How to Fix Grout Lines and Uneven Floors with Rug Pads

Some tile floors can have thick and uneven grout lines and some stone floors can contain stones of various heights. Both of these can create an uneven floor that can cause uncomfortable walking, as well as premature uneven wear to the area rug on the floor.

Tile and stone floors offer a great look and feel to many homes. Most tile floors are installed and finished with grout lines that separate the individual tiles. Depending on the desired look, the grout lines can be thin or thick. When they are quite thick, they can actually create extra space between each tile so that this can be seen and felt. Walking on a tile floor with thicker grout lines can be felt as dips between tiles. Stone floors are similar in that they can have dips, or high and low spots, throughout the floor. This is mainly due to the nature of the stone and that no two stones are exactly alike. So, walking across a stone floor could result in a very inconsistent feeling from a floor not very level.

What Uneven Floors Do To Rugs

When rugs are placed on uneven floors, they can experience premature wear that could also lead to damage. Since the rug is right against the floor and is walked on, in the areas of high and low changes in the floor, the rug becomes compromised if it is walked on. This uneven surface causes wear to those parts of the rug that are walked on. This type of wear is considered to be uneven wear. In other words, the wear patter is isolated to just those parts of the rug. Uneven and premature wear decrease the value and condition of a rug. While most people try to live with the fact that their floor is uneven, there is a way to protect the rug from common wear.

Rug Pad Prevents Damage to rug on Uneven Floor

The use of the right rug pad between your rug and uneven floor can actually prolong the life of the rug without letting it experience a wear pattern. Solid and dense felt rug pad, such as our Superior, works to resist pressure penetration to the floor. This means that if a dense rug pad is under a rug on an uneven floor, the rug pad is so dense that it prevents the grout lines or uneven heights of the stone from showing and causing rug damage.

For larger or heavier rugs, choose an all felt rug pad and make sure it is at least a 40 ounce dense pad. The more dense the pad, the stronger its resistance and the less it will allow the floor underneath to be felt. If your rug tends to slip, then the right dense non slip pad, such as our Ultra Premium, will prevent slipping, as well as prevent the grout lines or stone from coming through. Our Ultra Premium is a 45 ounce density and is resistant enough to prevent grout lines pushing up through the rug.

How to Use Rug Pad to Hide Grout Lines and Uneven Floors

Since there are many rug pads to choose from, we need to discuss the most effective to use on uneven floors. The intent of the pad is to hide any grout lines or uneven stones, so the pad must be solid and dense. That said, a typical mesh looking rug pad with holes in it will not help because it is neither solid nor dense enough to withstand pressure. For this, only a felt rug pad will perform and it should be a higher density, such as a 40 or 45 ounce, to be able to truly resist the pressure and stress associated with such floors.

Choose the right felt rug pad and place it between your area rug and floor. The proper pad will prevent any grout lines coming through to show in the rug and it will make the floor look as flat and smooth as possible. This can only be achieved with a dense and solid rug pad, so take care to choose one of these. Once in place under your rug, the rug pad will prove to perform and keep the floor safe for walking without bumps or high and low spots.

Article Written By: Sam Kaoud