If you have just had a brand new carpet installed, we would bet our bottom dollar that you can’t wait to start using the room. But one thing that a lot of people worry about is damaging their new flooring before they’ve even had a chance to show it off. Putting new furniture on freshly installed carpets could cause problems. You’ve probably asked how long should I wait to put furniture on new carpet?
You will need to wait 24 hours before putting any furniture onto your new carpet. This is because the carpet will not have properly adhered to the floor. Placing furniture on it could cause irreparable damage.
If you want to ensure that your new flooring stays looking its best then you’ll have to employ a little patience. By understanding why you need to do this, you’ll soon appreciate the importance of this short wait.
Why Do I Have To Wait 24 Hours Before Putting Furniture On New Carpet?
There is a belief among some homeowners that it’s totally acceptable to put furniture straight onto a new carpet. But don’t be fooled by this; it likely won’t end well. Doing this will probably cause some pretty nasty damage to your carpet.
The reason that you need to wait 24 hours is that prematurely putting furniture down onto new carpet will warp its shape. Carpet is often glued to the subfloor and this adhesive needs time to set. Imagine gluing two pieces of wood together; you wouldn’t remove the clamps straight away, would you?
If you don’t give the glue enough time to adhere and go ahead and put furniture onto the floor, you will end up with a deformed spot. This is because the furniture pushes the carpet down onto the floor making it stick more deeply, and unevenly compared to the rest of the space. If you have very heavy furniture, the results will be even worse. You’ll be left with dents and marks anywhere the furniture sits.
If you make this mistake and end up with an uneven, dented carpet, there’s nothing you can do about it. The only solution is to rip up the flooring and start from scratch. Since installing a carpet isn’t the most affordable venture, it’s unlikely you’ll do this right away. So, you’ll have to put up with it until you can replace it.
What’s worse is that these indentations will only get worse over time. Moreover, imagine if you want to rearrange your furniture. You’ll suddenly be left with a constant reminder of the previous layout. Waiting 24 hours isn’t difficult. It’s not a long time so just close the door on the room and come back tomorrow. We promise it’ll be worth it.
Will A Door Rubbing On Carpet Cause Damage?
Another problem that people face when installing new carpets is that the door rubs on the new flooring. Before installing a carpet, we would recommend removing any doors and trimming these down so that they fit over your new floor. While you will need to take exact measurements according to the type of carpet and underlay you have chosen, generally speaking, you will need about ½ inch clearance.
But if you haven’t done this before installing the carpet, it’s not completely bad news. Having a door rubbing on the carpet will only cause damage if it’s very tight. Your door should just make contact with the carpet, skimming across its surface. This ensures that there isn’t a gap under the door which could let in a draft.
If it is a tight fit and you find it difficult to open and close the door, there is a chance that this will wear the carpet more quickly over time. That said, consider how often you’ll open and close the door and weigh up whether it’s worth removing, cutting and rehanging the door.
How Do I Stop My Bed From Marking The Carpet?
It’s all well and good waiting 24 hours to put your furniture back into a room but even after this, heavy items will leave a mark. This isn’t the end of the world because as long as you have waited, the dents will go away. (more on this later on!)
But people do get annoyed with these unsightly dents and want to know how to stop them from forming in the first place. Is this possible? Yes, it is and it’s actually a lot simpler than you might have imagined. Here are some easy ways to stop your bed and other furniture from marking your carpet.
Vacuum Regularly
We all know the importance of keeping our carpets clean which is the primary reason that the vacuum cleaner was invented. However, vacuuming does far more than just remove dust and dirt from your flooring.
Related Article: Does Vacuuming Damage Carpet
It can actually restore the look and condition of your carpet by lifting it and making the fibres appear fluffy again. How does this work? Well, deep down in the carpet, dust and debris are lurking. It might look clean on the surface but this ingrained dirt clings onto the fibres and causes them to flatten.
Vacuuming lifts the fibres back up and is perfect for removing dents and marks. It’s worth using a more precise attachment and altering the suction settings to see which works best for your particular carpet.
Use Furniture Coasters
The main reason that your bed and other heavy items cause marks on the carpet is because of uneven weight distribution. But by using furniture coasters, you can make things more even as the weight is spread over a wider area. This results in fewer and less intense marks.
The furniture coasters simply slip under the legs of the item and there’s a wide range of choices to fit in with your decor. Some furniture coasters have spikes on the bottom, these are known as caster cups. This feature stops the furniture from pushing down into the carpet further preventing the appearance of marks and dents.
Regularly Move Your Furniture
We aren’t suggesting that you rearrange the entire room all the time but moving your furniture just slightly once a month can help. This applies especially to heavier items like your bed. You only need to move it by an inch or so and this can go a long way to preventing deep marks.
Since this is important for very heavy items, you must keep safety in mind. Have someone to help you move larger items and ensure correct lifting techniques. If something is extremely heavy, you can purchase furniture sliders to make life easier.
FAQ: Do Carpet Dents Go Away?
If you have placed furniture onto a new carpet when the glue has not yet dried, there’s not much hope. Those indentations will be there for as long as the carpet is down so the only way to fix this is to have a new carpet installed.
If you have waited the 24 hours recommended period, you will notice that furniture does still leave a mark on the carpet. That’s totally normal and cannot be avoided. Imagine pressing a plastic cookie cutter onto your skin for a couple of minutes. There’s going to be a mark but it wouldn’t be serious and would fade. The same can be said for regular carpet dents.
There are things you can do to speed up the process of removing carpet dents. One of the easiest and most effective ways is to apply ice cubes to the affected area. Leave them for a few hours, and as they melt, the water will cause the fibres to swell, restoring their original shape. Once this happens, you can use a carpet brush to fully bring your flooring back to life.
Conclusion
It’s not uncommon to get carried away and want to complete a room as soon as the new flooring is laid. However, if you have installed carpet then you will need to wait a little longer before you can start putting your furniture in.
You need to wait at least 24 hours as this will allow the carpet adhesive to fully dry. Not doing this will put pressure on certain points in the carpet, causing it to be forced into the subfloor. The result will be large indentations wherever you have placed furniture. Once these indentations appear, they are impossible to get rid of and your carpet will be ruined forever.