Though a good looking carpet is the most important component to a home’s appearance, replacing a carpet is expensive! Since you want your carpet to last as long as possible, use the following tips to extend the life of your carpet:
Tip 1: Padding is important because it absorbs shock for the carpet. Carpet without padding or with crushed padding has a small fraction of the useful life as carpet with good padding. Padding should be no more than 7/16-inch thick, unless your carpet came with it attached. Also use pads under small rugs, and rotate them from time to time.

Tip 2: In carpet areas that get a lot of direct sun exposure, keep your drapes or curtains closed to prevent fading or browning.

Tip 3: Leave dirt outside. Dirt wears out carpet. Though you may feel a bit uneasy about asking guests to remove their shoes, leaving footwear at the door keeps the dirt out. Take the time to sweep your home’s sidewalks. Invest in heavy-duty doormats to prevent excess dirt from entering the house.

Tip 4: Confine all snacking to the kitchen. Even though your family may protest this rule, it’s the only way to prevent spills from staining your carpeting. Sauces, chocolate and juices are lethal to your carpet’s aesthetic value. If food does find its way to your carpet, be sure to clean it up immediately.

Tip 5: Run the vacuum often. In high-traffic areas, carpets should be vacuumed daily. In less-traveled areas, vacuum one to two times per week. Vacuuming often will remove damaging dirt from the fibers. Buy an upright vacuum fitted with beater bars.

Tip 6: Keep your socks on. While walking without shoes will help to make your carpet last longer, you shouldn’t walk on your carpeting with bare feet. The oils present on the skin will stick to carpet fibers and attract dirt and grime.

Tip 7: Change the room’s layout often. To break up the same old traffic pattern and to avoid wearing the carpeting down in the same spots, move your furniture around. This will create new foot traffic and your whole carpet will last longer, not just one area.

Tip 8: Call in the professionals. You should hire a reputable carpet cleaning company to service your carpets at least once or twice per year. Make sure they have the hot water extraction equipment that won’t leave detergent in the fibers.