10 Tips To Help You In Choosing A Good Carpet

Posted on 28 April, 2023 by Jack Hooper

There are many factors that you need to take into consideration while choosing a carpet. As it's something that you will use for a long. So you can’t afford to make the wrong choice of your carpet. Most of the carpet suppliers in London (and other cities) have large numbers of options to offer. All you need to do is the best selection of rugs for your home. Here,  we have got 10 useful tips that can help in choosing the most ideal carpet:

1. Select a carpet with adequate padding

In any given carpet, the padding serves several important roles. Those are in terms of offering structural support, strength and cushioning. Generally, a carpet with inadequate padding tends to tear too soon.  

Padding can either be made from foam or rubber. It simply keeps the home warm, absorbs sound which maintains privacy and also prevents outside noise. It is an important part of the rug, because the carpet’s fibres and backside may tear apart without it.

Ultimately, the type of rug you are using will determine the best padding for it. For instance, if it is a cut pile or cut loop rug, it is best to go with a 7/16 inch (that is, 11 mm) padding. But if it is a Berber rug(or thin loop rug), the best padding would be 3/8 inch (that is 9.5 mm).

2. Choose a carpet style that meshes well with your lifestyle

Common styles include Saxony, plush and Berber. Others are frieze and textured. Now some of these styles are very attractive, but they require lots of maintenance. Those may not be ideal for someone with a busy lifestyle. Some styles are ideal for homes with high foot traffic. These can be very good for folks who often entertain huge groups of visitors in their homes. Conversely, some other styles are suitable for use in homes with low traffic.

With regard to lifestyle, one also has to consider factors like the presence of kids and/or pets. Then go for carpets that can accommodate them.

3. Get the best one within your budget

For any reasonable budget, it is possible to find a decent shag. The most important thing is to shop around and make comparisons. You should request price quotes for the actual carpets and for installation services. It is also important to remember that one doesn’t have to use one type of rug throughout the home. Instead, one can choose specific types of rugs for different rooms and can save lots of money.

It is worth noting you should also consider the maintenance costs for the various types of rugs that you may buy.

Ultimately, we tend to find woollen rugs the costliest. But they are also the most comfortable and elegant. On the other hand, synthetic nylon rugs are cheaper. But they may not be as plush or elegant as woollen ones.

4. Make the purchase from a supplier who specializes in carpets

A supplier who specializes in carpets offers a number of advantages like a wider range of varieties to select from. Moreover, their staff tend to be more knowledgeable on various aspects of carpeting. Besides, they may have an in-house team of experienced carpet fitters. There are lots of stores that specialize in domestic and commercial carpet flooring in London and other major cities. Thus, getting a specialist store to procure the right shag shouldn’t be too hard.

5. Consider the maintenance requirement

Before buying any shag, it is important to understand what it requires, in terms of cleaning and maintenance. You can ask sales person to share information on this. Factors like how often it needs cleaning, and what products it should be with, are vital to consider here. Usually, families with babies and pets should avoid buying hard-to-clean rugs. Rugs which are stain resistant will save your time. It also helps you to avoid the irritation of frequent cleaning.

6. Check the warranties carefully

It is important to have a clear understanding of what any given carpet’s warranty covers. Some providers give a warranty against mating, crushing and even staining. But it is not advisable to buy a particular rug solely because its warranty looks good. There are fewer chances of manufacturing defects in rugs. The area where problems are more common is that of installation. The bigger concern should be with guarantees associated with installation.

7. Make colour and pattern comparisons

Here, you have to start by asking yourself about the tone or mood you wish to set for each room. Then go for a colour and pattern which facilitates that. Remember, it is also possible to use the rug to create space illusions. For instance, With the light colour rug, you can make smaller rooms look/feel larger.

8. Pay special attention to stair carpeting

The carpets installed on the stairs will have to endure heavy footfall. So they should be able to withstand that, without getting torn or worn out. Ultimately, when it comes to stair carpeting, we often find that cut pile work better than looped pile.

9. Consider using environment-friendly carpets

Carpets made from natural materials like wool and jute are the most environment-friendly. Such natural material rugs are not prone to producing poor air quality. This can be harmful to health. Also, ideal carpets are coloured using organic dyes. On another note, by opting for carpets made from recycled material, you can make your contribution to saving the environment.

10. Consider deploying area rugs rather than carpets in some cases

There are situations where area rugs work better than wall-to-wall carpets. For all its various benefits, carpeting has disadvantages too. Those include its tendency to hold dust, mites, odour and various other things that can trigger allergies. Moreover, when moving, you typically find that you can’t carry the wall-to-wall carpets with you. And they can be quite costly, in comparison to area rugs. Therefore there are scenarios where opting for area rugs may be better.

One should not lightly take the selection and installation of carpet. There are even cases where you may need professional help in selecting an appropriate carpet. M&M Carpets Contractors Ltd can offer such help whenever you need it.