A carpet is one of the first things that people notice when they step into a home, so it has to stand out. To enhance a home’s layout with carpeting, you’ll have to choose a style that complements everything in different spaces. The carpet must also have beneficial qualities, such as a stain-resistant shield or plush pile for extra comfort. In this guide, you’ll learn the basics of choosing carpet for a home based on features, costs, and more.
Types of Carpet for a Living Room
The living room gets a lot of foot traffic, which is why a good carpet for this space needs to be strong and durable. Because a living room is also a place where everyone hangs out, the carpeting has to be very comfortable as well. The following carpet options work well in a living room:
- Nylon: Nylon is one of the toughest carpet fibers as it can handle heavy foot traffic. However, you’ll have to apply a stain protector on the nylon fibers about twice a year to block stains.
- Triextra: If you can’t afford a nylon carpet for your living room, triextra is a great alternative option. It’s stain-resistant and durable like nylon. The only slight disadvantage is that nylon is a better long-lasting material for a high-traffic space.
- Polyester: A polyester carpet doesn’t need a stain-resistant treatment because its fibers repel liquid naturally. When compared to triextra and nylon, polyester is the most affordable option.
Types of Carpet for a Bedroom
Typically, you could install nylon, triextra, or polyester carpeting in a bedroom. However, if you want something that will make your bedroom appear cleaner, wool carpeting is worth considering. Thanks to its plush properties, dust and dirt don’t stand out on this carpeting. Wool carpeting has the ability to hide soil because its opaque color makes debris nearly invisible.
Types of Carpet Construction
When you’re scouting different types of carpets for your home, you’ll find many products that have a unique construction. If you pick a carpet with a practical construction that suits your habits, you’ll gain multiple benefits down the road. The main styles include
- Pattern carpeting: A pattern carpet is made with two types of pile. One portion consists of cut piles, and there are loop piles incorporated with them. Pattern carpeting has flair because all of its fibers curl in many directions. When people walk on a pattern carpet’s pile, they never leave imprints on the fibers, which is why this type or carpeting is a great choice for a high-traffic area.
- Frieze carpeting: Frieze carpeting is commonly placed in busy spaces in a home or office. It has a twisted pile and fibers that are short and durable.
- Berber carpeting: On the top of a Berber carpet, there are giant uncut loops that are made of olefin, nylon, and wool. Berber carpeting is hand-woven, so the designs command attention in a space.
- Plush carpeting: When you step on a plush carpet, every closely weaved piece of yarn will cushion your feet. If you want carpeting that’s soft and elegant, a plush style is an ideal choice.
- Textured carpeting: Because textured carpeting is made with two-toned yarn, it’s softer than plush carpeting. In many homes, this carpeting is a popular option because many people appreciate its tight-twist construction.
What to Consider When Choosing a Carpet
In order to select a good carpet, you’ll have to understand the most common carpet terms. The following terms are used by salesmen when consumers need help choosing a carpet:
- Fiber: The fiber is what an entire carpet is made of. A basic carpet has fibers that are constructed out of yarn. Most carpet manufacturers use one-ply to four-ply yarn to make a combination of fibers.
- Pile: If you want a supportive carpet, always consider its pile. The pile determines the fibers’ height.
- Density: The density is a strategic carpet measurement. Manufacturers determine the density by measuring how close different fiber strands are near one another on a carpet. When scouting carpets, consider buying any product that has a high density as a low-density carpet isn’t very strong.
- Weight: After carpets are manufactured, the manufacturers determine the weight of their products by measuring each carpet’s ounce per yard. Some designer give their carpeting a face weight, which refers to the fibers that are present on the top of a pile. Typically, the highest quality carpets have a high face weight.
- Texture: Cut, twisted, and looped are common carpet textures. Basically, the texture determines how a carpet looks and feels after it’s installed in a space.
- Twist: The twist is a term that indicates the number of times different fibers were twisted. A typical twist on an average fiber is about one-inch long. For busy spaces, a carpet that has a high twist count works best because every twist make the fibers more resilient.
- PAR rating: The PAR rating focuses on a carpet’s retention, appearance, and performance. If you pick a carpet that has a high rating, you’ll have no problems maintaining it.
Carpeting Costs
Carpeting and tiles have similar price points. During a general renovation project, you’ll pay up to $15 per square foot to install carpeting in a traditional space, and this is about the same price point for tiles. However, overall, carpeting is a better option for homeowners since it offers great benefits. For example, if you place carpeting for the floors upstairs, everyone will experience
- Increased warmth
- Less noise downstairs
If you install carpeting instead of another type of flooring in your home, you’ll get more bang for your buck. You’ll really appreciate your carpeting in the winter because its fibers will help lower energy costs by retaining heat. During the winter, you’ll want to keep heat in your home as long as possible after each heating cycle ends as this strategy makes an HVAC system run less often.
The process of choosing a good carpet requires research and testing. When choosing carpet for comfort, you should touch the pile thoroughly because feeling the material is the best way to determine whether or not it has qualities that suit your tastes.
If you have any questions or need more assistance, contact us, we are here to help!