How To Wash Dirty Doormats: A Quick Guide
Doormats come in different shapes, sizes, and designs. The doormat you place at your house entrance gives your guests a feel of your interior even before they come in.
Although doormats are used as a styling detail, their main function is to help you and your guests get rid of the dirt on your shoes.
To keep dirt buildup at bay, knowledge on how to wash doormats comes in handy. We are here to give you that, plus more tips! Let’s begin.
Cleaning Your Doormats
If it is still not too obvious, every shoe that goes through your doorway soils your doormat every day.
A doormat harbors allergens, road dirt, rotten leaves, mulch, even gum brought in by your shoes. All this accumulates and makes your doormat a breeding ground for bacteria, germs, fungi, and more.
When buying a doormat, look beyond the design. Choose one that has a good length so that both shoes can walk on them. Also, it is wise to purchase a doormat that you can easily clean or wash, especially if you have a busy home.
When And How To Clean Your Doormats
How often you should dust off or wash your doormat depends on the movement of people in your home or apartment. You can trust your judgment on this. There will be times that it would also need immediate washing because of accidental spillage or stain.
How to clean a doormat? Remove dirt from your doormat daily or weekly by beating it against the sidewalk or a paved area outside your porch.
Make sure that you wear a mask to protect your nose and mouth, especially if your mat holds excessive sand or dirt. Also, make sure that there are no kids or other people nearby when you do this. They might inhale the dust that could trigger allergies.
After giving your doormat a good shake, you can use a vacuum to remove debris that is still stuck on it.
If your entrance doormat has a strange smell, pour some baking soda. Then, let it sit for ten minutes. After, use a scrub to rub in the chemical. Let it sit again for five minutes before vacuuming.
Periodically, or when the need arises, you should wash your doormat so it can serve its purpose well. A dirty doormat cannot effectively scrape off dirt from shoes.
Here’s a proven safe method on how to wash or how to clean welcome mat:
- Take your mat outside or do the task in a bathtub to avoid a mess.
- If you have a synthetic mat, you can wash it with a mixture of water and antibacterial liquid soap. Stir the water to make soap suds.
- Take a nylon-bristled brush and dip it into the cleaning mixture.
- Scrub the doormat in a circular motion.
- If your doormat is stained, let the mixture sit for five minutes before scrubbing.
- Then rinse the doormat using a water hose when working outdoors or a shower if you are washing in the tub.
- Drain the excess water well before hanging it on a clothesline or a rack.
Conclusion
Make sure that you check your doormat’s care tag before cleaning or washing it. Doormats come in different types of material that require specific cleaning procedures. Then again, we hope that this guide on how to wash doormats will help keep your house entrance fab and tidy.