What to know about carpet

 
When shopping for carpet, your priority is most likely to find something that’s visually appealing, functional, and soft and cushiony underfoot. Two features determine comfort, wear, and style/texture. They are fiber and pile. You should understand the difference between the fiber types so you can select the best rug for your needs. It’s also important to understand the pile, referring to how the fibers are looped in the backing because not every rug works in every room.
 

Understanding pile

 
A rug is either a cut pile, where the fibers are clipped at varying lengths, or looped. This determines whether the soft surface is a high pile, with long, loose, and sometimes curly fibers like the frieze or shag, or low with short, tightly woven fibers like the Berber. Often, the cut pile fibers stand straight up and at an even height, such as with the Saxony which can have a plush velvety feel.

There’s also a sub-category called the cut and loop. It’s as it sounds: Some fibers are cut, while others are straight loops. The different heights create and embed a pattern, whether it’s a geometric, herringbone, chevron, etc. All of the different versions of cut pile decide the level of softness; please be aware, however, they all provide cushion, whether or not they’re plush and fluffy.
 
 
 
 

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Know your fiber

 
It’s not a matter of whether natural or synthetic is better, but it depends on needs, style, and budget. Also, know that a synthetic can be just as soft as a natural; it depends on the cut and thickness. Nylon is a strong, resilient synthetic and becomes stain resistant with a protectant. Triexta is strong and has permanent stain resistance built into the fiber. Both olefin and polyester are known for superior inherent stain resistance.

Olefin tends to be most often associated with the Berber style, while polyester’s resiliency is constantly evolving with technology. Wool is the most common natural fiber. It’s plush, fluffy, and white. It has oils to make it inherency stain resistant, and it is sometimes combined with a soft synthetic to increase soil repellency.

Come into the Freedom Flooring carpet store in New Holland, PA to let us help you sort it all out. You’ll be glad you did! We also offer professional carpet installation services, because you will certainly want to protect your investment. We will happily give you a free estimate for your carpet and carpet installation. We service New Holland, PA, West Chester, PA, Pottstown, PA, Reading, PA, Lancaster, PA, Harrisburg, PA, York, PA, and Lebanon, PA.