Carpet

Types of Carpet

• Cut Pile is the best-selling type of carpet is textured cut pile. Cutting looped carpet fibers at the top creates cut pile with yarn bundles standing straight. Preshearing cut pile several times creates a luxurious appearance. Cut pile is less resistant to crushing than other types of carpet
• Saxony is tightly twisted cut piles that are heatset straight. Saxonies consist of two or more fibers twisted together in a yarn. They provide a soft texture for formal and informal areas. Saxonies show every footprint and vacuum-cleaner mark. These carpets have medium durability.
• Texture and Textured Saxonies are the best-selling carpets and work well in informal areas (such as family rooms and children's bedrooms) because of its soft feel. Textures are tightly twisted and texture heatset for medium durability. They have a multi-colored look that disguises tracks and footprints.
  
• Velvet/Plush are lightly twisted and have a uniform color. They are softer and more level than textures. This type of carpet is ideal for formal areas (such as formal living rooms and master bedrooms) because of its luxurious appearance. Velvets/Plushes show every footprint and vacuum-cleaner mark. 
• Frieze is a highly twisted cut pile carpet suited for high traffic, informal areas. It has short fibers that tend to curl in different directions at the surface to hide footprints and vacuum marks. 
• Cut and loop pile combines cut and looped fibers. It provides a variety of surface textures or sculptured effects for medium durability. Cut and loop pile carpets are available in solid or multiple colors. The different levels in this type of carpet can hide dirt and footprints in formal and informal areas. 
• Level Loop Pile is made by weaving even loops of yarn into carpet backing at both ends. This type of carpet is very durable and track resistant because of its strong loops. Higher loops create a more luxurious appearance. Level loop piles with short and densely packed loops are easy to clean. They prevent dirt from filtering into carpet. This type of carpet is ideal for high traffic areas. 
• Berber is increasing in popularity faster than any other type of carpet. Berbers limit footprints and vacuum tracks in informal areas. Berbers can have thicker yarns than other level loop pile carpets for high durability. These loops can retain dirt and may be damaged from snags. Berbers come in expensive wool fibers or less expensive nylon, olefin, or nylon-olefin fibers.
  
• Multi-Level Loop Pile is like level loop pile except that the loop heights vary (usually two to three different loop heights). This carpet creates an appearance of random texture. This type of carpet is good for high traffic areas but the smaller loops can sometimes hold more dirt.
  

Types of Carpet Fibers 

• Almost all carpet (97%) is made from synthetic fibers. Synthetic fibers are more resistant to stains and much less expensive. However, natural fibers tend to resist crushing from traffic.
  Major carpet producers such as DuPont, Solutia, Interface, and Allied Signal have brand names for their carpets. These brands are generally made from one or more of 6 types of fiber: acrylic (art wool), nylon, olefin (polypropylene), polyester, wool, and recycled material. 
• Acrylic fiber is known as art, art wool, or man-made wool because it is an artificial fiber. This fiber provides the look and feel of wool at a fraction of the cost. It resists static electricity, moisture, mildew, fading, crushing, staining, and sun damage. However, acrylic fiber is not durable enough for high traffic areas (it fails under abrasion when compared to other fibers)
• Blends are typically made from nylon and olefin. This blend is resilient but the different fiber types often resist stains unevenly. Stains will often stand out prominently with these blends. 
• Nylon is the most popular fiber (about 90% of residential carpets and 65% of all carpets). Nylon is a good choice for all traffic areas because it is durable and static free, maintains fiber height, and resists soiling, staining, and mildew. Nylon fibers, which are dyed after production, maintain color. Nylon carpets vary from $8 per square yard for cut piles to $30 for multi-level loops. Nylon comes in continuous or spun fibers. Spun carpet is made of short lengths of fibers that are spun together. These continuous fibers are less likely to unravel.
• Olefin (polypropylene) is the next-best seller after nylon (about 80% of commercial carpet). These fibers are colorfast because the production process involves mixing polypropylene with dyes. Olefin works best in loop carpets such as Berbers. It is strong (resisting abrasion), mildew resistant, moisture resistant, and easy to clean (bleach can be used safely in some cases). However, olefin can be easy to crush depending on the pile. This fiber is good for indoors and outdoors (e.g. artificial sport turfs). Olefin carpets are the most inexpensive fiber. 
• Polyester does not hold its fiber height under traffic and shifting weight as well as other carpet fibers. Polyester is luxurious, durable against abrasions, easy to clean, and resistant to water soluble stains. Polyester carpets costs less than wool and nylon. 
• Some carpet is made from recycled material. PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) carpet is made from recycled plastics of consumer packaged goods (typically soda and other rigid containers). PET carpet is durable, water resistant, and static resistant. 
• Wool is luxurious, strong, and stain resistant. It maintains its fiber height. Wool also has its weaknesses. It can maintain static and moisture, tends to fray, and is expensive (ranging from about $18 per square yard for Berbers to $66 for cut piles).