If your office has a carpet, you somehow have to figure out how to protect carpet from office chair. One way or another, without the right protector, your chair could easily ruin your carpet especially if the wheels are broken and/or dirty.
Office chairs are important in any office as they come in as basic furniture. Carpets on the other hand help bring in some more warmth and comfort to your office. Just like flowers they are used to make your office more vibrant.
For aesthetics, adding a mat to your office space is definitely an idea to toy with. However, carpets and office chairs are not the best of partners. But this doesn’t mean that you can’t get a carpet in your space.
Three best ways to protect your office carpet
There are a number of things you can do to protect your carpet with the main ones being;
- Getting office chair mats
- Get carpet safe wheels
- Get a new chair all together.
In this article, we’re going to discuss each of the above solutions and have you pick what would work best for you.
Office chair mats
Office chair mats are probably the quickest, easiest and cheapest solution to saving your carpet from office chairs. Mats come in different sizes, materials, and shapes. What you end up settling for depends on your office flooring, desk shape, and type of office carpet.
What would you consider when choosing your mat?
Similar to how you can find options in a local carpet shop, you should be sure to select the best choice when it comes to choosing the right mat. There are several things you can consider including the ones listed below:
- Mat backing
- Size of your office space
- Mat material
Mat backing
Your mat backing depends on the surface you’re placing your mat on. Flatback mats are best for floors so as to avoid scratching the floor surface.
Carpeted floors need gripper mats. The firm underhold helps in avoiding gliding of the mat off the carpet.
Size of your office space
The size of your office space is among the things that affect how to buy a carpet. It’s also something you need to consider when purchasing a mat. One thing you are sure of is that you don’t want a chair mat that takes up the whole space or is too small that you can’t reach for things while seated.
You could opt for an oval, circle, square, or rectangle mat, depending on the space you cover from within your desk.
Mat material
In the same way you’ll come across different types of carpets, you’ll also encounter various mat materials. The mat material is the most important thing to look at when choosing your office mat. It affects the price, durability, and functionality of the mat.
Polycarbonate material
This is the most recommended material for office chair mats due to its functionality. Although slightly costly than other material mats, its durability covers up for that.
Polycarbonate material mats are fireproof and are well compatible with heated flooring systems.
PVC Material
These are the cheapest chair mats available. Although they do not do well with heated flooring systems, struggle with heavyweight, and crack up faster, they do get the job done for some time. They’re probably best if you’re looking for short-term solutions.
Getting carpet safe Wheels
Carpet-friendly wheels have given us more freedom than we could possibly imagine. Replacing your office chair wheels with carpet-safe wheels is the cheapest and most effective solution to saving your carpet’s face.
Apart from maintaining your office’s original aesthetics, carpet-safe wheels are safer, cheaper and a long-lasting solution.
Higher quality wheels have a larger surface ensuring that the wheels have more traction to roll over the carpet smoothly, causing little to no damage o the carpet.
High-quality office chairs are made from harder materials such as hard nylon and metal wheels, this way, they do not get stuck on the carpet.
What are the benefits of getting carpet-friendly wheels?
They maintain the original style of the office. Replacing office wheels does not affect the way your office looks as opposed to getting an office chair mat. A mat affects your office aesthetics one way or another.
They do not limit movement. Replacing your office chair wheels means you still get to move around your office comfortably without scratching your carpet or floor.
Although office chair wheels are slightly costly depending on the quality, they are way cheaper than buying a new carpet altogether.
Carpets are mostly ruined when office wheels get stuck in the carpet, are worn out, broken, or dirty. These factors have made ball wheels better than standard two-blade wheels.
Office chair wheels can either be double wheeled or single castered. The single casters are designed for lightweight office chairs while double castered are designed for heavier chairs. The double castor enables weight to be equally distributed for safety purposes.
Buying a new office chair
If you can neither replace the wheels nor get a mat, the only other alternative is replacing your office chair although there are several measures you could take before having to buy a new seat. If you’re having an office move, working with a professional mover will make it easy for you to move your new office chair.
In situations where the seat is too old to be replaced or an older model, then it is only logical to buy a new one that matches the accepted ergonomic standards.
Although your carpet will eventually wear out, either from old age or usage, you can slow down the pace a little by choosing from the best protector for office chair wheels. Either by getting a mat, replacing your office chair wheels, or getting a new chair altogether.