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CARPET KNOWLEDGE

NOT ALL CARPETS ARE CREATED EQUAL

This page is designed to provide you with basic information about carpet and carpet shopping.

Carpet Shopping - When you are shopping for carpet it is critical that you compare like products. Most retailers and big box stores sell the same or similar products, but under different names so it's difficult to cross shop based on product name alone. With that in mind you need four basic pieces of information to help you make accurate comparisons and smart buying decisions:

1. The yarn type (e.g. nylon, P.E.T., Olefin, Wool)
2. The once weight (e.g. 17oz, 25oz, 40oz, etc)
3. The type/style (e.g. cut pile, loop Berber, frieze, sculptured, etc)
4. The price quoted for the material only per square yard and/or per square foot

Always note the manufactures name, style name/style number and color name/color number of the product's you like. When carpet shopping It's often what's not stated by the sales rep that can make the biggest difference in price and unfortunately if you don't ask these 4 questions you may not be getting the great deal that you thought you where.

Carpet Pricing - Carpet is typically priced in square yards, however many retailers are now doing it in square feet as it creates the perception of lower cost e.g. a carpet selling for $15 a square yard is only $1.76 a square foot. To convert - divide your square yard price by 9 to get to the square foot price, or multiply the square foot price by 9 to get to the square yard price. It's always a good idea to take a calculator with you when carpet shopping.

Carpet Calculations - Most carpet comes in 12 foot width goods, however some products are offered in both 12 and 15 foot goods. Note: In most cases you cannot mix 12' and 15' goods as the dye lots will be different. To convert your square footage into the amount of carpet you require divided your square footage by 12 or 15 (the standard widths of carpet) and this will give you the length required e.g. 250 square feet divide by 12 foot goods = 12 foot x 20feet .83 inches. Once you have your carpet material figured out you will need to determine how much carpet pad you will need - unless you are doing a commercial glue down carpet. Carpet pad typically comes in 30 yard rolls 6'x 45'. You cannot buy cuts of pad unless you know a dealer who will sell you remnants so you will need to round up to the next roll.

Carpet Measuring - These are basic guidelines and if you are not comfortable using a tape measure and calculator we strongly recommend that you hire a professional to measure and diagram your project. Start by drawing a rough diagram of the areas you plan to carpet. When measuring keep in mind that the carpet all needs to run in the same direction for proper seaming and appearance purposes - exception stairs. If you have rooms that are larger than 12' x 12' in dimension (e.g. 19'.6" x 14'.8") there will need to be a seam and the cut piece can be used in another areas such as a hallway, stairs, another large room, etc. It's a good idea to add 3 inches to the length and width of your measurement to allow for the carpet to be cut in and tucked to the tack strip. If the room is 12' or 15' exact its OK not to add the 3" inches as the carpet will stretch to meet the tuck requirement. Remember to convert your measurements to decimal when using a calculator (e.g. 3 inches = .25, 6 inches = .5, etc) and always round up. Remember when totaling your measurements that carpet comes in standard widths e.g. 12' or 15' goods so if a room is 11 x 10 the amount of carpet that will need to be purchased (assuming the flow is in the 10' direction) would be 12' x 10'3" (12 x 10.25) - leaving a 1' x 10.3 foot piece of scrap. Waste is an unavoidable reality unless all your rooms are 12' or 15' exact. To measure for stairs measure the stair tread width (Run) and height for the top of one stair to the top of the next (Rise) and the length of the tread. Most stairs have a 11" (+/- 1") inch run and a 7.5" (+/- .5") rise so if you factor 1'foot 10" times the length of the stair tread and then times that by the number of stairs you should be OK e.g. 1'10"(1' run & 10" rise) x 3' (3' tread length) x 10 (number of stairs) = 55 square feet of material required. Other things to consider when measuring stairs is the stair type e.g. boxed (walls on both sides) open ended (no wall on one side or both) pie shaped, landings and over hangs. You will need to add to the stair length calculation if you have open ended stairs (or over hangs) to allow for the wrap. For pie shape stairs measure widest part and don't forget to add material for any landings. In about 50% of installations the cuts off of other rooms will provide most if not all the material needed for the stairs. ITS ALWAYS BETTER TO HAVE A LITTLE TOO MUCH MATERIAL THAN NOT ENOUGH.

Carpet Pad - Most residential carpet pad (also referred to as carpet cushion) is made out of what is called Rebond foam and comes in standard rolls of 30 square yard = 6' x 45'. Carpet pad comes in various densities and thickness. Typical thickness for residential pads are: 3/8, 7/16, and 1/2 inch. Typical densities are: 5lbs, 6lbs, 7lbs, 8lbs and 10lbs. The higher the density the stiffer the pad the better it is for the carpet - less flex in the carpet backing and more spring back when you walk. We recommend that you not buy anything less than 5lbs for residential use, 6lbs is standard, 8lbs is an upgrade. Avoid regrind, fill, or used pad and never double up the pad. MAKE SURE YOU ASK WHAT PAD IS BEING QUOTED when price shopping as it can have dramatic effect on the total price. If you can get a separate quote on the pad that's great. There are also a number of specialty pads available to meet almost any need e.g. commercial, moisture barrier, anti-microbio, etc.

Dye lot - If you plan on carpeting your whole house in the same color and style carpet you will want to do it all at the same time. The reason being that even though the carpet is the same style and color number the shade can vary from one production run (dye lot number) to another.

Nylon fiber verses P.E.T. (Polyethylene Terephthalate = basically it's recycled plastic) and Olefin fiber - here are the basics:

Nylon carpets typically cost more compared to P.E.T or Olefin for the same once weight.
Nylon carpets wear better, clean easier and last longer - Despite what the retailer may tell you just ask you local carpet cleaner for his option on which fiber is better.
P.E.T. / Olefin is less expensive - you may find a 50 oz P.E.T. for the same price as a 30 oz nylon.
P.E.T. / Olefin offers more vibrant colors.
P.E.T. / Olefin has more of a tendency to crush or mat over time.
P.E.T. / Olefin claims to have better stain resistance.

BCF - Bulked Continuous Filament. This is considered a more favorable method of manufacturing yarn. If you look at the back of a carpet sample it will say if it is a BCF nylon or BCF P.E.T. BCF has less of tendency to shed. If it doesn't say BCF it is most likely a Staple yarn.

Staple - Is the most common method for manufacturing yard therefore the yarn itself is more plentiful and less expensive than BCF yarn. The net result is that staple products are typically less expensive compared to BCF products. Staple products are as good as BCF products however they do have more of a tendency to shed for the first couple of months after installation or several vacuuming sessions.

Textured - The pile height or individual fiber lengths vary slightly. Most common cut pile.

Saxony - The pile lengths are exactly the same length - a loosely used term these days.

Berber - Use to be loop only, now it more broadly refers to flecking (multi colored speckles) and can refer to a cut pile or loop product.

Sculptured - Also known as high-low has a pronounced difference in pile height creating a random looking or specific pattern.

Frieze - Longer fibers with a heavy twist that lay in random directions.

Plush - Loosely used term to describe a dense cut pile carpet

Solution Dyed - A process whereby the yarn fibers are dyed before the manufacturing process. Because the yarn fiber is completely dyed all the way through, it is considered to be the most stain resistant yarn/products. The mass majority of carpets are topically dyed. The down side of solution dyed yarn is that it has a limited color selection, typically earth tones.

FHA - Federal Housing Authority. If the carpet sample doesn't state that it meets FHA and HUD standards it does not. Nylon carpets must be 25oz or better to be FHA approved. P.E.T. carpet must be 29oz or better to be FHA approve. If your project is subsidized by the government (e.g. section 8) the carpet must be FHA approve.

Stain Protectors - Dupont Stain Master, Scotch Guard, Shaw R2X, are all similar in chemical composition and ability to resist stains. Carpets with branded stain resisters e.g. Dupont Stain Master typically cost more. Keep in mind - NO CARPET IS STAIN PROOF.

Dupont - Dupont does not make carpet they make carpet fiber and stain protectors.

Tactess - Dupont branded soft yard. Most major manufactures offer products that use Tactess yarn. Products using Tactess yard have what is known in the industry as a better hand - softer to the touch.

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