Rugs add a beautiful touch of style to any floor space. They offer a fresh textured layer, eye-catching prints, a burst of colors, and warmth to a room. Laying rugs over carpets makes the floor look extremely awesome. Unfortunately, rugs may keep on moving especially when stepped on since they may lack a stable foundation. But can you really secure a rug area from moving?

You can secure an area rug on top of the carpet. Add a non-slip underlayment on the carpet, get or use double-sided rug tape, or even get a rug with non-slip rubber backing to hold the carpet in place.

Why Does an Area Rug Keep Moving on Carpet?

One of the main reasons why rugs keep moving on the carpet is because of the carpet pile itself. Basically, carpet pile refers to the density of carpet fibers – short pile (flat), medium pile, or long pile (shaggy).

As you walk on the rug, your weight is transferred from your legs to the rug and finally to the carpet pile. As a result, even your best area rug becomes unstable and start moving along in different direction. The harder the rug is pushed the further the rug is moved.

How to Secure an Area Rug on Top of Carpet

Securing your area rug on top of the carpet floor can be beneficial especially when you are cleaning it. To do this without damaging your floor, you can consider buying a rug that comes with rubber backing. In addition, you can use a non-slip underlay, install rug anchors, or grippers. In areas, that need a permanent solution, get an adhesive like silicone caulk.

Here is how to fix area rugs on top of a carpet:

1. Choose rugs with non-slip rubber backing

When purchasing an area rug, you can get one with a non-slip rubber backing already fixed on the rug. Such rugs feature a grippy latex gel that grips the rug’s backing for extra hold on the carpet. However, how well the gel backing grips on the carpet will vary depending on the type and thickness of the carpet it will be laid over.

For maximum safety, you may install an additional non-slip underlay sheet over the carpet before laying your rug. Otherwise, if you installed a non-plush carpet, a non-slip rubber backing rug will be enough to prevent slipping.

Installing a rug with non-slip rubber backing such as the GOYLSER Rubber Backing Front Door Mat is straightforward. You will not need any additional material to fix the rug on the carpet. Simply roll the rug over the area of the carpet you want to cover and walk over the rug.

2. Use a non-slip underlay

The easiest way to secure an area rug on top of the carpet is by adding a non-slip underlay. A rug underlay holds a rug tightly and keeps it in one position, preventing the rug from moving in any direction. However, not all rug underlays are the same, pick a rug designed for use in the type of carpet you have installed on your floor.

Here is how to install a carpet underlay for your floor:

Cut your non-slip rug underlay to fit the size of your rug.
Make sure you cut your non-slip underlay at least 2 inches (25 millimeters) narrower and shorter than your rug. If your rug is bigger than your underlay, the edges of your rugs will start to lift over time causing more slipping as a result. Besides, you may not like the idea of an underlay showing around the edges of the rug.
Fix the non-slip rug underlay on the carpet and then place the rug on the carpet making sure it sits neatly and securely on top of the underlay.

3. Use Rug Gripper or Rug Tape

You can prevent rugs from sliding using carpet tape or grippers. They are a number of double-sided adhesive tapes that can firmly hold rugs on the carpet. The most common ones are made of rubber, silicone, or glue. The silicone-based ones are the best since they don’t damage your carpet.

For instance, the Heavy-Duty Rug Tape (Double-Sided) is designed to hold rugs in place on carpets but you can also use it on wooden flooring and tile flooring. It is made of 33% more adhesive compared to other brands of rug tapes on the market. Using rug tape to secure your rug area is simple.

Here is how to secure carpet with rug tape and grippers:

Remove all the debris, dirt, and dust from the rug.
Tape the perimeter and middle of the carpet area where you want to lay your rug. You need to tape in X shapes
Leave the protective liner on the tape for now
Tape the perimeter and middle of the rug
Gently peel the backing from each of the taped parts and lay the rug on the carpet.
Walk over the rug or run a rag roller over the entire area to ensure the tape and rug tick together.

4. Use silicone caulking

Silicone caulking is a specialized adhesive like GE GE012A Silicone can be applied underneath the rug to hold the rugs tightly on the carpet. Some of the advantages of using silicon caulking include being easy to install and can provide proper anchorage to reduce falls and slipping. In addition, it also helps to prevent area rug from bunching up on the carpet.

Installation is straightforward. First, you need to make sure the rug and the carpet are clean, dry, and mold-free before installation. Moisture or damp surfaces may prevent the caulking from adhering.

Once you are sure the surface is clean and dry, apply the silicone caulk on the edges of the rug every 75 mm.
Use a knife or spatula to flatten out the silicone caulking. Make sure the layer is not too thick as this may hinder proper adhering.
Allow the caulk to cure. Silicone caulk takes about 12 to 18 hours to cure completely. Give the surface enough time to cure before you install the rug on the carpet. Once ready, the dried caulk will add extra grip between the carpet and rug, as a result preventing the rug from slipping.

5. Rubberized shelf liner

You can also secure an area rug on top of your carpet using a rubberized shelf liner – the same liners that keep glasses and dishware in place. Rubberized shelf liners such as Gorilla Grip Original Drawer and Shelf Liner are similar to heavy-duty waffle rug pads in design but a little less expensive compared to the rug pads.

Spray the gripping side of the rubberized shelf liner with run adhesive. Spray the part of the carpet where you want to lay the rug. Stick the liner to the carpet and hold it in place for 5 to 10 minutes. Now spray the liner itself with adhesive and place the rug over it.

One of the downsides of using rubberized shelf liners is that they are available in 12-inch widths. If your rug is slightly bigger, you can glue or tape the rubberized shelf liners together.

6. Use rug anchors

A rug anchor is a thin-layered rubber material that you put under your rugs to prevent the rug from moving or sliding. Most of them like iPrimio NeverCurl’s come with adhesives that stick the rugs tightly without damaging the carpet.

Stick double-sided rug anchors to the underside of the rug. Remove the protective paper from the rug anchor and carefully position the rug on the carpet area. Step on the rug several times until the rug is firmly fixed on the floor.

How to Secure Area Rug on Top of Carpet