5 Tips for Keeping Entry Doormats Clean
Doormats are the workhorses of the entryway. They soak up slush, mud, dirt, grass, and rain and keep them out of your home. But an effective doormat can collect an astonishing amount of soil and debris, including decaying leaves, allergens, and (yikes!) even animal waste.
Keeping doormats clean boosts their ability to wipe nasty things off boots and shoes and ensure dirt and debris don’t make their way into your home. Here are five tips for keeping your entry doormats clean.
Shake Them Out
Once a week put on some work gloves, pick up your doormat, and give it a good shake. You may be surprised by how much gunk comes flying off it. If you think there may be some ground in or stuck on debris, give your doormat a good smack against your front walk to loosen it, then shake it again. Do this once a week to keep your mats from getting crusty and caked with debris.
Vacuum Them
At least once a month, give your mats a good vacuuming. Make sure the mat is dry before you vacuum it to give you a better chance of picking up dirt.
You don’t need to vacuum rubber doormats with no fabric or fiber surface. Instead, give them a good rinse with a garden hose or, if they’re small enough, toss them in your laundry sink and rinse them. If they have some stuck-on goo, use mild dish soap to clean it. Wipe it off with an old towel, or place the mat outside where it can drip or air dry.
Wash Them
Some doormats are machine washable. Read the label on the back for washing instructions. Your mat may be washable but too big to fit into your machine. A trip to the laundromat may be in order.
For mats that require spot cleaning, like MatMates™, use a gentle detergent, like dish soap, and a damp to refresh it. The easiest place to clean your mat is the bathtub! Just toss it in, wet it, and give it a light scrub. When you’re finished, run the shower to rinse the soap away and hand it up to dry.
Take care not to use detergents and water on a coir mat. These mats are so absorbent that soaps can cause discoloration.
Use Baking Soda
Baking soda is a household cleaning staple with a wide variety of uses, and keeping entry doormats clean is no exception. Try sprinkling some baking soda onto the stains on your natural fiber mats. Not only will the baking soda absorb stains and odors, but it will absorb dirt. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes, then vacuum it up.
Use Interchangeable Doormats
During busy times of the year, finding a day when you can remove your doormat for cleaning is tough. Consider having a few interchangeable doormats on hand when you’ve got heavy traffic in and out of your home.
Our MatMates™ doormats fit neatly into our MatMates™ doormat trays, which creates an attractive framing effect. Choose several MatMates™ to use interchangeably. That way, you’ll always have a clean doormat insert to replace a soiled one when you remove it for cleaning. Shop our collection of MatMates™ doormats today!
