Choosing a carpet

With all the styles and colors available in carpeting, one can easily get overwhelmed when deciding to purchase new carpet. In this article I will try and give you enough information to help make this decision a little easier. Remember, selecting a new carpet for your home can be easy or it can be very difficult depending on your expectations.

The first thing you should ask yourself is: Is durability or stain resistance more important. If you have an active home with accident-prone children, stain resistant carpet may be more important. Generally speaking polyester carpet is the most stain resistant fiber and the easiest to clean, however it is not the most durable. Nylon carpet tends to hold up better, but is more susceptible to stains. Not all carpet fibers are created equal. I recommend taking the time to learn about the different fibers and their inherent characteristics.

Next you must decide whether you want a plush pile, frieze, or a Berber carpet. If you are in the market for a plush pile carpet, here are a couple things to consider. Number one: Consider the threads per square inch. Generally speaking the more threads per square inch, the longer the carpeting will hold up. The individual twist of each fiber is also very important. The tighter the twist, the better the fiber. A tight twist acts like a shock absorber on a car. It provides for recoil to the fiber and helps with wear resistance. A tightly twisted fiber with lots of threads per square inch is what you should look for, preferably made from nylon. Polyester carpets can have some of the same specifications, but are more prone to matting and crushing. There are two main types of plush carpeting to consider. The first is trackless (tracks less not trackless) and Saxony. Saxony carpet is the type of carpeting that shows defined vacuum cleaner marks and feels like velvet. Another question to ask is whether the carpet is a staple yarn or a continuous filament. A staple yarn will shed (causes little fuzz balls) a continuous filament will not.

Berber carpet is next on the list. This type of carpet is available with an olefin fiber content (essentially the same as polyester), sometimes mixed with nylon and nylon. Berber carpet is a loop carpet, but can also be mixed with a cut pile. This is called a cut and loop carpet. This type of carpet is usually made from nylon and is very durable. A loop pile carpet also comes in many styles and colors and can be purchased in a variety of patterns. Most loop pile carpets are made from olefin. A rule of thumb is; the bigger the olefin loop, the less resistant to wear the carpet will be. If you are going to purchase an olefin Berber, I recommend purchasing one with a small dense loop. As you can imagine, olefin is the least expensive fiber available, where as wool is the most expensive. The cost of nylon carpeting falls in between the two.

In my opinion the information stated above is far more important than color, however that is for you to decide. Remember, always ask plenty of questions and don't rush into any decisions. I hope the information in this article has helped. If you have any other questions feel free to leave a comment or send an email to cooperjm68@yahoo.com
Thanks,
The Floor Man