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Cooks Carpets & Furnishings All You Need To Know About Carpets

You will find the answer to most of your carpetting questions below but if not give us a call on 01352 700245 where one of our staff will only be too glad to help. Just select from the list below and you will be taken to the relevant point on the page.

Why choose carpet?  [back to top]
The debate over which is better, carpet or hardflooring, hardflooring or carpet remains a highly sensitive, yet very topical, subject for both commercial and residential markets alike.

Articles in early 2004 appeared in four leading UK national newspapers headlining accidents on hardflooring have increased by over 300% in the last five years (research carried out by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents – RoSPA – February 2004). This may have focused attention on one aspect of choosing floorcovering but there are many other benefits when specifying carpet over hard floor covering.

The benefits of choosing carpets    [back to top]
The benefits derived from selecting good quality carpets in any type of application are manifold: what other type of floorcovering will provide sound insulation, energy savings, underfoot comfort, a safe, non-slip floor, and be easy to clean and install, with good wear and non-allergenic properties, while still providing the consumer with the flexibility for individual creative design?

Sound insulation   [back to top]
Noise pollution in houses can have a serious effect on the wellbeing of all its users and in this respect a fitted carpet plays an important role virtually eliminating impact noise through sound absorption. Therefore the use of carpet enhances sound absorption, and the conduction of impact noise can be reduced by up to 30dB, as opposed to comparative values for smooth floorcoverings which lay between 5-15dB.

For example, the benefits of noise reduction can be felt throughout the house. In particular, in flats and on first/second floors when noise of hard flooring can be heard most by people on lower floors.

Energy saving   [back to top]
Carpets can make a measurable contribution to retaining the warmth in a room and therefore saving energy. Carpets have low heat conduction and are natural thermal insulators creating a heat barrier. As a result, as much as 10% of the heat in a room which would be dissipated with smooth floorcovering is retained in the room by the carpet. This, combined with the outstanding underfoot comfort of a carpet, can result in a considerable reduction in the use of heating in the transition from a warm to a cold season. It has been estimated that up to 30 days heating can be saved, resulting in an energy saving of around 4-6% and a consequent reduction in heating bills.

Safety   [back to top]
Safety covers two aspects – reduced slippage, especially when wet, and a decrease in stress on joints The soft resilient fibres of a carpet provide a cushioning effect and excellent orthopedic properties. The underfoot safety of carpets is an important feature, both in the home and the workplace. Infants and the elderly in particular benefit from the non-slip aspects of carpets and, in the event of a fall, the soft resilience of the carpet lowers the risk of injury.

Health   [back to top]
With their superb dust-trapping properties, carpets are conducive to a healthy living environment. Dust settles quickly and is then securely held by the pile fibres of the carpet until it is vacuumed again. The dust is not disturbed by incoming air draughts, and this means that the dust content of the indoor air is kept low. This is particularly important since dust particles also act as carriers for germs, allergens and other air contaminants.

Allergies due to carpeting are unknown. The myth that carpets promote dust-mite allergies is untrue, because these are attributable to the faeces of the house-dust mite – the actual allergen itself. Bedding and bed linen contain up to 70% more house-mites than carpets. Regular vacuuming and cleaning, together with adequately ventilated and dry rooms, means that it is virtually impossible for a carpet to contain, entrap or transmit allergens.

Cleaning and maintenance   [back to top]
Cleaning and maintenance of carpet is quick, easy and low cost.

General    [back to top]
Carpets are quick and easy to install allowing the consumer considerable scope for fashionable creativity – whether they are used in a wall-to-wall design or in combination with other flooring surfaces. Most quality carpets have excellent wear properties, which means that many years of comfortable service can be expected if the right carpet is selected in the first instance.

How Is Carpet Made?   [back to top]

We all know how comfortable carpet can be on our toes, but do we have the foggiest idea how carpet is made? There are four main types of carpet construction, but this is no indicator as to how long the carpet is going to last or to how much it should cost. Before we get to the heart of constructions, a quick bit of background for you: Traditionally, carpet used to be an investment that any homeowner would expect to last 20 or 30 years. However, these Axminister and Wilton constructions as they are known in the trade, have been overtaken in the sales stakes by tufted carpets that provide a high quality of carpet in plain and graphic styles for a wide range of tastes and budgets.

This is not to say that woven Axminster and Wilton are carpet dinosaurs on the path to extinction. Far from it, these types of carpet are still extremely popular in areas where longevity and design flexibility are a big part of the purchasing decision. The hotel and leisure sectors are to name but two in the contract sector, but many homes use woven axminsters as design statements within the home.

Axminster    [back to top]
A traditional method of manufacturing cut pile carpet. The yarn and backing are woven at the same time to produce highly patterned designs of many colours.

Wilton    [back to top]
A woven carpet. Textures can be in a cut pile, loop pile and a combination of cut and loop pile. A carved appearance can also be achieved. Normally Wilton carpets come in one to three colours, but can include up to five colours.

Machine Woven   [back to top]
Including well-known constructions such as Axminster and Wilton, machine woven carpets are made by massive looms that weave together ‘bobbins’ of carpet yarn and backing. The finished result, often intricately patterned, creates a floor that provides supreme underfoot luxury with high performance.

Tufted    [back to top]
Tufted carpets are madly popular within the domestic sector, tufted carpet technology is fairly new in terms of the history of carpet manufacturing methods, but its speed compared to the traditional methods, means that for many it is a more suitable carpet for the home. A pre-woven backing gets yarns tufted into it. Needles push the yarn through the backing and which is then held in place with underlying “loopers”.

Tufted carpet take on a number of forms, but the most popular are either twist pile, velvet, or loop pile: Twist pile carpets are produced when one or more fibres are twisted in the tufting process, so that in the finished carpet they appear to be bound together.

Velvet Pile   [back to top]
Velvet pile carpets tend to have a shorter pile heing and a tighter construction, giving the finished article a smooth, velvety appearance and hence their name.

Loop Pile  [back to top]
Loop pile carpets are renowned for being hard wearing and lend carpets great texture.

Fibre Bonded   [back to top] 
Again making the most of a pre-made backing in a choice of materials, fibre bonded carpets are made by literally sticking fibres to the backing. These fibres can be individual or pushed and pulled into a web. These carpets, particularly with bitumen backings, are used primarily for contract carpeting and are generally in carpet tile format.

Hand Knotted   [back to top]
The traditional domain of rugs from far away continents, hand knotted squares (nearly wall to wall carpets with a spare bit at the edge of the room) and rugs use the expertise of weavers to produce work of the finest quality. Traditional rugs often feature a deliberate ‘mistake’ on behalf of the weaver to guarantee their authenticity.

Fibres and Yarns    [back to top]
As you are on a computer right now, you’ll know just how difficult it is to keep up with all the latest technology and carpet evolves too. All carpets result from the manipulation of raw fibre and with a few exceptions, this fibre goes through a spinning process to turn it into carpet yarn. This batch of yarn is then twisted, pulled and woven to make carpet with three main methods – weaving, tufting and bonding.

All carpets have something special to offer, whether it is luxurious warmth, being easy to clean, having a whole load of resistance to carpet flammability, standing up to footfall, or even just pure and simple good pricing.
Sometimes, just like we have to brainstorm with each other to get the best ideas, carpet manufacturers have to blend different fibre types together to ensure that the carpet can deliver specific performance properties. Generally, wool is blended with other materials to create woolrich carpets.

The fibres available for manufacturers to blend fall into two distinct categories – natural and man made fibres.

Natural Fibres    [back to top]
Wool    [back to top]
The most popular of natural fibres and a great renewable resource, wool is exceptionally suited to being used as a carpet fibre because it combines excellent resistance to foot fall with an uncanny knack of looking good for years. Wool Carpets are also resistant to combustion and under normal conditions provide a great anti-static flooring option.

Wool carpets tend to be made from either British Wool or from Wools of New Zealand and each have their own distinct properties. Just like the rugby team, New Zealand wools are notoriously tough and hard to beat when wear is a main concern. However, British wool is great for carpet dyes and brings vibrant tones to the floor.

Silk   [back to top]
Being so delicate, silk is rarely used in carpet but it does bring a certain something to the finest hand made rugs, particularly those from the Middle East and Indian regions.

Jute   [back to top]
Used mainly in the backing of carpets from a traditional point of view, jute is gaining popularity as a natural fibre floorcovering and its depth of texture makes it great for rugs.

Coir    [back to top]
Coir is made from the fibres of coconut husks and it is a strong and resilient fibre. The husks are harvested and then soaked for months before being beaten into submission, washed and then dried. The pale yellow fibres are then spun into yarn that is then woven into flat weave carpeting or as many people will recognise it, into cut pile doormats that are great at removing dirt and moisture from soles.

Flax   [back to top]
Only used occasionally in loop pile and flat weave rugs and carpets.

Sisal    [back to top]
These are some of the toughest fibres in the business and unlike most natural fibres it can be dyed. When combined with wool, sisal can also take on a softer side and is being favoured by natural flooring manufacturers for its aptitude at creating colourful, natural floors.

Seagrass   [back to top]
Hailing from the paddy fields of China, Seagrass is a rapidly replenishing resource. Once the fields have been flooded with seawater, the fibre is harvested and spun into yarn that has an impermeable quality. While this makes it hard to dye, it also makes it relatively easy to care for.

Man Made Fibres    [back to top]
Popular since the early 1950s, man made fibres have changed dramatically in aesthetics, feel and performance thanks to carpet manufacturing and fibre production technology. No longer a lesser option, particularly in the contract carpets sector, man made fibre producers have managed to bestow their products with specific performance properties that marry well with the fibres’ tenacity for design flexibility. Solution-dyed man made fibres are now an increasingly important part of many manufacturers’ ranges.

Acrylic   [back to top]
Not as hard wearing as nylon and less fire resistant than wool, acrylic can still bring bulk and pile resilience to a carpet.

Polyamide (Nylon)   [back to top]
Nylon carpet fibres take two forms, Nylon Type 6 and Nylon Type 6.6. Type 6 is often added to wool to create a woolrich carpet with increased wear resistance, particularly in lower pile weights and densities.

Nylon Type 6.6 has some extra bells and whistles in its molecular structure providing an extremely hard wearing fibre that by many is now considered the industry standard within commercial contract locations. The main exponent of Nylon Type 6.6 in the carpet sector is INVISTA with its Antron fibre collection. For further information on how this fibre can increase longevity, resist uv light and lend a carpet design that extra edge then visit Antron Carpet Fibre’s website by clicking here.

Polyester    [back to top]
Polyester carpet fibre gives a luxurious feel to thick, cut pile styles and it also provides a good depth of colour. However, it is not as resistant to flattening as some other fibres although it does wear well and provides good resistance to water-soluble stains.

Polypropylene   [back to top]
Polypropylene is becoming widely used in carpet manufacturing, either as part of a blend, or in its own right. While it withstands footfall well, it is not as resilient as other fibres and can look dingy when soiled. As far as cleaning goes, polypropylene is easy to care for although it does scar if exposed to flame. Polypropylene is a good choice if budgets are tight.

Viscose    [back to top]
A relatively inexpensive fibre, viscose is not particularly resilient and it has a habit of flattening fairly easily. However, it does allow fitted carpets to be brought within easy reach.

Yarns    [back to top]
All carpets are made from either natural fibres, man made fibres or a combination of both that are spun into yarn that is then woven or tufted into the finished article to be found in carpet retailers throughout the globe. Spinning the yarn itself is a skilled job and one that has created specialist companies serving carpet manufacturers.

Stages in yarn spinning:    [back to top]
§ Raw fibres are blended together in precise proportions according to the ‘character’ and ‘handle’ of the yarn required for the carpet in question
§ The blend is scoured, pulled and teased – in carpet speak called carding – until it is straighter, whiter and freer of natural burs and foreign bodies
§ The fibre is systematically opened up , layered and cross layered before the resulting ‘web’ or ‘spat’ is split into ‘slubbings’ that are then pulled and twisted on a spinning frame. This helps to add strength to the single strand of yarn
§ Two or more of these strands are then twisted together – ‘doubled’ – and this results in a yarn with high tensile strength capable of being tufted or woven by the latest high-speed machinery at maximum efficiency and at the lowest production cost.
Colour is introduced either at the raw fibre stage or when the yarn is spun into the thickness and length suitable for the carpet in question.

If the fibre is solution-dyed, a technology that is only available in man made fibres, the colour is added at the polymer stage. This ensure that whatever shade chosen is actually an inherent part of the fibre which gives solution-dyed carpets extra durability. These fibres are particularly resistant to prolonged exposure to UV-light and will not be face adverse fading should they be exposed to harsh cleaning chemicals.