Cold winters can cause most people to run back indoors for warmth. But what if your home is cold, too? You might be wondering if adding a rug to a room will make it warmer, instead of spending money on expensive heating systems or home improvements.
In this article, we will find out if a rug will warm up your home, plus tips on how to choose the best rug.
Do Rugs Help With Warmth?
A rug can help to insulate a floor. When combined with other weatherization practices, this can warm up a room and make it more comfortable to walk across cold floors. Thick rugs are best for maximum insulation, and rug pads and thermal rug mats can also help preserve warmth.
Can a Rug Make a Room Warmer?
The quickest way to warm up a room is to install insulation underneath the floor, but this can be expensive and impractical. In fact, if you’re a renter, this may be impossible. But you can improve insulation in your home by simply adding a rug on top of the floor.
You won’t see a dramatic change with a rug alone, but it can help when combined with a proper heat source, insulated walls, heat loss prevention, and other weatherization practices. It will also warm up your feet when you walk across the floor.
Do Rugs Help With Cold Floors?
There are certain types of floors that get coldest during harsh winters. These include tile, hardwood, vinyl, and laminate.
Walking across these cold floors can be more than uncomfortable – it could even cause you to catch colds and other illnesses.
Adding a rug will make walking across the floor warmer and more comfortable. Under the right circumstances, the rug will also warm up the temperature in the room.
To accomplish this, you will need to choose the right rug and prevent heat from escaping the room.
What Kind of Rug is the Warmest?
The best kinds of materials for warm rugs are those with tiny air pockets between the fibers for insulation. Two good examples are wool and cotton.
Wool
Wool is known to be the best material for insulating a cold floor. A heavy wool rug will keep your floor very warm, but the downside is that it can be difficult to clean, due to its heaviness and the long time it takes to dry.
Cotton
A thick cotton rug will be easier to clean than wool and will still provide the benefits of warming up a floor. Make sure it’s thick enough to provide warmth and comes with easy care instructions.
How to Choose Rugs to Make a Room Warmer?
There are several factors you should take into consideration when choosing the right rug to warm up your room. They include materials, thickness, and size of a rug.
Materials
As discussed above, wool is generally the best material to choose for warmth. Cotton would be the second-best material to choose and will be easier to clean.
Thickness
Next to material, thickness is probably the most important consideration for a rug to keep floors warm.
Wool is generally a thick material, so any wool rug will do the trick. If you are choosing cotton, make sure it is a thick cotton rug for maximum warmth.
Outside of these two materials, other rugs will still help you warm up the room. You just need to choose a thick rug to put enough space between your feet and the cold floor.
Size
The final aspect you should consider is the size of the rug. Make sure you choose a rug that is appropriately sized for your room.
If you are constantly stepping from a small warm rug onto the cold floor onto another warm rug, you will be losing heat and confusing your body, which can cause you to catch a cold.
Large rugs that fill up the space are best. If you cannot find a large rug for your room, you can use smaller rugs, but arrange them strategically.
Get enough small rugs that look good together to cover the normal footpaths that people will take through the room.
How to Set Up a Rug to Make the Room Warm?
If you already have a rug but it’s not thick enough for warmth, you will still be able to use it to warm up a room. You just need to add something underneath to optimize the rug for warmth. There are two main ways you can do this:
Insulated rug pads
An insulated rug pad is a thick pad that goes underneath a thin rug. These pads come in various materials and thicknesses, and some include a thick layer of wool or memory foam.
Heated/thermal rug mats
A thermal rug mat is similar to an electric blanket. It goes between the rug and the insulated rug pad, and is then plugged into the wall. It can warm up your floor or even provide a primary source of heat for a room. Optional features include timers and waterproof materials.
Do Rugs Lose Their Warmth Over Time?
It is possible for a rug to become thinner over time, especially if there is a lot of foot traffic wearing it out. This will lead to the rug not being able to insulate as well.
The amount of time it takes for this to occur will depend on the type of rug and the location in the home.
For example, a thin rug on an insulated pad in a high-traffic area will wear out much more quickly than a thick wool rug in an isolated area of the home.
If you know an area will have a lot of people and pets walking across it, you’ll want to make sure it’s thick enough to handle it.
Remember that thin rugs will need to be replaced sooner and take that into account when shopping around for a warm rug.
Thick wool rugs may be more expensive, but they will last longer so they may be worth the investment.
Summary
Adding a rug to a cold room can make your home warmer. It will improve insulation, put space between your feet and the floor, and add style to your home at the same time.
You’ll want to make sure you go for the right rug. Wool or thick cotton are the best choices. If these are hard to find or outside your price range, look for a thick rug or pair a thin rug with an insulated pad and/or a thermal rug mat.
If you decide to add a thermal rug mat, make sure to take the proper precautions to avoid damage and fire hazards from overheating.
You’ll also want to take other steps to improve the insulation in your home, such as checking your primary heat source for issues, insulating your walls, and preventing heat from escaping through doors and windows.
With the right rug in the right spot, you can turn your home into a cozy sanctuary during even the harshest of winters.