Stop Rugs From Slipping: How to Stick a Rug to the Floor

Falls are serious business. Not only can a trip or fall cause serious injury and a visit to the emergency room, but they can also lead to longer and more serious health complications. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, a loose throw rug or area carpet is one of the most serious health hazards in homes of older adults. 

And guess what? It's preventable! It's not difficult or expensive to stick a rug to the floor. It doesn't even matter if you have laminate, tile, or hardwood floors. 

If you've found yourself wondering how to finally stick a rug to the floor, keep reading! We cover this simple home improvement fix from hot glue to natural rubber below. 

Get the Right Size Throw Rug for Your Space

One of the easiest ways you can pull a room together is by choosing the right rug for your space. And there are so many factors to consider! Choices in color, pattern, and shape are all great options to showcase your style and personality. 

The best place to start is to think about how you want to position your furniture. Knowing how you want to arrange items in a room will help you determine how large (or small) a rug to buy. From there, you'll be able to figure out how to best prevent your rugs from sliding. 

Once you've fit your rug into the room, you can make a decision on what product to use to keep your rugs from slipping. Areas that experience more traffic, like a hallway, may need a more heavy-duty product to help area rugs stay put. 

If you need some more resources for where you can find affordable and attractive rugs, check out our blog post on the subject. 

Why You Need Your Rug to Stay Put

There are several reasons to make sure your area rugs and carpet stick. First, it's a major tripping hazard and can lead to serious injury!

Beyond that, there are tons of benefits that can help improve your life and home. 

It Protects Your Floors

Area rugs and carpets can help protect your tile and wood floors, and even laminate, from damage. Kids, pets, rocks, and moving furniture can all lead to chips, dents, and scratches. Covering up high-traffic areas with a bright and beautiful rug is an easy way to prevent this from happening. 

After all, it's much cheaper to switch out a rug than to refinish, repair, or replace flooring!

It's Easier to Clean

A rug that stays in place is easier to clean. Running the vacuum a few times a week or even renting a carpet cleaner is much faster when you know the rug isn't going to move or shift while you're in the middle of cleaning. 

Washable rugs are becoming more popular, especially if you have kids and pets! A reusable product can help make sure your rug continues to stick even after an emergency grape juice spill leaves you scrambling.   If you are interested in washable rugs, definitely check out Ruggable.

It's An Easy Way to Update Your Spaces

Switching out rugs is a quick and inexpensive way to change the look and feel of your room. Different colors, patterns, and materials all can reflect your personal aesthetic, as well as help you keep your home up-to-date on modern trends. 

Knowing that sticking your rug to the floor is an easy process makes the decision to switch out area carpets an easy one to make. With so many inexpensive options, the only question you'll need to answer is where to place it!

Best Products to Stick a Rug to the Floor

When it comes to the many products available, the type of quality rug you choose may also impact what approach will work the best. Be sure to consider the type of flooring where you want to place the rug, as well as the material of the rug itself when making your purchases. 

Carpet Pads

When it comes to carpet pads, many of us think about a thick, felt rug pad. These are great options for several reasons!

First, they can help create a softer, more plush feeling underfoot. This can help a rug feel more comfortable depending on the thickness you choose. 

They can also help with soundproofing your floors, especially if you have hardwood floors on the upper level. The thickness can help prevent sound from carrying, for which your neighbors or family will thank you!

Felt pads also work great on all sorts of flooring, whether you have hardwood, laminate, or tile. But, 100% felt pads are best with larger area rugs that are less likely to shift. Smaller carpets are usually best with an anti-slip rug pad made of a mixture of both felt and natural rubber. 

Large area rugs can be hard to move, so start by placing the rug pad where you want it. Have your carpet rolled up and line up the corners and edge so that it hides the pad. Then, unroll your carpet over the pad.

For extra-large rugs, you may need a helping hand to get them positioned exactly where you want them to go. 

Rug Gripper

A rug gripper is usually a thin, rubber pad that lies under your area rug. Because of how thin they are, it's impossible to tell that there's anything there. 

If you have thinner, washable rugs, a rug gripper pad can help it to stick to the floor yet stay invisible. You don't want a thick pad showing underneath!

A flatweave rug works great with thin rug grippers. They also tend to have bright, bold colors and striking patterns that can make a personal statement in your home!

There are lots of great options, but Gorilla Grip makes an excellent rug gripper that you can order in a wide variety of sizes and shapes. It's also super easy to cut it down to your specification. 

Double-Sided Carpet Tape

Double-sided carpet tape is one of the cheapest and easier ways to keep an area carpet in place without damaging the floor. It goes around the outside of your throw rug, which means you don't need a lot. 

You can cut rug tape to any size or shape. It can also help make the carpet easier to clean and you can reuse it if you decide to rearrange or change out aesthetics. 

 

To use double-sided carpet tape, first clean the floor where you will place the rug. This ensures that nothing will prevent rug tape from sticking. Then lay out the rug exactly where you want it to be. 

Flip over one side of the rug. First, peel off any paper backing and stick the rug side to the edge of your carpet (be sure not to go over the edge). It's also best to apply the carpet tape to more than one edge to get the best adhesion. 

Once you've flipped the rug back over, press down on the edge to help the rug tape stick. Then, repeat with the other side. 

I have personally used this option and found it to be life changing.

Hot Glue

This is perhaps the cheapest option listed here, but hot glue can work in a pinch! 

To make this option work, be sure to apply the glue to your rug and not the floor. Flip half of the carpet back and apply a thin line of glue all around the edge of your rug. Be sure to let it cool and dry completely!

Once the glue is cool and dry, flip it back over. Then, flip the other side and repeat. Again, be sure to let the glue cool and dry completely. Then, apply pressure around the outside edge to get the glue to stick. 

You can also try this with acrylic-laytex caulk. Apply it around the edge and in stripes across the entire back. As with the hot glue, be patient and allow it to dry completely before you flip the rug over. 

This method, while cheap and very do-it-yourself, can also risk damaging your floors. It's also best used with cheaper, lower-quality rugs so you don't ruin them. 

Rug Anchors

Rug anchors work by helping attach the corners of a rug to the floor using Velcro. It's pretty simple: one side adheres to the rug, while the other to the floor. 

To start, make sure that the two Velcro sides are attached. Peel the backing for the side that is going to stick to the rug and press it onto the back of the rug. Leaving the Velcro pieces connected, peel the backing off the floor piece and press onto the floor. Repeat for the remaining corners. 

Rug anchors have some wonderful benefits. First, you can use them with a felt pad to help get the best of both worlds: more cushion from the thicker pad with the sticking power of the anchors. 

They are also easy to use on a variety of hard surfaces and simple to remove with little to no damage to the floor. They're the best at preventing those curling corners that you're trying to avoid.

But they're not great with anything other than a square or rectangle shape. Ovals and circles will still have loose edges and areas that can be a tripping hazard. This also goes for the straight edges on square rugs, where rug tape may help to provide better, lasting adhesion. 

Carpet-on-Carpet

If you're thinking about layering rugs or adding an area rug to an already carpeted area, you will still want a rug pad or gripper underneath. 

Throw rugs on the carpet still shift and bunch. This can cause tripping danger and safety issues. If layering carpets, you still want those edges to stay down to keep your family and loved ones safe. 

You don't want to use double-sided carpet tape, hot glue, caulk, or even rug anchors. Otherwise, you can risk damage to the carpet or something that doesn't work. 

A rug pad or gripper makes the most sense, but be sure not to make the carpet and area rug too thick with a hefty carpet pad. A thin rug gripper is exactly what you need!

Preventing Damage

You'll want to use lots of caution when it comes to choosing the best method for your throw rug. If you're not careful, you can end up causing damage to a valuable rug or floor, leading to expensive repairs down the road. 

Chemicals vs Natural Rubber

Certain products can damage different types of flooring if they contain chemicals. Specifically, check if your rug gripper or pad contains PVC, which can cause discoloration and damage to some finishes. Check with the manufacturer of your floor for their recommendation or warning. 

Natural rubber is great for areas that may get wet, such as a kitchen. This type of rug pad is eco-friendly and is less likely to cause damage. It's a great option for hardwood but doesn't provide much cushioning. 

Rug Material

If you had a valuable rug, such as an antique oriental piece, be careful with what materials your rug pad or gripper may contain. Chemicals can end up causing irreparable damage and ruin. High-end, all-natural materials will help you to protect it. Look for natural rubber and 100% felt. 

Getting Your Home Improvement Update To Stick

There are so many great options when it comes to making sure that your throw rug stays where you want it. Whether it's natural rubber carpet tape or a felt rug pad, it's a straightforward and easy home improvement project to stick a rug to the floor and only takes a few minutes. 

Your family will thank you, and your tile or hardwood floors will stay protected for many years to come! 

Whether you're looking to buy a new area rug, rearrange your living room decor, or update your paint colors, we would love to help you refresh your space. Contact us today to see how we can help you feel inspired in your home!