Thank you, thank you fellow warrior! Susan – thank you for sharing your knowledge. Apparently the same thing can sometimes happen with LVP. I did what I always do, I went to Dr. Google. I have often lifted that rug up over the years to vacuum underneath, and it was always fine. She made her own bed. I had done this for years under every mat I’ve had but last fall I was cleaning and discovered it sticking. I think that’s what I have under my entry rug and I’ll be looking closely at it next. I have 2 sisal rugs (DR and Den). You may want to call a local flooring store that sells laminate to see what they could suggest. So usually one more application gets the rest of the rubber bits and pieces off the floor. :’ ( It’s a seagrass rug and I loved the look of the rug, though it was never especially comfortable to walk on. . The sun’s rays can really fade and damage furniture and flooring. Very Timely information. The latex or rubber backing of the rug was falling all apart. I was sure I would regret buying a rug this cheap buts it's better quality than some I've seen in stores for over 50$. Also, my husband always tells me to try lighter fluid when I have sticky situations. South Alabama. Sure enough, just like you stated there are tiny specks all along the natural walkway and under the bun feet of the hutch and under the feet of the desk and chair. Hi I have a 65 year old house that had carpet over all the hardwood. Ummm, I don’t have laminate floors, so not sure. I love the look and would not cover them. And when it did, it went quickly. Chris, it didn’t remove the finish on my hardwood flooring. Or sticky stuff out of clothing. Thomas, the flooring company I always use and trust, and asked what they would recommend. Looking for a different use for it. I sure hope they’re right, that would be wonderful! The limestone stacked stone fireplace was on an outside wall and rose to 16 ft. with a large surround. The school of hard knocks is not a fun way to learn!! I don’t have any rugs with rubber backing. Yeah, that was definitely good advice. I asked the pharmacist and she wasn’t sure exactly what it was either. Yeah, I’m sure you’re right. Nancy, I’m so sorry you had to go through that. My grandson wrote on my hardwood floor with a permanent marker. Your floors look beautiful. Latex deteriorates. I’ve never heard of it, but will file that away in case I need it. I am off to work on my rental house’s floor. Susan just a thought, but you might try Mr. Clean magic eraser cleaning pad. Thanks for sharing your experience and solution! GOO GONE worked great. When it comes to carpet (which is wall-to-wall as opposed to rugs) it’s always natural under natural, synthetic under synthetic. I drove to a Wal-mart Market that’s near my home and checked in the pharmacy for denatured alcohol and couldn’t find any. I had been wanting to do that for ages and I truly love how it turned out.. About a month before I added hardwood flooring in the guest room, I was vacuuming in my bedroom and I lifted up the seagrass rug (as I often do) to vacuum underneath the edge. 05: LIKE CLOCKWORK (4.67) The lies keep mounting for the ladies man. Many years ago, I put a clear plastic desk protector on my new wooden desk, only to discover when I lifted it to clean underneath that the finish on the wood discolored. I’m so glad I ran across your post today. So now I’m lost! I never expected the backing to fall apart like it did. Replies to my comments I usually use a good felt pad under my rug, first because they do protect your floors, and second they give added comfort under foot. I just read through your information for the 2nd time. Hopefully I will have success with your solution. (I had to leave the rag I was using in the photo to get my camera to focus on the mostly blank floor.) If anyone could suggest a good way to easily remove the deteriorated foam rubber from the back of the rug itself, I would be very grateful! Whenever I put down an area rug, I buy some sewing flannel (preferably white, no pattern) and cut/sew a piece to fit just about to the edge, and lay it out under the rug, wrong side facing the floor. or other carpet pad…anyone found a good seller? Like you said , it just happened suddenly . They said to wipe it on, then wipe it right back off, just don’t leave it on the floor too long. I know! I’ll try it on a corner spot. I purchased this kind: Klean Strip Denatured Alcohol. b, Wow, I would have never thought denatured alcohol could remove the disintegrated rubber without damaging the wood finish. I have an 8 x 10 faux oriental RUBBER back rug there to protect my hardwoods and I will admit that even though we have lived in this house for close to 2 years I had only vacuumed over the top of the rug. Good luck with getting it off! I bought a little house in the late 70’s. I have an oval area rug in my spare bedroom. I found the rug in either Bed, Bath and Beyond or Linens and Things (forgotten which) many years ago. Never miss a Between Naps on the Porch post! For small rugs (the kind you pick up and shake outside or toss in the washer) I use the large mesh backing that you buy in a package in the department stores. Did you leave it on the floor very long? You can see the formula (as it was the last time I purchased it) in this previous post: https://betweennapsontheporch.net/my-fave-yellow-paint-colors-duron-sugar-cookie-and-duron-tea-biscuit/. Thank you Susan for your most informative piece. Would like to know if anyone has suggestions for a felt (?) Thanks for the denatured alcohol tip — the flooring guys left some goo on the last installation which has been difficult to remove. If you buy a nice sisal or Seagrass rugs, the ones made from Belgium – the rubber does not deteriorate. The ‘rug protector thingies’ are also latex, so they’re not really a solution to the problem you experienced. I hope you can find a solution, Anita…hopefully they will have a good suggestion. Worked great with little effort. I didn’t even try to save mine, although the top part looked fine. This has worked well for me. What to do next? It doesn’t smoke. Hope you’re able to find a solution. For our area rugs, we always use a felt-like thick material, so you might want to go with that. I still wouldn’t ever use a latex backed rug again after this experience because I’d be afraid some of the latex would get through the rug protector underneath. My situation was slightly different tho, since it was truly the seagrass which turned to powder (although you’d never know by looking at it from above!!) You could scrap off the tiny bits, but in most places, it was way too thick. All Why does Khloe keep texting Zach too? Try to get at least a 1/2 day of rest! I keep the stuff around constantly for removing everything from sticker residue to black marks on my wood work. I never knew it could be used for anything else. They insisted i purchase a nonslip latex mat for under the rug so i did. Ugh, I know you weren’t happy to see that, Ann. I’m thrilled to know it works on hard wood. Thank you so much for posting this. I haven’t tried that, just went with the denatured alcohol since my flooring guys said it was fine to use as long as you didn’t leave it on the floor very long. Picture the path you walk around and around your bed when you’re making it up in the morning, that’s where the rubber backing stuff stuck to my hardwood flooring. and glad you got it fixed! I’ve read horror stories of them leaving an entire sheet of the rubbery stuff stuck to the entire place under the carpet. Our livingroom and diningroom rugs (one 8×10′ oriental and one 11×15′ federal) are both wool and neither have anything beneath them. I can not believe your incredible posting because I live in NYC and recently discovered my beautiful sisal area rugs were rotted and 2 of my rooms look exactly the same as your pictures. I used it on laminate and it seems to have left a film, streaks. Thank you for this entry. I love love seagrass and am tempted to buy another .. but increase the size of my pad this time… so not sure… floor looks naked now! Make sure to get ones that say they are safe for vinyl flooring or say something about non-yellowing. Add nuanced style to your home with our Better Homes and Gardens Iron Fleur rug. Possibly Bed Bath and Beyond? I am pretty sure they have it where you buy cut carpeting for wall to wall. Why on earth would a manufacturer back a natural fiber with a synthetic? The workers got it in the gold shag carpet. Hi — Have orientals through-out our upstairs and in the guest bedroom downstairs (all hardwood floors). This worked like a charm. They told me to give it a little time and the shadows I’m seeing may eventually fade out. In the care instructions, it specifically warned against placing vinyl on the finish, since the chemistry of the vinyl could harm the finish. If that’s not the case, then it must be the mat that caused it to darken. I just purchased some Goo-gone to use for removing label glue stuck on bottles. Thanks, Brenda! Until it wasn’t. I used a rug protector and after a while it stuck to my hardwood and did the same thing. I had a decorator place the order for these custom rugs (w/leather binding) and I can’t believe this has happened. . Rather than buying rugs with a backing already attached, I bought rug pads to go underneath. Do you see them there in the light in this photo below, the little smeared areas? Who would have ever guessed! In that time, we decided that we prefer to not have any rugs at all so I sold them and we have bare hardwoods. You’re wise to give your floor time to recover. I will look under my rugs as soon as I get home. They lied!! Once finished, floor now another color and my hands raw from scrubbing even with gloves and my lungs never the same again…the room was restored. I’m wondering if your solution would help.