Needed: Winter Weather Interior Door Rug for Hardwood Floors

16 years ago

A quick question for you all - What type of rug should be used for the front door, over hardwood, in the winter? As you can tell from my user name, I live in Wisconsin, and Snowstorm Ava just dumped a foot of snow here. We usually enter the house through the back entry, which is tiled, however, when others come to visit, they typically use the front door in a hardwood area. Right now, I have a fringed jute rug from pottery barn, with a waffle grippy mat underneath. This won't do for the winter months, as wet snow will flow right through it.

Is there a rug out there that is waterproof and safe for hardwood, and hopefully nice looking to boot?

Below is a picture of the front entryway:

Thanks everyone!

Jan

Featured Answer

patches123

16 years ago

I also live in area that gets tons of bad weather and the interior ones you can find many places don't always work well. You can get interior and exterior waterhog ones from LL Bean. You may also want a boot tray if you remove shoes, which I am guessing with tons of snow you might.

http://www.containerstore.com/browse/Product.jhtml?CATID=246&PRODID=67868

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Rooms/Laundry-Workroom/Accents/Ballard-Boot-Tray/p/195?code=IORGAN

Here is a link that might be useful: waterhog doormat

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Comments (8)

DYH
16 years ago
We use the LL Bean Waterhog Doormat in the Crescent shape on the inside of the house at most of our 7 doors. We use the largest Crescent at the front entry and the small one at the other doors. Our "yard" is actually a cottage garden, so we're very casual. We use the long Crescent runner on our front stone porch.

We have dark walnut floors so the khaki color isn't very noticeable to people. You have a much more formal floor than we do, so I don't know if this will work for you.

Here is a link that might be useful: rug
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I second the suggestion for the waterhog mats. I'll post where we purchase them if I can find the link - you can get custom sizes, colors, styles, etc. LL BEAN sells them too but they are very pricey IMO. We use them around our dogs water bowls too since they are sloppy drinkers. In addition to our entry way, we also use them in the back of our SUV's in the cargo area since we travel with our Boxers. Keeps the truck nice and clean and absorbs liquids. After my dog had surgery he peed in the truck on the drive home from the vets office (post-anesthesia, if I remember correctly) and I was thankful for that waterhog mat. Not a drop of urine on my upholstery; the waterhog captured all of it, and it was easy enough to clean -- I sprayed it down with a hose and some cleaning solution, left it out to dry and no residual smell whatsoever. They're awesome mats.
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Yeah one finished room. (Of course still full of dust) They finished our bedroom yesterday. Still have to enventually come back and do the closet, but for now have moved on to the great room. camlan..Their doing the same thing here. Running the wood with no seams from room to room. I hope ours eventually "glow" right now they just glow of dust, but it still is looking nice. judydel. I like to buy rugs at TJ Max HomeGoods. Patty Cakes.. Oh no. The stairs is what inspired us to do this hardwood job. We just finished painting the stairs yesterday. The carpet that was on the stairs was old, dirty and ugly. It had to come up. My kids are teenagers, so hopefully safety wont be an issue. We'll see if they become too loud, etc., we can always eventually add a runner to them. beth..Your floors, rugs and house are beautiful. Thanks for sharing the photos and experience. work.. Thanks for the advice. I'll remember this for the near future. Id love a sweeper I could run on the floor and not have to worry about damage.
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polkadots
16 years ago
Another vote for the LL Bean Waterhog. I bought one for our garage entry to go on our new hardwood floors. I did the Perfect Size style to get the right fit for my space. I used the tan color and it goes nicely with my floors (mine are darker than yours though). I asked this question a while back and several people recommended the Waterhogs.
michelle_zone4
16 years ago
How do you clean them? What if they get muddy?
mimi_2006
16 years ago
I ordered one large and one small Waterhog in the khaki and they arrived last week. I'm using them outside my front and side doors underneath a porch. They look very nice but haven't put them to the test yet. I'd seen them recommended here a lot. They're expensive but I was having trouble finding something that I liked. I love the look of them.
natal
16 years ago
After reading about Waterhogs here I bought one for the French doors on the screened porch. I'll have a boot tray there too to keep gardening shoes out of the house.
jan_in_wisconsin
Original Author
16 years ago
The Waterhog rugs look perfect! They're exactly what I need. Thanks so much to all who have responded. From the web site, it appears their backing is safe for hardwood and does not allow water to penetrate. They can be ordered in many sizes, and they are nice looking. Wish I would have thought about this issue sooner. Hopefully we'll have one before the next big storm. :o)

Patches, we bought a couple boot trays today, so that will help also. I'm always so glad when winter comes because it marks the end of grass stain season at my house, but it also brings its own issues. It sure is a beautiful winter wonderland out there. I thoroughly enjoyed the weekend, warm and cozy inside.

Jan
Sueb20
16 years ago
We have a waterhog by our back door, and at our front door I have FLOR tiles (4 of them to make an "area rug") which have held up beautifully.

Needed: Winter Weather Interior Door Rug for Hardwood Floors

patches123

Comments (8)

DYH

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Needed: Winter Weather Interior Door Rug for Hardwood Floors

patches123

Comments (8)

DYH

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jan_in_wisconsin
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