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Home Decorating

Rugs/Mats and Vinyl Floors. . .

16 years ago

I want to put an area rug at my side entrance door that leads into my kitchen. the floor is vinyl. think it's congoleum. this is what the site says about rugs..

"Place mats at outside entrances to prevent dirt, grit and soil from being tracked onto your floor. Use 100% latex- backed mats, because some rubber-backed mats or carpets may permanently stain your floor."

I can't find a mat! Everything's either plain, roosters, or fruit. Don't get me wrong i like roosters and fruit just not on an area rug/mat in my house. I honestly wanted to get some type of nice oriental or aubusson rug. Would a regular rug mat/pad work for protecting the floor? The kind you can buy at home depo or lowes?

As always, thanks in advance!

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Comments (14)

annzgw
16 years ago
As long as the door clears the rug when you open it, you can use just about anything.
There are many styles of latex backed rugs available from solid colors to oriental, etc., but if you want the regular rug........go for it.
User
Original Author
16 years ago
thanks annz! any ideas where i can find a variety of latex backed rugs?
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@gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) - The problem is the backing of the mats. There are HUNDREDS if not THOUSANDS of mats on the market that have backings that are rubberized in some way. The rubber (aka. "plasticizers") are the problem, not the mat itself. Vinyl is a petroleum chemical. The finish applied to the top of the vinyl (polyurethane or urethane) is also a chemical that is reactive (even in its solid state). These two chemicals (PVC and poly/urethane) can AND WILL react with rubber or rubberized products. The chemical reaction turns the surface of the floor ORANGE. As in "nicotine stain" orange. It is a permanent stain. There is nothing to be done because it is a chemical stain not a surface stain. For that reason the mats used with vinyl, cork, hardwood, softwood, linoleum and some types of concrete finishes HAVE TO BE safe for use with the floor's finish. This is where so many people get into trouble. They find it frustrating to go shopping for area rugs (or water control mats) because of this SERIOUS limitation. The only thing I can say to them is to go to a "mid-range" store to find your area rugs. There will be a tag on the rug that will clearly state "Safe for Hardwood Floors" (ie. Ikea sells some yet Target and Walmart do NOT). Now imagine 99% of every area rug that you like is NOT allowed on the floor you have purchased....sigh. It is very frustrating to say the least.
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annzgw
16 years ago
I usually look at Tues. Morning, BB&B, Linens & Things, Home Goods (just found an oriental style last week!) TJ Maxx, etc.

Check any place that carries rugs. Target often carries nice solid and multi-colored styles.
karenforroses
16 years ago
My son and his wife just redid their bathroom floor because the backing on their rug permanently stained the vinyl flooring. They used ceramic tile this time.
brutuses
16 years ago
I buy all my rugs from JC Penney. They have a great selection, good prices and they last a long time. They don't fall apart after repeated washings.
smile
16 years ago
You can also use rugs with no backing, such as an oriental etc. We have a woven kitchen rug from target and it doesn't discolor the floors.
RNmomof2 zone 5
16 years ago
When I was looking most of the rugs were rubber backed and not latex backed. My old Armstrong floor discolored very badly from just about anything. I wasn't going to make it worse with a rubber backed rug. We have Metroflor now and I am using cotton rugs without any backing. They work well and are machine washable. That's a real plus in the Midwest with snow and grime being tracked in on them. HTH
Happyladi
16 years ago
I use a cotton rug that I got at Kohls.
User
Original Author
16 years ago
when you guys say rugs with no backing....do you just mean the rough backside of them? i'm not understanding completely..
thanks!
jerseygirl_1
16 years ago
Macy's has a line of Rugs called Interlude by Nourison. You can find them around the Bath Dept. They are really nice mats that can be washed. They look like area rugs. I think you will find an interesting pattern and they would fit your needs. Not all Macy's have them.
graywings123
16 years ago
when you guys say rugs with no backing....do you just mean the rough backside of them?

"No backing" means that the back side of the rug is the same fabric as the front. Either the fabric is woven to itself or individual threads are woven through a mesh backing. Any oriental rug should work fine.
User
Original Author
16 years ago
I actually found a rug at lowes over the weekend that i like for in front of the door. Now...should if i buy those rubber mats (that you can also buy at lowes)to keep it from sliding around do you think it will stain the vinyl? Anyone have an experience with this? It says right on most of the packs i looked at "will not stain floors" but it doesn't list what it's made out of. Sadly most are from China. The backing is currently just rough which i'm also afraid might screw up the floor.
roguevalley
16 years ago
If the manufacturer says 100% latex only, I wouldn't use anything that I wasn't 100% sure was 100% latex - whew!
brutuses
16 years ago
I don't know about additonal vinyl and how it will react to the floor. I've used rubber backed rugs on my vinyl tile floors and they never discolored, but then again, I picked them up and washed them every week so it wasn't like they stayed in the same position 24/7 forever and ever. As I mentioned before, I buy all my rugs from JC Penney. Tried others and they would fall apart after 2 washings.

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