What do you need to consider when buying your new carpet?

Do you want a textured carpet? There are many options now available. These include:

  • Patterned – floral prints etc. Available in axminister (generally commercial) and domestic carpets.
  • Cut pile (plush) – Have a velvet like finish which can show tracking from vacuum and footsteps nut gives a luxury feel.
  • Twist pile – Generally, the most popular as it has a larger range of colours and quality. Does not show tracking as much as cut pile carpets. Also has the appearance of fleck and also helps disguise debris until cleaned.
  • Cut-loop pile – Also known as high/low loop pile carpets.
  • Level loop pile – Available in a wide range of wool carpets in a chunky (thicker) loop pile. Many new products now on the market

What colour do you want your carpet to be? Take into consideration all of the following:

  • It need to compliment your existing permanent fixtures in the area that are visible to the location of where the carpet will be installed. E.g: other flooring, large furniture (couches etc), window furnishings, paint.
  • Perhaps consider current trends or select something more timeless.
  • Suitability of colour depending upon its general traffic type. Light coloured carpets generally require more maintenance to prevent staining, particularly when the area is being utalised by children, pets, or drinkers of red wine! Be mindful as well, that the darker colours tend to show up more lint and light coloured hair.

What sort of quality / durability do you require from the carpet? Do you need this same quality through all areas?

  • Take into consideration the number of people using the carpet in that specific area. High traffic areas require more durability to prevent wearing. Also consider their location. E.g: stairs, hallways, entrances, offices etc.
  • It is an option to have a lesser quality carpet in the low traffic areas e.g bedrooms, and have a higher quality carpet in the high traffic areas. This can help to save some money.
  • Carpet tiles are a good option for commercial projects where individual tiles can be replaced if damaged or worn, rather than the whole area.

What sort of fibred best suits your requirements? Things to think about are:

  • Feel of the carpet – softness under foot.
  • Durability – how much wear and tear does it need to stand up to?
  • Fade resistance – some fibres are treated to prevent fading in areas of high UV or sunlight exposure.

Cleaning and maintenance qualities are also something to consider:

  • Stain protection guarantees vary between most products. Synthetic carpets generally have better stain resistance than those of a wool carpet.
  • Loop piled carpets may not be suitable for those with pets as they can pull on the loops causing the pile to run and damage the appearance.
  • Cut Loop and level loop piles can be a little more difficult to vacuum effectively as the debris can get caught in the lower level.
  • Cut pile, also known as plush carpets do show vacuum lines and footsteps. This does not affect the durability of the carpet, however some people like the appearance, and others do not!

Expectation of performance life of the carpet will help to determine the quality required:

  • If you are looking for something that looks clean and fresh, but are selling soon or only want the carpet to survive the first 5-10 years of a new house or young family/pets, then a cheaper carpet is a good option.
  • If the carpet is for your forever home, then we suggest investing in as high a quality carpet as your finances will allow so that you do not have the expense of laying new carpet again.

Australian Carpet Classification Scheme (ACCS) grading’s can assist with your selection. The carpets graded by this scheme give ratings of their suitability in both domestic and commercial settings.

Other environment considerations to take into account are VOC emissions, Fire resistance and disability access.

Building Code of Australia performance requirements need to also be considered, particularly when purchasing for a commercial project.

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