Guest Blogger: Best Carpeting for Homes With Kids and Pets

Guest Blogger #653, Entry #1562, September 5, 2012

Kids and pets make for a super fun home environment, but they can definitely take their toll on your flooring of choice. Getting ready to switch up whatever you’ve got going on underfoot can seem like a daunting task, and adding the variable of children and pets can make things a little more interesting than you might want them to be. Which carpeting is best for the little ones? Which is best for the pets? Which of these will actually look the nicest? It can be a tough decision, and one that’s not super fun to make.

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Modular carpet is versatile for pets and kids

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Luckily, there are a few different strategies to help make your decision a little bit easier, and we’ll take a look at some of them now. Keeping these super sensible ideas in mind will help to guide your purchase and make sure that you don’t experience even a lick of that much-maligned buyer’s remorse that we’ve all heard so much about. Instead, this article will have you making a great carpeting choice in no time whatsoever.

Reconsider heavy looped carpet

Avoid loops at all costs. We’ll just start with that. It’s simply not a safe choice, especially for kids and pets. It’s safe to assume that pets probably include dogs and cats, but even other household pets like rodents and rabbits have claws and paws and pads that can get stuck or caught painfully in carpet loops. The same applies to tiny kid fingers. Try to find a carpet without loops and you’ll be missing out on a good amount of potential heartache.

Consider the area and the amount of foot traffic it’ll receive when you’re selecting your carpet’s color. Be sensible about it. You might not get to pick that beautiful Ivory you had your eye on, but going with something that’s a little more foot-traffic-resistant might very well make you a lot happier in the long run. While you’re at it, look for a carpet that’s specially made to be soil resistant and durable. There are many brands that specifically manufacture carpet to meet the needs of a busy, bustling family, so finding a tough carpet with a good coating that keeps it spill- and stain-resistant will mean the difference between a lifetime of use and new carpet that’s ruined within a few months.

Carpet with large patterns help to hide wear and tear!

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Choosing carpet padding

Of course, what’s under the carpet is every bit as important, so make sure your cushion comes with a solid spill barrier. Ruining the padding is just as bad as ruining the carpet, so it’s something that’s best avoided if you can help it.

Whether you install your own or need to contract carpet layers to do it for you, there are plenty of ways to make sure you’re getting the carpet that will last you the longest. Take your time, and make sure you pick something that will stand up to whatever your pets and kids can throw at it. You’ll be glad you did.

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