Clean It or Replace It? How to Decide About Old Carpet

New carpet is a big expense. Before you start collecting estimates, it's worth asking whether your carpet is actually worn out — or just dirty. The difference can be thousands of dollars.

Signs a deep cleaning can bring it back

• Gray traffic lanes in hallways and doorways. Often that's ground-in soil, not worn fibers.
• Overall dullness or a "dingy" look even after vacuuming.
• Spots and spills, especially ones that came back after DIY cleaning (usually residue).
• Odors from everyday living, pets or a previous owner.
• Light matting. Cleaning and grooming can lift flattened fibers.

Customers are often surprised. One family was ready to replace a neglected carpet so they could sell the house: "Decades of grime came up, almost magically," they wrote — and the carpet stayed. Another said their 40-year-old carpet finally looked right after cleaning.

Signs it may be time to replace

• Worn-through fibers or bald spots where you can see the backing.
• Ripples and buckling that keep coming back (sometimes fixable by re-stretching, but often a sign of age).
• Backing that crumbles or carpet that's separating from its backing.
• Heavy, long-term pet urine that has soaked the pad across large areas.
• Flood or sewage damage — contaminated carpet and pad usually need to go.
• Permanent dye damage from bleach or sun fading, if the look bothers you.

A smart order of operations

1. Get it professionally cleaned first. It costs a fraction of replacement.
2. Look again once it's dry. Many "worn" areas turn out to be dirt.
3. Replace only the areas that are truly done, if needed.

Selling or renting?

Clean carpet photographs better and helps a home show well. For landlords, a deep clean between tenants often buys years before replacement is needed. See our move-in and move-out cleaning.

We'll give you an honest opinion — if cleaning won't make a difference, we'll tell you. Get an instant estimate or look through our before and after photos.