Healthy Carpet Home:
Understanding Carpets for a Healthier Home
Carpets can be colonies for dust, dirt, and bacteria. Understanding how carpets are made and respecting them will provide you with a cleaner, healthier home.
Let's begin with a little carpet "vocab."
Carpet Laying Terms
You are quite likely to hear the following expressions when buying a carpet:
- Fluffing refers to loose fibers left on the surface of the carpet. They appear during manufacture and continue to work their way to the surface during the first few months of wear. They disappear with regular vacuuming.
- Pilling describes small balls of fiber left on the surface of nylon or nylon mix carpet. It is usually a manufacturer's fault.
- Grinning is what happens when you bend a carpet back over your hand and the backing shows through the pile. This is a sure sign of a low-density pile, particularly on Axminster carpets. Do not use carpets which grin on stairs.
- Sprouting is the term applied when strands of thin woven backing material, such as jute, appear or "sprout" through the pile. This is no cause for concern - simply trim away the loose ends with sharp scissors.
- Shading refers to the light and dark patches that may appear on cut-pile carpets, particularly plain-colored velvets with synthetic fibers. It does not affect the life of the carpet and has the benefit of disguising dirt and stains.
The quality and texture of a carpet is determined by the way it's put together, and the finish applied to the fiber tufts or pile. Test the pile density in the shop by bending the carpet sample back, pile side toward you. The less backing you can see, the better the carpet.
Woven Carpets
Traditionally, the strongest and most expensive carpets have always been woven on looms. The term broadloom refers to any carpets over 3 ft. wide. The fibers are woven into the backing to form a dense, strong pile. There are two types of weave commonly used for broadloom carpets:
In Axminster carpets, pile is woven into the backing material, a row of U-shaped tufts at a time. This weaving method allows a wide range of colors to be used to create quite elaborate patterns, although plain and simpler designs are more popular. The pile is always cut; it can be short and smooth or long and shaggy.
In Wilton carpets, the pile is woven from continuous yarn, so that the fibers are buried in the backing to make a high density, hardwearing carpet. It is available with a cut, loop, and cut and loop pile.Tufted Carpets
In modern tufted carpets, the yarn is inserted into the backing material, bonded in place with latex and then backed again with foam or fabric for extra strength. The loops of tufted carpets may be either cut or uncut, or a combination of cut and loop. They are quicker and more economical to make than woven carpets, so are generally cheaper, but can be as high in quality.
Bonded Carpets
These are made by bonding the pile fiber to a woven or foam backing, rather than tufted through it. This gives a smooth finish, but is usually limited to plain colors.
Carpet Tiles
These are squares of sealed edged carpet backed with PVC or rubber. They come in many colors and several finishes, from corded for heavy wear to soft pile for use in bedrooms and bathrooms. Fitted wall-to-wall, they marry the luxury of a carpet with the practicality of a tiled floor. Not only can the tiles be laid more simply than a carpet and in attractive patterns, but they can also be lifted again separately when they need cleaning. Individual squares can be turned or moved to distribute wear evenly, prolonging the life of the flooring.
Padding
It's worth spending money on a good padding to prolong the life of the carpet, increase comfort and warmth, and provide sound insulation.
Padding is always laid beneath a carpet, unless it is foam backed. Buy new padding to use with a new carpet. Several types are available: be sure to match the type to the kind of carpet you are laying. The carpet showroom will advise on the most suitable one to use in each case.
Some installers line the floor before putting padding down on floorboards. This prevents vacuuming from drawing dirt up into the pile. On foam-backed carpets, the lining stops the backing from sticking to the floor. Lining sheets come in paper or nylon, usually in 78 in. widths.
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