When you move your furniture, you are likely to find that the carpet underneath has dents from the weight of the furniture you just moved. Additionally, you might find that the carpet is a different shade, like newer carpet. There are several ways to remove dents from the carpet yourself, but the important thing to remember is to be careful not to further damage the carpet.
- Move the furniture often: The most effective way to not have carpet dents it to prevent them in the first place. Move your furniture a few inches every couple of months so that they are not resting on in the exact same place long enough to make the dents become permanent. Carpet will bounce back if the indention is not created and left for long periods of time.
- Make the feet bigger: Another way to help prevent dents is to spread the weight of the furniture over a larger area. Place furniture disks or larger pieces of wood under the feet so that the weight is distributed over a larger area and the dents will be shallower and recover more easily. This works well for couches and beds where the feet are not visible. For tables and chairs, the discs would look out of place.
- Cold: If the dent is already set, after you move the furniture try placing an ice cube in the dent and let it melt into the dent for a couple hours. Afterwards use a towel to soak up the excess water, then use a spoon to fluff the carpet back up. Be careful not to damage the carpet when trying to fluff it up. Also, don’t forget about the ice and leave water in the carpet. Leaving it for too long could damage your carpet further.
- Heat: If cold didn’t work, apply some heat to the dent. Iron a damp towel over the dent or wet the dent and use a hot blow dryer heat it. The steam will help loosen the fiber. Then, just like with the ice, use a spoon to fluff the carpet. Be especially careful not to put a hot iron directly on the carpet or scorch the carpet by holding the blow dryer too close. Again, be careful when fluffing the carpet to not rip at the fibers.
Sometimes professional steam cleaning and carpet repair is the only way to get the dent to rise again. Also, the difference in color in the carpet is due to grime and fading, which needs to be professionally cleaned to get it looking even and brand new again.
The specialized carpet cleaning technicians at All Clean ChemDry are here to help you. Give us a call if you have any questions about repairing common carpet damage or stains.