What is the best carpet for your home? The answer to that question is largely determined by a number of factors. These can include how much you want to spend on the carpet, which room of the house it is for and what kind of use will it see. The answer will be different for a living room to a spare bedroom or from a kitchen to a master bedroom. Here are a few general ideas to start you on your quest.

Understanding Carpets

When you look at carpets, there seem to be lots of specialist terms thrown around that don’t mean a huge amount to many of us. Pile? Isn’t that what the teenagers do with their clothes in their bedroom? Density? But all of these things effect the carpet in key ways.

The fibre of the carpet is the material it is made from and are usually made by weaving them material to a backing material. The pile refers to how high these fibres are and is also called a face or a nap. Texture is often used with the fibre to discuss how it is made and therefore how it looks and feels. The density is how closely packed the fibres have been woven onto their backing which effects how strong the carpet is.

Which Fibres to Choose

Going back to what the room is used for helps you decide which fibre to consider for it. For example, for living room carpets, wool or a wool blend is popular. It costs more than some options but has that luxury feel to it. It is also hugely practical and will reduce your need for the carpet cleaners Leicester homes often use, to just an annual job.

Polyester is a man-made material that doesn’t have the natural plushness of wool but is very economical and has a natural stain resistance. They often tend to be made from recycled materials so if environmental concerns are on your list, this may be relevant.

Nylon carpets are somewhere in the middle – they are very durable and great for areas that see plenty of traffic such as the stairs. They do tend to stain easier so a good stain removal product will need to be on hand but by using a good product, the carpet will come up good as new in most cases.

What’s in a Pile?

The pile of the carpet fall into two categories – cut pile and loop pile. Cut pile comes in three main types, depending on the density of the fibres involved. Saxony is a very popular cut pile that has fibres around ½-inch high to give a smooth surface – it is often referred to as plush – but can get indentations from footprints and vacuuming. Textured isn’t as dense but is very soft and has an uneven look that makes it perfect for bedrooms.

In the loop pile category, Berber is perhaps one of the best known, featuring large, uncut loops of fibres in a dense and highly stain resistant carpet. It isn’t ideal for houses that have pets however as the loops will catch in their claws.