Carpet damage comes in many forms. Pulls and snags, wrinkling and rippling, and always the dreaded pet piddles – each can necessitate serious restoration and even replacement. But more prevalent than these is a sneaky culprit with an unfamiliar name.
How Do You Know if You Have Carpet Damage?
If you have carpet in your home and it’s more than a year or two old, you’ve probably noticed how the areas that tend to get the most traffic have begun to show more wear and tear.
Don’t believe us? Take a close look at your carpet. Scan the pathways that cross your room. Examine areas around high-use furnishings like your sofa or your bed. Now check the thresholds where your carpet takes over from other flooring. We call those wear areas “traffic paths” and they are the result of constant soiling and structural damage.
Over time, what starts as a little dirt and compression can turn into bona fide “abrasion dullness,” the sneaky culprit with th unfamiliar name. Never heard of abrasion dullness? Let us elaborate.
Carpet Abrasion Starts at the Front Door.
Most carpets resist everyday damage. More often that not, they are made of hardy synthetic fibers such as: nylon, olefin, polyester, and sometimes acrylic. The manufacturing process twists together thousands upon thousands of these very small thread-like fibers to make up a carpet’s plush surface and then applies a protective coating.
Over time, if a carpet owner does not provide regular maintenance and does not schedule deep cleaning, the factory protection will wear off. Then, the fibers will mat down, flatten out and become scratched.
It all starts at the front door. Whenever you walk into your home, your shoes carry in various dirt and sand particles, picked up throughout the day. As you move through your home, those particles shake loose and grind down into your flooring. Over weeks and months, this grit, which has microscopically sharp edges, gets trapped in the fibers of your carpet, cutting and fraying those fibers.
Abrasion dullness occurs when the carpet fibers become abraded or distorted to the degree that they no longer retain their original texture, shape or ability to reflect light. Abrasion is a physical change. Once scratched, the carpet takes on a dull and faded appearance. Cleaning professionals also call this condition `Traffic Lane Greying.’
Can a Professional Cleaner Remove Carpet Damage?
Take the plastic tubing, pictured above. In the “before” image, you see a translucent, reflective surface, much like the fibers in a new carpet. In the “after” picture, you see a scratched, faded surface, just like carpet damage caused by abrasion. Carpet fibers are like this tubing. After significant scratching, the damage done is irreversible.
Some cleaning companies tell their prospective customers that high-traffic discoloration can be removed with cleaning. However, traffic paths are made of more than dirt. Yes, a deep professional cleaning will remove soil and grit from your carpet fibers. But, even clean, those fibers can no longer reflect light, as they did when new. Instead, they take on a dull appearance, which many clients (and some uninformed cleaning companies) mistake for dirtiness.
When you call to schedule your next carpet cleaning, ask about carpet protection. While the manufacturing process applies a protectant to delay damage, that layer breaks down once the carpet is installed and subjected to constant foot traffic.
Replacing that protective coating cuts down on the soiling and the friction that are key to abrasion dullness. Like regularly scheduled professional cleaning, protection is a big part of the fight against traffic lane greying.
Want to slow the advance of high-traffic damage? Just follow these pointers.
Top Six Tips to Slow Abrasion Dullness
- Use doormats – and clean them regularly. Wiping your feet on a quality welcome mat will leave the majority of damage-causing dirt and grit at the door.
- Choose the right carpet (or rug) for the setting. Some fiber types bear up better than others under heavy wear-and-tear.
- Adopt an aggressive cleaning routine. Vacuum several times a week, if only in the high-traffic zones.
- Periodically rotate any area rugs placed in high-traffic areas. This will help delay crushing and discoloration.
- Schedule a professional cleaning every 12-18 months to remove ground-in grit. The pros can slow longterm damage and fulfill the requirements of your carpet warranty.
- Consider applying a quality carpet protectant to minimize stains and cut down on friction. Ask your carpet cleaner about their carpet protection service.
Stop Carpet Damage in its Tracks.
Like any household surface, carpets and rugs will wear out over time. The key to a textile’s long life is prevention. Some preventative methods are more about lifestyle and changing up your household routines. The rest come down to maintenance. Just keep those textiles as clean as possible, by stopping dirt at the door and treating your carpet to regular vacuuming, professional care and re-application of carpet protection.
Looking for more reasons to choose the pros? Remember, professional cleaning provides a deeper level of clean, a fresher smell and better indoor air quality for your home and family.
Saving Your Carpet Saves Money.
Your carpet is an investment. Maintaining your carpet pays ‘dividends.’
Even though you cannot reverse abrasion dullness, you can downplay the traffic lane greying that so often convinces homeowners to replace their carpet. So delay that high-ticket purchase and enjoy longer-lasting beauty and better performance of your flooring.
Don’t let another day of dirt and grit pass you by. Follow the ‘path’ to better carpet care and make the prevention of traffic path damage a priority.
If you are considering a re-application of protection to older carpet, let us walk you through the benefits of this service. For more about the steps you can take to care for your carpet, enjoy our article, “Carpet Cleaning Tips.”