Four tips for choosing the perfect carpet

Selecting carpet flooring can seem overwhelming, but if you approach it in a step-by-step organized manner, you’ll easily find the right carpet floors for you. Here are some tips from First American Carpet & Floors, your one-stop source for buying carpet in Woodbridge.

#1: Explore lifestyle

What is your budget? Is your family large or small? One with kids and pets may need more durability or stain resistance than a small family where residents aren’t around all that much. In what room will it be installed? A busy, high foot traffic family room will have different priorities than a quiet bedroom. Look at the overall decor of your home; while nothing needs to be a perfect match, there does need to be some coordination, so nothing clashes.

#2: Know basic terms

All it takes is a little research to understand why the terms are so important. Fiber makes up the rug, and there are five most common ones: wool, nylon, polyester, olefin, and triexta. You will find high pile rugs with long, loose fibers and low pile surfaces with short, tightly woven ones. Basic styles include Berber, shag, frieze, Saxony. Constructions have cut pile, looped, cut and loop and twist.

#3: Understand quality

Density is how closely the fibers are tufted together; a good number should appear on the label as 3,000 to 5,000. Twist refers to how many times a fiber (in a high pile rug) is turned per one-inch length. The higher the twist number, the more durability, and a good number for residential rugs are five or higher.

#4: Know the importance of padding

It’s like driveway asphalt; you can’t see it, but it sets the foundation and is more important than you can imagine. Padding protects the rug from the bare floor and gives that soft, bouncy quality, and the wrong one will affect aesthetics, performance, and longevity. Thicker isn’t necessarily better, so don’t just accept whatever is thrown into the bag; ask what's best for your rug. Padding should be no more than ⅜ to 7/16-inch thick with a weight of five to 10 pounds.

At First American Carpet & Floors, we’ll help you find the best carpet flooring for your home in Woodbridge, Stafford, Triangle, Fredericksburg, Lorton, Manassas, Dumfries, or Lake Ridge, VA. We have two showroom locations: Woodbridge and Stafford and will provide you with a free carpet flooring quote.