Your floors and carpets will be subjected to a lot less wear and tear if you place two “walk-off” mats at each entrance to your home — one on the outside, one on the inside. Without mats, grit, dirt, sand and even small pebbles will be tracked inside on shoes and boots. This stuff can scratch even the toughest synthetic or natural flooring, and it’s murder on softer surfaces such as marble. Dirt will eventually damage the fibers in rugs and carpets. Your flooring will last a lot longer and look better if it’s not assaulted on a regular basis by tracked-in grit.

Also, dust (often containing pesticides and other harmful substances) entering your home becomes airborne where you can breathe it. Effective matting will help prevent dust from getting indoors.

The mats themselves will need regular cleaning, too, to keep up the good work. If you only vacuum one area regularly, it should be the mats or rugs at each entrance. Vacuum them at least weekly, and more often for a home with a big family or lots of visitors. Mats will still get dirty after a while; if you buy commercial-grade mats — available at a janitorial-supply store and some home centers — you can hose them down outdoors. If necessary, scrub mats with a stiff nylon brush and a detergent solution, rinse, and then allow them to drip-dry.

Reference: Don Aslett in The Cleaning Encyclopedia: Your A to Z Illustrated Guide to Cleaning Like the Pros .