Great Ways to Protect Floors from Furniture

Hardwood floors are beautiful and classic to have in your home, but an accidental scratch or dent can easily mar their appearance. Furniture pieces, especially when they are moved across the floor, are one of the biggest culprits in causing damage. Save yourself from the hassle and cost of repairing the damage by putting some precautions in place. Use furniture pads on the legs of furniture items and protect the floor with an area rug. Take extra care when moving furniture around. Keeping your floors clean and recoating them when necessary also goes a long way in protecting them.

Furniture Pads

Made of felt, olefin fiber, or wool, furniture pads can be purchased at a home improvement store or ordered online from stores selling wood floor care products. Most are self-adhesive and can be stuck onto the bottom of furniture legs to protect the wood floor from scratches. They come in small round shapes or larger pads, and can be cut to fit the legs of any furniture item.

Other types of furniture pads are made of a rubber or metal piece covered with felt on one side and a tack on the other. You attach the pad to the furniture leg by pushing the tack side into the wood. Some pads are made to fit into the holes at the bottom of tubular metal chair legs. You can also make your own furniture protectors by cutting a piece of felt to size and gluing it onto the bottom of the furniture. Always keep the pads clean and replace them when the adhesive or felt is wearing down.

Move Furniture by Lifting

When moving furniture across the room, do not drag it across the floor. Instead, lift the piece and carry it to its destination. If the piece is heavy, lift it onto a blanket that has been spread on the floor and move the piece by sliding the blanket along the floor. Make sure that the area underneath the blanket is free of any debris. Objects that are small and sharp can cause great damage to the wood floor if dragged along under the heavy furniture.

Area Rugs

Another way of protecting your floors from scratches caused by furniture is to place the furniture on an area rug. For instance, dining chairs are probably the furniture item that gets moved around the most. Set your dining table and chairs on an area rug that is large enough so the chairs can be pulled back without touching the wood floor. Area rugs are also ideal for anchoring a seating area and add color, warmth, and texture to a room.

Maintain the Floor

Lastly, it is important that you maintain your wood floors to keep them free from dirt and grit that can scratch your floor if it gets under furniture legs and the protective layers you have put in place. Clean the floor regularly with a soft dust mop and recoat the floors every three to five years.

Author, Alyssa Davis, is Metal-Wall-Art.com’s number one design specialist on decorating a country home with wall art metal and fleur de lis home dеcor.