The vast majority of carpets are made from synthetic fibers, which are more resistant to stains and much less expensive to manufacture. Natural fiber carpets, like wool, tend to do a better job of resisting crushing from traffic.
Again, much of your choice will come down to where the carpet is going to be installed, your lifestyle and budget. We have a lot of options and are sure we can find something that will be perfect.
WEAVES
Cut Pile
This is one of the best selling types of carpet. Its look and feel comes from cutting looped carpet fibers at the top, which creates yarn bundles that stand up straight. Pre-shearing those bundles several times creates a luxurious appearance. Cut Pile carpet is less resistant to crushing than other types.
Saxony
This is a medium durable carpet that provides a soft texture for formal and informal areas. Saxonies consist of two or more fibers tightly twisted together in a yarn. That yarn, or cut pile, is then heat-set straight. Because of how it’s manufactured, Saxonies tend to show every footprint and vacuum track.
Texture and Textured Saxonies
Another best seller, Textures work well in more informal rooms, like family rooms or children’s bedrooms, because of its soft feel. Textures are tightly twisted and texture heat-set for medium durability. The carpets have a multi-colored look that disguises tracks and footprints.
Velvet/Plush
This type of carpet is ideal for formal areas — living rooms and master bedrooms, for example — because of its luxurious appearance. Velvet/Plush carpets are lightly twisted and have a uniform color, while being softer and more level than texture carpets. Velvet/Plush carpet tends to show every footprint and vacuum track.
Frieze
This is a good carpet choice for high-traffic, informal areas. Frieze is a highly twisted cut pile carpet that has short fibers that tend to curl in different directions at the surface to hide footprints and vacuum marks.
Cut and Loop Pile
This is one of the most versatile types of carpets made today, because the cut and looped fibers provides a variety of surface textures or sculptured effects. This medium durability type of carpet is available in solid or patterned styles. Because of the different levels in this type of carpet, dirt and footprints, are less obvious.
Level Loop Pile
Level Loop Pile is made by weaving even loops of yarn into carpet backing at both ends, which makes it very durable and track resistant. Level Loop Piles with short and densely packed loops are easy to clean and prevent dirt from settling down into the carpet. This is an ideal carpet for high traffic areas.
Berber
One of the most popular types of carpet these days, Berbers offer a number of benefits for high traffic or informal areas and come in a number of different fibers — expensive wool or less expensive nylon, olefin, or nylon-olefin fibers. While Berbers can have thicker yarns to increase durability, the loops used in the manufacturing process can retain dirt and may be damaged from snags.
Multi-Level Loop Pile
Similar to Level Loop Pile, this type of carpet boasts different loop eights (usually two or three) that creates a random texture appearance. Multi-Level Loop Pile is good for high traffic areas, although some of smaller loops can hold more dirt.
FIBERS
Acrylic
This fiber, known as art, art wool or man-made wool, provides the look and feel of wool at a fraction of the cost. While Acrylic resists static electricity, moisture, mildew, fading, crushing, staining and sun damage, it’s not durable enough for high traffic areas.
Blends
Made from nylon and olefin, this fiber tends to resist stains unevenly and so stains tend to stand out prominently.
Nylon
This is the most popular fiber used today. In fact, about 90 percent of all residential carpet is made from nylon and for good reason: it’s durable, static free, maintains fiber height and color, and resists soiling, staining and mildew.
Olefin (Polypropylene)
There are many benefits to Olefin: it resists abrasion, mildew and moisture, and is easy to clean (bleach can be used safely in some installations). Also, because its production process involves mixing polypropylene with dyes, these fibers are more colorfast. At the same time, Olefin fibers are easier to crush.
Polyester
While Polyester is luxurious, durable against abrasions, easy to clean, and resistant to water soluble stains, it does not hold its fiber height under traffic and shifting weight as well as other carpet fibers and can fade in sunlight.
Recycled Material
The formal name for fibers made from recycled plastics (soda bottles, containers and other plastics) is Polyethylene Terephthalate or PET for short. PET carpet is durable, as well as water and static resistant.
Wool
Luxurious, strong and stain resistant, Wool fibers do a nice job of maintaining fiber heights. At the same time, these fibers tend to fray more easily and are more expensive as a rule.
