Rug pads are meant to prolong the life of a rug while protecting your family and your floors. There are plenty of rug pads on the market that can be used on hardwood floors yet there are some rug pads that may eventually harm your floors as well.

The right rubber pad is safe for hardwood floors. The thing to consider when looking for a rug pad containing rubber is to make sure the layer of rubber on the pad is a natural, solid layer of rubber. I say this because many pads on the market claim to have solid rubber and are really a sprayed on layer of latex. This may cause damage to hardwood floors and I'll tell you why.

The top part of a jute and rubber pad is a compressed recycled jute material. A common procedure now is to spray a latex on the back of this jute. The problem with this spray is that it does not adhere very well to the pad and eventually rubs off onto the hardwood or hard floor surface that it sits on. This may lead to crumbling of the rubber or in some conditions, to marking the floor.

The best quality jute and rubber rug pad is one in which the solid layer of rubber is sewn on to the jute layer. This sewing process keeps the rubber intact with the rest of the pad and prevents any harm to your floors. This type of pad may cost a little more yet it is well worth it to protect your hardwood floors for years to come.

For your areas that do not require non slip functions, a quality jute rug pad is excellent. Here, there is never any harm to any hard floor surface. A good 40 ounce recycled jute pad prolongs the life of the rug while also protecting the hardwood floor. There are different qualities of jute rug pads and the best is a 40 ounce density as this quality jute pad is dense enough not to shed.

We all have seen those waffle like non slip pads and somehow they tend to look the same. There is a difference. Here, be careful to stay away from the ones that are almost paper thin. This type of non slip pad does not retain its non slip quality for long and is known to stick to hardwood floors. Perhap the best thinner non slip pads is a 1/8 of an inch thick organic polymer rug pad that truly holds rugs down without marking your floors. Use this type of pad where thickness is an issue in places such as hallways with doors opening up over your rug, etc.