Rubber Stains on Linoleum Floors

 

LOUISE: I have a rolled linoleum floor in my kitchen and I had put a rug down there with the rubber backing on it.

 

LESLIE: (overlapping voices) Rubber backing.

 

TOM: Mm-hmm, and now it looks all yellowy and nasty, right?

 

LOUISE: Yes.

 

TOM: Yeah.

 

LOUISE: It’s got pieces of the rubber on the floor and I’ve tried everything I can think of to try to pull up that rubber without scratching the floor.

 

TOM: (overlapping voices) Yep. Yeah. And it’s not going to happen because what happens is you get a chemical reaction between the rubber and the vinyl …

 

LESLIE: Mm-hmm, it’s not actually a stain; it’s a discoloration.

 

TOM: Yeah, it’s oxidation and it reacts between two materials and, in fact, most manufacturers – somewhere in the fine print, at least – will warn you about that. Those rubber-backed carpets; those throw carpets that we always use in front of our sink because they’re comfy on our feet, they’re really not good for the floor. They do stain the floor and, unfortunately, there’s nothing that you can do to change that.

 

So I would remove the old one and then I would just get something that has anti-slip surfaces but not rubber-backed and just put it on top of the same spot because you’re not going to be able to restore it to the way it was before you used that carpet.

 

LOUISE: Oh, OK.

 

TOM: Alright, Louise? Sorry I don’t have better news for you but that’s a pretty common issue and, hopefully, now that you’ve brought it up, some folks listening will know better than to put down those rubber-backed carpets in front of the sink on the linoleum floor.

 

LOUISE: Yes. OK, thank you very much.

 

TOM: You’re welcome. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.