Rug and carpet treatments

There is no perfect rug/carpet fiber material. In fact, most of them have one or more significant negatives, resulting in inferior performance in some respect. In order to overcome these, a variety of treatments can be applied to a rug or carpet during or after its manufacture.

Among the most commonly used are chemical treatments, or finishes, improving face fiber soil, stain, microbial, mildew and flame resistance. If applied during manufacture, these finishes should be permanent, not affected by aging and regular cleaning procedures. Other rug/carpet treatments, such are those for static or fade resistance also can be applied.

The good side is that they improve rug/carpet ease of maintenance and appearance retention. On the other hand, they do add extra cost and a potential extra source of unwanted chemical out-gassing. Whether it is worth it for you, or not, depends on both, inherent properties of the face fiber and a particular use that the rug, or carpet, is going to be exposed to. If you have an alternative with the face fiber of sufficiently good inherent properties for the intended use, you may be better off without extra treatments. However, it is to expect more demanding care and maintenance than with chemically treated rugs.

Face fiber can also be treated for added resilience. For this, it needs to be heat set and twisted, which makes it flexible. In other words, it will bounce back after being pressed down. This minimizes crushing and matting, but adds to the cost. It is often used with commercial carpets, even with face fibers of excellent inherent resiliency, like branded nylon. With residential carpets and area rugs, it is used relatively seldom, mostly with face fibers seriously lacking in inherent resiliency, such as polypropylene (olefin). The more twist in the face fiber, the more resilient it is. Thus twisted fiber can be less dense, and still maintain as good, or better resiliency than untreated fiber. Short fiber with tight twists - six or more per inch - will last longest; this type of carpet is called frieze. Longer fiber with less tight twist, like textured plush and textured Saxony, are less resilient.

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Carpet and rugs terminology - This sounds like a school class - but this is the one you don't want to miss. An educated buying decision translates into a buying success, and that is your goal. Certainly, understanding carpet and rug terminology is something you need for enjoyable, successful shopping.  And it is not as simple as it may seem at first...

Construction - Simply put, rug or carpet construction is a particular way of putting it together. Whether produced by hand, or by machine, they are made in a certain way. This includes all that is done to come up with a finished product: from tufting or weaving the yarn to dyeing and applying chemical or other treatments...

Materials - Nearly all of materials used for rug and carpet construction are in their face-fiber and backing. It is usually the face-fiber material that gets most of attention and consideration. This is because the rug/carpet fiber forming its face is most exposed, both, visually and physically. Hence it is the main determinant of appearance quality and retention...

Environmental effect - Most materials, natural or synthetic, have some environmental impact, and those used for carpets and rugs are no exception. Health hazard comes mainly from rug and carpet being outgassing potentially toxic fumes, as well as from rug and carpet mold (mildew) infestation...

Label and warranty - Rug/carpet label and its warranty can give important information and indications in regard to its quality level. Getting familiar with their contents is time well spent. Here's what you should look for...

Area rug size and shape - In somewhat different ways, area rug size and shape have both, functional and aesthetic aspect. At first, one would say that area rug's size is pretty much determined by dimensions of the space it is intended to. In reality, the decision on how large area rug will be, and whether it is to be square, round or of some other shape, should come after careful consideration of not only room's size and geometry, but also typical traffic patterns, form and arrangement of other objects and decor elements present, as well as the intended use of the room, or space...

Colors and Patterns - Color of your rug, or carpet, creates certain visual effect, emotion, and an atmosphere. Individual perceptions vary, but most of us will be affected similarly. Here's a brief overview of what are out typical responses to colors and patterns. It may help you decide what rug color and pattern type is best for your room...

Design style - Possible variations in the visual characteristics of the rug/carpet face - its design - are literally countless. They come from visual rug/carpet attributes created by both, fiber coloration, and its dimensional appearance. Luckily, all this immense variety is being channeled, fairly efficiently, into a few main classifications...

Carpet and rug buying checklist - The two main aspects of every rug or carpet are (1) its aesthetics and (2) practicality. Once you find the one that has the right looks, the next step is to check out how appropriate are its materials and construction type to its intended use. In other words, what is its quality level. The following checklist will help you figure that out...

Rug and carpet care tips - From the moment a new rug or carpet enters your home, certain steps and procedures should be followed to ensure its functionality and appearance retention. They are related to placement and installation, as well as carpet or rug care and maintenance. Here are the main pointers.
 

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