DIY: Home Carpet Dyeing

Sometimes your property’s carpet needs a fresh look, especially if you plan to impress potential buyers. After years of use, carpet colours can start to fade and disrupt the overall look and feel of your home.

Replacing your carpet is an expensive process so it might be worth considering dyeing your old carpet. It can often be an easy and cheap way to allure the eyes of homebuyers.

Before starting, make sure your carpet is in good enough condition for a fresh dye job. It’s all very well dyeing a faded carpet but if your carpet’s condition is worse than a little colour loss, such as torn or scuffed, then you might need to completely replace the carpet.

A good tip also is that carpets made of nylon or woollen fibre can be dyed, while polyester or acrylic carpets can’t.

To decide on the colour, take note of your carpet’s current colour, if it is a light colour such as cream, then you can choose pretty much any new colour. If your current carpet is a darker shade then be sure to only use a dye that is darker.

To start, clear furniture and tape the walls so as to avoid staining. Make sure your carpet is clean. Now, prepare the dye.

Add an amount of your chosen dye into about 150ml of hot water within a jar (something with a lid), enough to produce your desired colour. Be sure to stir well. Then add warm water, according to your chosen dye’s manufacturer’s instructions. Shake well and pour into a spray bottle.

Spray a small section of your carpet as test run. If the colour does not appear as desired then add more water or more dye accordingly. Once you’ve got your colour right, spray the entire carpet.

It is best to also use a brush to apply the dye evenly – use soft circular, overlapping brush strokes.

Once your carpet is covered, allow it to completely dry before standing on it or returning furniture.

With luck, your potential buyers are sure to appreciate the floor beneath their feet.