You just had a new expensive carpet installed, and now you hate it.
What looked like grey on a 4×4 sample in the store is now a 1000 sq. ft. chocolate brown carpet.
You’re disappointed and feel ripped off but don’t know what to do.
So, What Can You Do If You Hate Your New Carpet?
Stay calm and avoid rash decisions. Your options depend on how far you are in the buying process before realizing it doesn’t meet your expectations. The earlier you realize, the better.
1. If You Haven’t Trimmed the Carpet Yet, Don’t.
The installation process may damage or soil the carpet, voiding the chance of ever returning it to the seller.
For instance, the installer might need to trim it into size to fit your floor area.
Avoid this by scrutinizing it before they proceed to the actual installation.
You want to ensure the product meets all your requirements at this stage.
The carpet may not look exactly as it did at the warehouse because your home décor and lighting could differ.
If you are unsatisfied with what you see, ask the installers to stop and call your carpet salesperson.
2. Read The Warranty and Take Full Advantage of It
Most retailers let you return the carpet if you’ve only had it for a few weeks and haven’t had a chance to examine it thoroughly. In such a case, you’d be entitled to a replacement or refund if a fault is found.
Today’s most common warranty is the wear warranty (or quality assurance warranty) which often covers the carpet’s fiber deterioration.
While this warranty is almost standard nowadays, some makers’ definitions of “wear” could surprise you.
Nonetheless, if you haven’t installed it yet, the seller will have difficulty finding a reason not to accept it.
3. Learn to Love What You Have
If everything fails, remember that you are dealing with a piece of fabric, not a marriage or a baby’s life.
You can learn to love it instead of regretting it or forking more cash for a replacement.
The best way to live with a carpet you dislike is to disguise it.
You can add a decent area rug, arrange the furniture to conceal much of the carpet, paint it, or divert attention to your ceiling and walls.
4. Add A Rug to Hide Your Unsightly Overlay
The best thing about area rugs is that they come in many sizes, such as 4’x6′ and 6’x9′, which can cover specific parts of the carpet you want to hide most.
They are also flexible as you can move them to any part of the carpet, from the seating section of the family room to the dining area.
Some carpet sections will remain visible, so choose an area rug with colors and patterns that undermine those on your carpet to distract yourself and the guests.
5. Arrange Your Furniture to Hide as Much Floor Space as Possible
In the family room, the table and the chairs cover a considerable part of the carpet, but adding a few more pieces of furniture can cover more parts.
The same is true with the bedroom area – the bed typically covers a massive amount of the carpet, but incorporating a few more pieces, say, a desk, bookcase, and two chairs, can obscure more surface.
If your room has a bay window or fireplace, rearrange the seats to make either feature the room’s focal point.
Your eyes will hit the bay window or fireplace whenever you enter the room and forget everything about the carpet.
Add more furniture without messing up the order or congesting the space.
6. Divert The Attention to The Wall and The Ceiling
In the absence of a bay window or fireplace or anything else that could play the role of a focal point, divert the attention to the walls and the ceiling.
Beautify your walls with a painted mural, curated gallery, huge art pieces, sculptural sconces, or install shelving.
The goal is to draw all eyeballs sideways and upward. A beautifully decorated chandelier hanging gracefully from the ceiling can instantly grab attention.
Whatever type of lighting fixture you choose for your ceiling, ensure they feature bold colors and are positioned at the center of the ceiling.
White ceilings should be repainted with colors or patterns that steal the remaining attention.
7. Paint The Carpet (Without Remorse)
It takes courage to paint the carpet – many people fear the paint might fade and stick on their bare soles.
This can only happen if you settle on the wrong paint.
Stay away from oil based paints.
Vinyl paints will give it a rough, stiff, and artificial feel of vinyl fabrics.
Acrylic and high gloss latex paints are recommended for most home upholstery, but be sure to choose an emulsified version under the guidance of a professional.
8. If The Carpet Lost Its Fluffy Factor Too Soon, All You Need Is Starch Spray and A Coarse Brush to Restore It
Some new carpets lose their fluffiness faster than they should.
Fortunately, you can restore them with
- a bottle of Faultless Premium starch spray (or any other starch product of your choice)
- hair dryer or vacuum cleaner
- and a Carpet Rake or kitchen fork or coarse brush used on horses.
Proceed to scour the carpet with a clean and dry coarse brush until you raise the filaments from the rest of the yarn group. Take care not to pluck them off.
Once it looks fluffy, take your Faultless Premium or any other starch product, shake it vigorously, and spray it on the affected.
Now take your hair dryer or vacuum cleaner and blow the surface.
The starch spray takes forever to dry, so you should leave the carpet undisturbed for about two days.
It is a bit time-consuming obviously, especially if you are dealing with an expansive carpet and a kitchen fork, but it is worth every second.
Conclusion
It is surprisingly easy to forget you even had a carpet under your feet.
If you decorate your walls and ceilings with stunning art or attractive lighting fixtures, everything beneath your feet almost ceases to exist.
Extra furniture in the room means more obstruction for your unsightly overlay.
References
https://www.bobvila.com/slideshow/7-ways-to-live-with-carpet-when-you-can-t-rip-it-out-151718
