The massive concern is the right way to preserve the rug from bunching up and changing into a tripping hazard, particularly when positioned over carpet. Carpet and the padding beneath create a lot cushioning that foot strain pushes the rug down and causes the rug cloth to inch towards the strain level. Inserting heavy furnishings on the perimeters doesn’t cease that from taking place; it simply shifts the place the motion takes place.
To anchor an space rug, use double-stick tape or a rug pad. YYXLIFE double-sided carpet tape (listed at $9.97 for a roll 2 inches huge by 10 yards lengthy on Amazon) works over nearly any form of flooring, together with carpet. To take away it later, you possibly can soften the adhesive with a hair dryer, then “roll it prefer it’s Elmer’s glue in your palms” to tug it away, in response to the producer’s directions.
Or you should utilize a mat to carry the rug in place. Remember to get one labeled as protected for wooden flooring if that’s what’s in your house; some mats depart a residue. Over carpet, you’ll want a carpet-to-carpet rug pad, such because the Grip-It magic cease rug pad ($28.49 on Amazon for one which’s 5-by-7 ft, though these pads come as giant as 12-by-18 ft).
You can even cowl drained or dated flooring with one of many enormous array of tile-type choices accessible. There are peel-and-stick tiles and planks; types that interlock like puzzle items; ones that click on collectively edge to edge and ones that press into place utilizing detachable adhesive or Velcro-type fasteners. Carpet, wooden, cushioned foam, vinyl, true linoleum, cork — nearly something aside from ceramic tile or stone is obtainable for protecting arduous flooring. You may even cowl simply a part of the ground with carpet items, creating an space rug impact.
Many of those choices — apart from peel-and-stick or press-down tiles — additionally work over low-pile carpeting with out padding. Vinyl planks, which are available in types that mimic wooden and stone, and laminate planks with click-together edges work properly.
However in case you are protecting padded carpet, particularly whether it is shag or excessive pile, you’ll need a secure base, so first cowl the ground with ¼-inch-thick plywood. In any other case, as folks stroll over the ground, all of the padding can permit the planks to maneuver up and down sufficient to come back free. Organize the plywood sheets so the lengthy dimension runs in the other way to the way in which you’ll set up planks. Stagger the seams between the plywood sheets and tape them along with duct tape. Even with that, it is likely to be tough to attain a secure, even floor over a shag carpet or one which has large holes which have worn by means of. However, if that shag carpet is ugly or soiled sufficient, a brand new flooring that isn’t fully flat may nonetheless be a giant enchancment. Have the carpet cleaned and deodorized first, particularly if odor is one motive you need to cowl it.
Before you purchase new flooring, be certain there’ll nonetheless be sufficient clearance to permit doorways to open and shut freely. And examine how straightforward it’s to trim edge items to suit your room’s dimensions. If you need the flooring to increase from room to room or by means of hallways, additionally examine whether or not you want enlargement gaps in every area, which could be difficult to get proper if you end up coping with a number of rooms. Flooring that clicks collectively edge-to-edge wants these gaps; when you don’t depart them, the flooring can buckle and also you’ll hear it transfer up and down as you stroll. (On everlasting installations, installers cowl this hole by baseboards or quarter-inch-round “shoe” molding nailed to the baseboard, by no means the ground. For a rental scenario, although, you may need to skip this.) In case you’re attempting to cowl a chilly concrete or tile flooring, search for tiles or planks which have built-in cushioning, which acts as insulation so the ground is extra nice to stroll or play on.
It’s additionally attainable to put in sheet vinyl over outdated, arduous flooring. It’d keep in place from its personal weight. Or, if wanted, you may add double-stick tape on the edges to maintain it in place, particularly at a doorway the place grime can get beneath and lift the vinyl sufficient to be a tripping hazard. Take into account hiring knowledgeable to chop the vinyl so it suits exactly, or watch how-to movies on the right way to set up loose-lay vinyl sheets.
What about putting in new carpet over outdated and utilizing the outdated carpet as padding? That is attainable too, however to anchor the brand new carpet you would wish tack strips on the edge, and the outdated carpet would nonetheless want tack strips or it could shift. To perform this, the installer may want to chop away a band of carpet a number of inches huge across the perimeter of the room — not a step the owner could be proud of when you have been to take away your carpet while you transfer.
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