Carpet

Michael Holigan: Carpet makes a great floor covering. It's durable, it looks good, it's nice on the feet. But before we make the big investment for new carpet, we need to talk to an expert on what to look for. We've got Chuck Pharo with L.D. Brinkman HollyTex with us. Good to have you here Chuck.

Chuck Pharo: Thanks, Michael.

M.H.: You know a lot about carpet. Tell me, how we doing here on putting down the carpet?

C.P.: Doing great. They are finishing the seam and stretching the carpet in now.

M.H.: How about the pad itself? What should we be looking for in a pad?

C.P.: Six pound pad is what they recommend, a minimum of six pounds. What you don't want to happen is for carpet to do a lot of flexing. A lot of people think that a lot of pad or a real soft pad under foot makes a better installation. But what happens is the backing begins to flex and you get delamination from the carpet. So something that is a six pound, which gives it the firmness, and I wouldn't actually go over about a half inch thickness.

M.H.: Okay. Half inch, So three eights to half inch would be our range of pad.

C.P.: Ah-huh.

M.H.: How about if we go to a Berber carpet. Berber is very popular again. How much pad should we have underneath a Berber?

C.P.: Again, the least amount of thickness and the more density makes the carpet wear better.

M.H.: Okay.

C.P.: So a quarter inch is what we would recommend with a minimum of six pound density.

M.H.: What can we do to get a good carpet that won't wear very quickly?

C.P.: To get a good face weight carpet, look for something that has a good twist level to it, preferably a nylon carpet that would have some sort of chemical treatment for stains.

M.H.: You said look for a good twist rate. What is twist rate?

C.P.: Twist rate is the amount of turns per inch that the yarn is twisted and then set.

M.H.: Okay. And do we want a greater number then? The more twists the better?

C.P.: Yes. The more twists the better. The longer the carpet will look good on the floor.

M.H.: Okay. And what are the standard rates from an entry level home to a very expensive carpet?

C.P.: They would vary from probably a half a turn, one and a half turns, to up to seven and a half, eight turns per inch.

M.H.: Okay. So the more turns we get the longer it's going to last.

C.P.: That's correct.

M.H.: Okay. How about the weight of the carpet itself? We always hear numbers thrown out. It's a 25 ounce or 60 or...what are we looking for?

C.P.: Face weights are, of course, go hand in hand with construction. But a good face weight would be anywhere in the mid-30 ounce upwards.

M.H.: Okay. So a nylon carpet with a good twist rate and 30 ounces or greater, if possible, if we can fit it in the budget.

C.P.: Correct.

M.H.: Anything else that we should remember when looking for the carpet?

C.P.: You want to look for the durability of the carpet, the craftsmanship of the carpet, making sure that the secondary and the primary backings are good.

M.H.: A lot of people worry about the seams coming up, or being able to see the seams.

C.P.: Ah-huh.

M.H.: What can you do to try to avoid that problem?

C.P.: Usually using a six inch seaming tape will solve your problem.

M.H.: Okay. And that's what these guys are using.

C.P.: Ah-huh.

M.H.: What do a lot of people use instead of the six inch?

C.P.: A lot of people will use a four inch tape. It's a cheaper tape, it has a tendency for the seams to peak.

M.H.: Okay, and we don't want them rising up like that.

C.P.: That's correct.

M.H.: We should go ahead and ask for the six inch.

C.P.: Six inch seaming tape.

M.H.: And I notice the guys cut the edge of the carpet. Why would they do that?

C.P.: To get a good square edge. To make sure that the carpet is together correctly.

M.H.: So sometimes when it comes out of the mill the edge won't just be perfectly straight?

C.P.: Exactly. So you straight edge both sides.

M.H.: Okay. What is this they have in the carpet? It looks like an iron.

C.P.: It is. It's a seaming iron. It's heating the adhesive on the top of the tape, which actually then adhere both sides of the carpet together. Once the adhesive had dried, you've got a bond there that you can stretch without it coming apart. One thing they should remember is that carpet is the major influence in decorating a home. You want to invest your money in something that you're going to be walking on and not something that's on the walls.

M.H.: Yeah. Carpet actually covers more area than any painting or any furniture in the whole house.

C.P.: Exactly. It's the largest influence in your decorating scheme.

M.H.: It's going to give you that look.

C.P.: Ah-huh.

M.H.: If you have a moderate size family, say four people, how long should you expect a quality carpet to last in that home?

C.P.: I would say probably anywhere from five to ten years with good upkeep and maintenance.

M.H.: And what do you need to do to maintain the carpet?

C.P.: Vacuum regularly. That's the biggest thing. And then probably have steam cleaning done at least once per year.

M.H.: Okay. And does that hurt the protective coating when you steam clean like that?

C.P.: No it does not.

M.H.: Chuck, appreciate the time.

C.P.: Okay. Appreciate you having me.

Episode 017 1995 - 96 Season

| Vinyl Flooring | Removing Candle Wax | Carpet | Deck Building Software | Stained Concrete Flooring | What Income Counts | LIST |

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