Cormar Carpets - Gemini (Soft Pile)
In this month’s blog, we break down the terminology around carpets and flooring. Do you know your Berber from your Backing or your Synthetic from your Sisal? We explain these terms, and more, below.
Anti Static
It is carpet that is treated to reduce those nasty little shocks when you touch or brush against metal or another person. It is usually applied to synthetic carpets.
Backing
Backing is the material on the back of the carpet and is usually made out of hessian or synthetic substitute. Darrell says that "the better quality backings like jute and soft fibre are found on better quality carpets".
Berber
Berber is a term that describes the flecked effect in carpets. The name originates from the Berber people in North Africa and the Sahara who used this process when making carpets.
Brockway Carpets Natural Berber - Woodland Mist
Bound Carpet or Whipping
Usually referred to as whipping, the carpet is cut and bound (by stitching around the edges) but not attached to the floor.
Broadloom
Broadloom is a term used to describe standard carpet widths, which is four or five metres.
Cut and Loop
Cut and loop is an older style of carpet not often seen so much now. It is a style of carpet made by using a combination of looped fibres and cut fibres.
Carpet fibres close up
Fibre
Fibre is the fundamental unit of carpet. Carpet fibres are made from nylon, polyester, cotton, acrylics, wool, and recycled material.
Gauge
Gauge refers to the distance between two needle points in a knitted or tufted carpet and is expressed, usually, in fractions of an inch.
Loop Pile
A loop pile is a tufted or woven carpet pile surface where the face yarns comprise of uncut loops. Loop pile carpets are cut at different levels, including flat or level, textured or multilevel.
Pattern matching with Kingsmead Carpets
Pattern Match
This refers to matching different patterned carpets, say a stripe with a solid carpet with the latter drawing from one colour of the striped carpet. It gives a home or workspace cohesion and flow.
Pile
The pile is the upright ends of cut or loop yarn that form the surface of the carpet.
Pile Height
Pile Height is the height from the carpet's primary backing to the upright end of the yarn.
Cavalier Carpets - Pile Height
Remnant
A remnant is a smaller piece of carpet that is typically the 'end of the roll'. Remnants can be any size and are sold 'as is', meaning they do not come with a full warranty. The good news is, however, they are often a lot more economical than buying a carpet. So if you have a small space that needs carpeting either in the home or on, say, a boat, this is a great option to consider.
Saxony
Saxony, also known as Soft Pile carpets, is designed and manufactured to be very dense, making it very soft underfoot. These kind of carpets are ideal for the bedroom or living room.
Shag
Some of our readers may remember this kind of carpet, although this term is rarely used nowadays. It refers to carpets with a deep pile with a pile length greater than three or four inches with open construction.
Sisal flooring by Crucial Trading - Where Inspiration Begins
Sisal Flooring
Rather us tell you what it is, let Crucial Trading tell you what it is:
Originally used to create strong and resilient twine, we use this stunning material to create graceful and exotic floor coverings. Sourced from Brazil, China and Southern Tanzania, the Sisal plant is one of nature's true survivors – it evolved to thrive in a punishing climate with little rainfall in summer.
Solution Dyed
Solution-dyed means that colour is applied to the yarn before it is made into carpet.
Square Metres
A square metre is the area of a square where each side measures precisely one metre.
Carpet swatches or samples
Swatch
A swatch or a sample carpet is a small patch of carpet that usually gets sent to a potential customer so they can get a sense of its look and feel.
Synthetic
Synthetic carpets, or to use an old description man-made, uses chemical compounds rather than natural materials like wool. Synthetic carpets are made out of one or a combination of polypropylene, nylon or polyester.
Twist
When selecting a carpet it is important to look for a tight twist in each yarn, not frayed or loose.
Tufted carpet
Tufted carpets are made on machines where the yarn is stitched through a cloth/primary backing. The tufted cloth then an adhesive, like latex, applied to the primary backing and a piece of secondary backing fabric is then attached to stabilise the carpet.
Textfelt’s Springbond Underlay
Underlay
Underlay is a thin layer of cushioned material laid between the floor and the carpet to provide extra cushioning underfoot that also provides sound and heat insulation. At Archway Carpets, all our underlay is recycled and starts at 8mm.
Vinyl
Vinyl flooring is a synthetic flooring material that is durable, waterproof, affordable and easy to install. Luxury vinyl tiles (LVT) are a popular choice due to their versatility and ability to hold up in moist environments. They also come in realistic wood plank and stone tile designs. See more on vinyl flooring here.
Woven Carpets
They are woven in the traditional method of marking carpet on a loom. Each piece of coloured yarn is individually woven into place, so woven carpets can produce intricate patterns. The carpet pile and backing materials are woven together in a single operation.