Top Tips for Buying A Carpet

Buying carpet is an important purchase and can be expensive - too expensive to make a mistake once it's been fitted. Most carpet that is not made of natural fibres is either tufted or woven.

The details about tufted carpet

If you are technically minded, tufted carpet is made by punching the pile yarn into a pre-formed woven primary backing fabric. Needles are used for the punching and then a secondary backing fabric made of latex is applied. Basically a tufting machine is very much like a big sewing machine.

The advantages of tufted carpet

• Tufted carpet is easy and quick to manufacture
• Tufted carpet can be produced in a wide range of pile textures and patterns
• Tufted carpet is suitable for all yarn types

The two types of woven carpet

There are only two types of woven carpet - Axminster and Wilton. Both types of woven carpet are made traditionally by weaving the front and back of the carpet simultaneously. Thus, it is consequently more labour intensive thatn manufacturing tufted carpet. Axminster carpet is most often patterned with different colours and makes extremely good pattern definition. Wilton carpets tend to be used for plain carpet and textures.

The advantages of Woven carpet

• Woven carpet has great pattern potential
• Woven carpet has very high tuft definition and great texture
• Woven carpet lasts well and feels very luxurious underfoot

Tufted carpet tends to be more the budget end of the market as it's synthetic. Woven carpets are at the luxurious end and can be expensive - but you get what you pay for!

---