Carpet Types

[Toby]

I am after some advice on carpets, as I am a carpet buying virgin here...

I have had a carpet guy come over to measure up for carpet upstairs and on the stairs of am 3 bed semi (excluding the bathroom). He is a friend of a friend, and has recently laid the same carpet as suggested below at my friends house, and it looks & feels great.

He has suggested I go for a 100% polypropylene (Colourloc 2-ply) carpet, made by Victoria Carpets, in the Easy Care Saxony range, marked as "Extra Heavy domestic" and suggests I go for 12mm underlay. I have some samples, and they feel & look nice.

The reason he has suggested this is, it is cut pile, not loop, which is better if you have pets (I have a cat), it is very easy to clean (can use bleach if needed), it is priced well & wears well.

I understand from reading up on this, that polypropylene does tend to flatten quite quickly, but having the 2-ply twist helps to prevent this.

The polypropylene seems to be quite a bit cheaper than 100% wool or a wool mix, but does come with a 10 year stain and wear guarantee from the manufacturer, however this does not cover shading appearing to change over more walked on parts due to flattening.

So, do I spend more and get a wool or wool mix, and if so, what benefit will this really bring me? I am probably not going to keep the house longer than 10 years.

Does anyone here have a 100% polypropylene, cut 2-ply twist carpet, that has been down for a few years?

Thanks!

[The Medway Handyman]

All carpets fibres are a compromise. You can basically break it down into natural (wool) or synthetic (polyprop etc).

Natural fibres recover from traffic better, are easier to vacuum clean & feel nicer. Synthetics are stain resistant, but flatten more.

Hence wool/nylon is a popular choice.

Some info here

[meow2222]

much cheaper and less robust. Most carpets are cut pile.

Claws get stuck in loop pile, and tear it out.

a real plus, dirt is a major reason for recarpeting

yup

I've not found that, and I've used it in high traffic areas. But for that I would stick with short dense pile. Flattening depends a lot on length & density.

no, of course. All carpets are prone to that

fireproofing.

very happy with it.

NT

[Steve Firth]

Have you tried clipping your claws or visiting a chiropodist?

[meow2222]

:) maybe I should

NT

[Murmansk]

Shag pile