Should Your Home Be a "No-Shoes" House?

There is always a moment's deliberation when you're invited over as a guest. Should you or shouldn't you remove your footwear? There are two types of homeowners, those that allow shoes to be worn inside their house and those that don't. If you're firmly in the "footwear indoors" camp, you may question if there are any advantages to removing your shoes at the door. It turns out, taking your shoes off inside can not only benefit you but your home too!

The Benefits of Leaving Your Shoes at the Front Door

From preventing toxins to having to tackle household chores less often, here are a few reasons why you may want to remove your shoes before entering your home.

Cuts down on wear and tear. If you have children or pets, your floors probably already experience regular dings, dents, scuffs, and scrapes. Wearing your shoes in the home can only increase the damage and decrease the lifespan of your floor. Athletic shoes may scuff floors, heels can gouge, and rugged treads can wear down your carpets. PT Floorings durable and long-lasting flooring options are designed to hold up to nearly anything, but why expose your hardworking floors to more punishment than necessary?

Reduces time spent on cleaning. Dirt, salt, sand…think of all the things you walk through in a day. Most of these particles get trapped in your shoe's treads and then are brought into your home. Not removing your footwear at the door will undoubtedly increase the amount of dirt and grime introduced to your floors, and for most of us, this results in more cleaning. The simple act of leaving your shoes at the door can lead to fewer weekly cleanings.

Lowers exposure to bacteria and toxins. It's not just grit and grime that get carried into your home on your shoes; bacteria and harmful contaminants get a free ride too. Coal tar sealant, a standard asphalt sealant, contains a high level of toxins that you don't want in your home. Herbicides from lawns, bacteria from public bathrooms, and a host of unhealthy particles all take up residence on the bottom of your shoes, shoes that would best be left at the door.

Benefits your mental and physical health. Stepping out of your shoes at the door means going barefoot in your home, or at least sock-footed. Did you know this can help strengthen your calf muscles, improve your balance, and assist with posture? Your mental health might receive a boost too. The act of taking off your footwear can be a sort of mental shift, leaving the outside world at the door and stepping into the sacred space of your home.

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Going shoe-less indoors certainly has advantages, from better health to fewer reasons to lug out the vacuum. Though floors from PT Flooring can certainly withstand shoes and everything that comes with wearing them inside! However, there are so many incredible benefits associated with not wearing footwear inside you may want to reconsider not ditching your shoes at the door.