A Quick Guide To Protecting Carpeted Stairs From Damage

Protecting Carpeted Stairs

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning we get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through our links, at no cost to you. Please read our disclosure for more info.

Carpets are both a beautiful and practical flooring choice for your home. You can get them in any color or pattern and they insulate your floors keeping you warm. But these amazing textures can easily get damaged or dirty if not looked after.

Stairs in particular can be hard to clean. Their strange angles and constant usage mean many people avoid the idea altogether. Today, we will help you protect your carpets to keep them looking beautiful for longer.

Use A Temporary Carpet Protector Film

Using a stair carpet protector film might seem like a step back into the 80s, but they are the perfect choice for a one-off occasion. Carpet protector films are designed to cover the whole desired area. This covering will protect your carpet against spills, dust, dirt, and damage from taring.

We would suggest using these films when your home is going through renovations or has clumsy visitors. For example, if you are hosting a children’s birthday party, and want to make sure paint does get clogged into the stairs, put down a film as protection for the day.

Clean Spills Immediately

Accidents happen and although a coffee spill on your white carpet can feel like an instant disaster, there is a way to stop staining before it’s too late. As soon as a spill occurs, use a carpet cleaning solution to scrub away the liquid.

Each product will have different directions, and carpets on stairs could make sopping up the corners hard. If you are struggling to reach the edges of your staircase due to the product’s head shape, use a paper towel to soak the spillage. Then use a clean paper towel to dip into the cleaning solution and manually scrub until all traces of the stain have gone.

Try not to put too much soapy solution into the carpet as this could lead to water damage. You only want a light coating, so the carpet can dry quickly.

Vacuum Weekly Or Even Daily

Vacuuming is a weekly chore that most of us take for granted. Although it can remove dust and dirt, vacuuming also has a hidden positive effect – preventing tears and deterioration in carpets.

On a microscopic level, dirt and soil act as sharp objects. Although they are soft in our hands, on the carpet they can scratch the fibers and begin pulling at the seams. This happens when we walk over the embedded dirt, moving it around without knowing.

Depending on how busy your home is, you should vacuum weekly or even daily to stop these tiny particles from cutting away at your carpets.

Consider Sunlight

Sunlight is another silent attacker. The UV rays from the sun can bake fiber-based materials over a long period of time. If the windows in your home are facing your carpets, then they will be aiming that UV light into the treads causing a reaction. Although it takes years to take effect, the sun damage will be slowly decomposing your carpets.

Normally, we don’t have to worry about this issue as our living rooms and bedrooms have curtains or blinds which block out the sun. However, our staircases can easily be neglected. If your staircase has a window, you should install binds to block the direct sunlight, allowing your carpet to last longer.

Install Stair Treads

Stair treads are non-slip plastic covers that can be placed on your carpet as easily as laying down a mat. They do the same job as temporary carpet protector films, however, they last longer and can be reused.

We would suggest using stair treads when messy guests are due to stay over. For example, if you have a family member with a dog, you may want to install the stair treads on days when they visit.

Pay For A Professional Cleaner

The ultimate way to make sure your carpets last for as long as possible, is to hire either a professional cleaner or hire their equipment. Either way, your carpet should be deep cleaned every year to pull out any deep-seated dirt and to remove mold.

Hiring a cleaner to do this job for you, will prevent you from accidentally leaving water pockets in the carpet. However, you can hire just the equipment for a cheaper price.

Summary

Keeping on top of your carpets can be easy, as long as you have a cleaning schedule. Vacuuming once a week (as a minimum) and deep cleaning once a year is an easy way to get started.

Next, you should install blinds or curtains to protect your carpets from the sunlight, and you should consider temporary covers for busy days.