How to get Rid of Unsightly Carpet Dents

Picture this: You’ve just moved into your new home or are prepping your existing one for sale by rearranging furniture and you discover ‘dents’ all over the carpet. These indentations are caused by chairs, sofas, desks, dressers and bookcases, among other items, being atop it for a long period of time. Replacing the carpet is not an option because of the cost. But what’s the alternative?

There are inexpensive ways to help remove carpet dents. One of the most common that requires no cost and little effort is to place an ice cube on the indentation and let it melt. After waiting a total of 12 hours to let the cold water ‘work its magic,’ blot up any wet spots with a paper towel. (The moisture from the slow-melting ice cube provides the carpet fibres time to swell and regain their original shape.) Then use either the edge of a spoon or a large coin (quarter, loonie or toonie) to push the carpet fibres back to their upright position. The carpet can still be damp during this step.

Since many of the most commonly used carpet fibres lack the resiliency to bounce back after the furniture that’s caused the imprints has been removed, cleaning the carpet with a heated carpet extractor may offer the best results. If doing this yourself, make sure the cleaning solution is designed to restore and revitalize the carpet.

Should very noticeable and unsightly indentations persist, a combination of vacuuming, steam cleaning and carpet raking is recommended and in that order. Vacuuming will not get rid of the dents but it will remove any dry soils and fluff up the carpet. Steam cleaning will lessen the appearance of furniture dents, especially on carpet made from nylon. Move the steamer back and forth over each dent for a couple of minutes. The heat and moisture will help lift the carpet fibres. Once the carpet is dry, use a carpet groomer or rake to gently ‘comb’ the problem areas. This will lift the carpet fibres and eventually the worst of the dents should come out.

Whichever method you choose, remember that removing carpet dents requires patience and results may not come overnight. It took a while for those dents to become imprinted in the carpet, so it is going to take a while for them to disappear. However, over time and with foot traffic, they should slowly go away.