CARPET SELECTION GUIDE

Carpet Construction Basics

The specific construction or manufacturing method of a carpet affects both its appearance and performance. Most carpet is made by one of four methods: tufted, woven, needle-punched, or hand-knotted.

Tufted carpet is made on a high-speed machine that stitches big loops of yarn through the backing fabric. A latex coating locks the loops in place, and then a secondary backing material is applied for strength and stability. Over 90 percent of the broadloom carpet made in North America is tufted. It's efficient and less expensive to produce than woven carpet, and offers consumers a complete range of styling.

Woven carpet construction is similar to woven fabric. The pile, weft, and warp yarns interlace on the loom, allowing for wide versatility of design. Velvet plush, Axminster, and Wilton carpets are all woven.

Needle-punched carpet is made by punching layers of fiber through a mesh fabric by thousands of barbed needles. The result is a felt-like carpet. This type of carpet was developed first for indoor-outdoor use. It's relatively durable but limited in available styles.

Hand-knotted carpets and rugs have been

made (mostly in wool) for centuries, primarily in the Middle East and China. Commonly referred to as Oriental rugs, they follow distinct traditions of color and pattern and are usually very expensive.

 

Carpet Styles and Textures

Trackless Carpet. Curled or twisted tufts make for a textured surface that helps mask footprints. Especially suitable for less formal decors.

Frieze Carpet. A type of textured carpet with highly twisted tufts that curl at the pile surface. Especially suitable for higher traffic areas.

Loop. Loop pile with tufts of equal height or multi-level loops. Multi-level loops form beautiful patterns using solid colors. Broad application with durable wear in either construction.

Pattern Cut Pile. Sophisticated look made using saxony yarn, but generating a pattern look by tufting cut pile and loop pile with a level pile height. Appropriate for formal or informal room schemes.

Cut Pile Berber Carpet. Casual cut pile construction using a combination of big tufts and small tufts. This type of carpet usually contains small flecks of dark color on lighter shad background colors. Informal in construction but adds excitement to any room.

Saxony. A dense level-cut pile. Yarn tufts are closely packed, presenting a smooth, luxurious surface. Generally for formal settings.

Cut-Loop. Yarns are tufted into large islands of high cut tufts and lower loop tufts to form a sculpted pattern. Suits more informal settings.

 

Choosing the Right Carpet Fiber

Carpet fiber and how the carpet is constructed (see Carpet Styles and Textures, above) affect the appearance, performance, and value of your carpet. During manufacture, fiber is converted into yarn, which is tufted or woven to form the pile - the surface you see and walk on.

Retailers' carpet samples are labeled to identify fiber content. Most carpet styles are made entirely of one fiber type - nylon, olefin, or polyester. Some styles may contain blends of these fibers.

There are two fiber classes - natural, such as wool, and man-made, such as nylon, olefin, and polyester. Each has different characteristics. The following can help you make the right choice for your needs.

Nylon continues as the ideal carpet fiber. Its many attributes combine to provide outstanding durability, performance, resilience (the ability to spring back), and appearance. Nylon lends itself to an unlimited variety of styles and colors at reasonable prices.

Polyester fiber produces carpets that are soft to the touch but not as resilient as carpet of nylon. Polyester is best suited for low traffic areas.

Olefin (also called polypropylene) is often used in indoor/outdoor carpet and in loop-pile carpets. Due to its relatively low resilience, its use should be restricted to areas of low traffic.

Wool, of course, is a natural fiber and presents a beautiful appearance in carpeting. However, wool may not be as resilient as man-made carpet fibers and is quite a bit more expensive.

 

Ideas on Carpet Color and Design

The interior of your home should be designed as an interrelated unit. Think of it as a whole rather than a series of unrelated spaces. Rooms open into other rooms. The textures, colors, and patterns of your carpets can create a pleasing, harmonious effect - or one that is jumbled and visually disturbing.

Your floors are the "fifth wall" of a room, connecting all the design elements. When choosing a color scheme, consider the walls, window treatments, and other furnishings, as well as any special effects you wish to create.

For example, wall-to-wall carpet tends to expand the space of a room. An unbroken sweep of color, especially a light color with a smooth texture, fools the eye into seeing more space than really exists. In very small rooms, paint the walls the same light color as the carpet. Cover the sofa or bed in fabrics of the same hue, varying the texture for visual interest.

Conversely, larger rooms can seem more intimate with a rich, deep-color carpet in a sculptured texture. Upholstered pieces can be covered in contrasting or bolder colors or patterns that a large area can accommodate.

Color dynamics. The right color carpet in a room can affect its character. A room that lacks sunlight can be warmed by sunny, bright yellows, oranges, and reds. On the other hand, cool colors, such as blues and greens, can create a serene feeling in a room that's too sunny.

Vibrant, lively colors are good for family rooms or kitchens. More formal rooms are enhance by elegant pastels or traditional, old-world colors.

 

Judging Carpet Construction and Durability

A knowledgeable salesperson can explain the relative merits of different carpets. There are also some general guidelines to help you determine the durability of a carpet and how well it will keep its original good looks.

Durability depends on three important factors: The type of fiber, the yarn twist, and the pile density. Choosing a carpet based on any one of these factors can be misleading. It's important to select the right balance of all three.

First, choose a strong, resilient carpet fiber such as nylon; this is the strongest, most resilient carpet fiber used today (see Choosing the Right Carpet Fiber for more information). Second, carpet with tight yarn twist will resist changes in appearance and texture. And third, the density of the pile is important for good resiliency and appearance.

Look at twist. Yarn twist, particularly in cut-pile, is critical to carpet performance. All pile yarns in cut-pile carpets have been heat set for permanence. The tighter the twist, the better the carpet will retain its appearance. Look to see that the cut ends of the carpet pile are neat and tight.

Check pile density. Press on the carpet with your fingers to see how easily you push through to the backing. Then, with tufts facing outward, ben the carpet into a "U" and see how much of the backing shows. The less backing you see, the denser the carpet.

Some practical guidelines. Light-colored carpets will show soil more than dark colors, and dark colors will show lint more than light colors. The appropriate color carpet can help disguise soil tracked in from the outside since the colors of dirt, sand, and clay vary widely.

Tweeds, pebbled textures, and patterns are good choices for rooms where spills and soiling are likely to be a problem.

Final color selection. In selecting your final color, it's wise to look at large carpet samples in your home - both by daylight and by lamplight in the evening. The color you choose in the store may appear completely different in the room with your furnishings and under different light sources.

 

Padding

Don't skimp on padding. Quality carpeting needs quality padding (or "cushion") for maximum durability, comfort, and beauty retention. That's because the padding helps absorb foot traffic pressure. Its primary purpose is to provide a firm support for the carpet; thus, a dense, resilient pad is usually recommended, because it performs better than a thick, soft pad.

Padding is available in sponge rubber, foam rubber, urethane foam, bonded urethane, or felted combinations of hard and jute. It is also manufactured in a variety of densities, thickness, and weights, to meet light, medium, or heavy traffic conditions.

 

Carpet Installation

Proper installation is critical to beautiful appearance and carpet performance. A quality carpet installer will follow these guidelines.

1. Measure the yardage needed for each room or area.
2. Inspect the actual carpet prior to installation for any defects.
3. For patterned carpet, consider proper matching of the design. In cut-pile carpets, make sure the pile direction is the same between the two seamed pieces.
4. Determine the position of seams and how the edges will be finished in doorways.
5. Make certain seams are strong enough to withstand stretching and traffic and yet be as inconspicuous as possible.
6. Stretch carpet properly during installation to avoid wrinkles or buckles cause by traffic, humidity, and temperature. Power stretching is strongly recommended.

 

As you go through the process of selecting you carpet, look at it as an investment in your home's value and appearance and your family's comfort and well-being. You want to make the best choice for your family, so remember these important factors to assure that your new carpet gives you the performance and years of beauty that you expect.

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