker to make hash marks at the cutting location and sharp, heavy-duty scissors to cut.

If carpet mats are used under door mats or near any revolving door in the bathroom, it will be a big problem for carpets and carpet mats to clog or pile up when the door is open. Before cutting or customizing a carpet mat, be sure to test the attic of the carpet and mat together and make sure it can open and close the door smoothly.
As you might expect, families with pets and children are more prone to more accidents, spills, and potty training accidents. When a spill occurs on a carpet, clean it up as soon as possible. Felt pads may require additional ink blotting and spot treatment, but rubber memory foam pads are waterproof and can be wiped clean with a paper towel.

The frequency of daily cleaning depends on the foot traffic of the carpet. You can vacuum solid material pads, such as felt pads and memory foam carpet mats, and consider doing it every 1 to 2 years. You can also shake off any non-solid pads. Also, clean the floor underneath carpets and mats at least once a year, just like you would normally clean the floor surface.