Saving your Carpet from your Kids

Face it: kids are messy. Toddlers are seemingly incapable of keeping food inside any kind of container. School-age kids often don’t stop to think about their muddy sneakers before bolting across a carpeted room. And teenagers? They often create more household chaos than two toddlers combined.

Last month, we talked about one of the greatest hazards to your new carpet: pets. This month, UB Hardwoods addresses the another key mess-related concern of many new carpet owners: their own children. Below, we’ll discuss how to keep your new carpet spick and span, no matter if it’s P.E.T or triexta, and no matter how crazy your kids can be.

Show, Don’t Tell

Though certain carpet types, such as nylon, have been made to resist staining, they nonetheless remain more vulnerable to the stray juice spill than vinyl floors. After your flooring installation is complete, your children must be taught that their mess-making behaviors can leave a permanent mark on your significant investment.

However, this is easier said than done, as kids tend to tune out lectures and forget much of the information that they do not play an active role in learning. You’ll therefore have to show your children what making a mess can do to your floors.

Of course, though, you won’t want to dump mud onto a brand new carpet! Consider the (much cleaner) alternatives:

● Consider demonstrating with a carpet scrap instead. If your installers have scrap left over from putting your carpet in, you could use this to demonstrate to younger children what spilling on carpet can do. You might even be able to use parts of your old carpet! Though it probably won’t have the exact same properties as your new carpet, it gets the message across just fine.

● Ask questions and let your kids give the answers. Studies show that simply talking at kids doesn’t help them retain information. By asking your school-aged kids and teenagers questions about their mess-making behaviors (i.e. “what can you do to keep mud off of the new carpet?”) you invite them to engage with you, thus retaining information. They become active participants instead of passive listeners that tune you out.

● Have your kids clean up their own messes. If it’s age appropriate, consider imposing a lesson in responsibility and making children clean up their own spills, steam cleaner, stain remover, and all. They’ll think twice in the future about being so careless.

Need Carpet Installation? UB Hardwoods Has you Covered

If your whole family is ready for a new floor, contact Twin Cities-based UB Hardwoods today. We’d be glad to help you improve the look and comfort level of your home. Give us a call now at 763-807-4500 to get started.