Winter Road-Salts Effect on Your Rugs & Carpet

New England residents are known for their ability to brave the cold winter months the region has to offer. In addition to our thick skin and tolerance for cold, towns and municipalities do an incredible job making roadways, sidewalks, and entrances to buildings clear for pedestrians. Our snow preparation here in New England is a necessity to keep life moving somewhat normally after large snowfalls. Aside from snow removal, the addition of salts to roads cuts down on black ice and generally slipperiness. These salts can have an effect on your carpets and rugs, so we wanted to write a blog about it as we near our first big winter storm!

Type of Salt used?

Primarily there are two different types of salts used to maintain roads and walkways. One of which is pure Sodium Chloride, otherwise known as Salt. An alternative used by some municipalities or towns tend to be Calcium Chloride. In terms of the management of keeping roads safe, Sodium Chloride acts faster but won’t last as long with Calcium chloride providing essentially the opposite, taking longer to begin working but lasts much longer.

Salts Effect on Rugs and Carpets

As passersby’s enter through your home and track these salts onto your rugs and carpet, the minerals will begin to impact the condition of your rug. With the salts purpose of melting ice in paired along with the warmth of your home, salt and melted snow will linger much longer than if it were just water on your rug. Additionally, the salt left behind once it does dry can harden and give the rug permanent damage.

Protecting your Carpets this Winter

There are a few things you can do this winter to ensure your carpets and rugs make it till spring after this winter season. First, have residents and guests take their shoes off at the door or at a minimum, run their shoes over a doormat a few times. This should remove most salt from getting onto the carpet. As the winter months progress, if you notice salt beginning to collect within your rug’s fabric, be sure to act quickly! If these salts stay dried to your rug, they can permanently damage its coloring beyond repair. If you notice a salt deposit gathering within your rug, a professional steam cleaning is the best option.

Roys Carpet Cleaning: Your Winter Carpet Cleaning Experts

If foot traffic within your home is high and you want to prolong the life of your carpeting, call Roy’s Carpet Cleaning today! Our steam cleaning service will leave your rug fresh and clean. If you have questions regarding the other services we welcome and look forward to hearing from you!