A SIMPLE GUIDE TO CHOOSING THE PERFECT NEW CARPET FOR YOUR HOME

Are your carpets shabby, seventies' shag or just plain sad? Are you buying carpet but you don't know where to start? Don't worry - our carpet buying guide will help you select the best carpet to transform your floor coverings from frightful to fabulous!

EASY STEPS TO HELP YOU CHOOSE THE RIGHT CARPET FOR YOUR HOME

Buying carpet for your home is a BIG decision. It's not just about the carpet colour which works best with your interior style, there are several important factors to take into account when choosing the right type of carpet for your home. 

Our carpet buying guide covers everything you need to know in order to pick the perfect carpet to bless you with many years of stylish, comfortable and functional flooring. 

1. Benefits of buying new carpet for your home
2. Different carpet fibres available
3. Different carpet types available
4. Range of carpet colours – the fun stuff!
5. Functionality and performance
6. Clean and maintaining your carpet
7. Carpet Cost – Your Budget
8. Environmentally Friendly
9. Installation

1. The benefits of choosing carpet for your home

Carpet is a versatile floor covering which gives more comfort than tiles, polished concrete, timber floorboards or floating floors. 

• Carpet has the added bonus of improving your home's insulation, creating warmth and softness underfoot. 
• A good quality carpet adds value and a luxurious feel to your home's interior, and is perfect for family homes with young children who play on the floor in bedrooms and living areas. 
• Modern carpet types are easy to clean and maintain, treated with stain-resistant, soil-resistant and fade-resistant properties while retaining softness and style. 
• Carpet styles in traditional or contemporary designs and colours complement any home's interior theme.
• Performance carpets provide excellent durability and resilience, able to withstand the demands of high-traffic areas in active family homes.

Natural fibres such as cotton, jute or sisal are often used for rugs, with wool being the predominant natural fibre used in carpets.

Pure wool carpets are traditionally regarded as the best quality carpets and quite luxurious, but today's innovative synthetic carpet fibres are strong competitors in every category including performance and style.

Wool carpets offer the benefits of being a natural product providing excellent insulation and warmth along with fantastic soil and stain resistance. Beautiful wool carpets stand the test of time in luxury homes and busy family homes, and are a great choice in cooler climates.

Synthetic carpets perform exceptionally well in any home environment. They are often preferred by allergy sufferers and in humid climates where their resistance to mildew is beneficial. They are manufactured in a range of fibre types, the most popular being solution dyed nylon carpet (SDN) - a colourfast carpet fibre with superior fade and stain resistance.  

Polypropylene is a hardwearing synthetic carpet often used in investment properties, hotels, student accommodation and commercial environments. 

Innovative Triexta is a biopolymer sourced from renewable natural corn sugar, so it has natural origins while also being a synthetic carpet manufactured to be highly durable.

Some carpets are designed with wool and synthetic blends, offering the best of both worlds. 

3. The lowdown on carpet types

Carpet fibres are manufactured in either loop pile or cut pile carpet types.  

Cut pile carpets can be tightly woven with high density into what is described as 'plush' carpet, or the cut pile can be twisted, hence the term 'twist pile carpet''. 

Twist pile is known for its resilience while dense plush pile carpet provides a smooth, luxurious finish. 

Sometimes the pile forms part of the carpet design, where differing pile heights are used to create a pattern.  Level loop pile carpets can have a uniform appearance or the loops can be fashioned at different heights to create patterned and textured looks.

Loop pile carpet is:

• Crush-resistant - it bounces back!
• Stain-resistant - you have time to clean up spills before they become stains. 
• Track mark - vacuum cleaners and foot traffic reduce trail marks.

4. Time for the fun stuff - choosing your carpet colour!

Your brand new carpet will provide many years of visual pleasure as well as the practical benefits. Of course you're going to choose a carpet colour you love, but also consider the following:

1. Small rooms, dark rooms and rooms with low ceilings will appear bigger and lighter if you choose light carpet.
2. You can mix and match colours in your interior colour palette, but keep to the same base tone when adding a carpet colour.
3. Neutral carpet colours go with everything!
4. If your floors receive a lot of direct sunlight opt for a carpet with high levels of UV protection such as Triexta to preserve your carpet colour.
5. Carpets with two-tone colour effects will hide more dirt and debris - great for family rooms!
6. Dark carpets have fabulous visual impact and mask stains. Conversely, if you own a golden retriever or a white cat dark carpet will be your worst nightmare, so think it through!
7. A carpet sample can help you to see how the colour works with the lighting in your home.

5. What level of functionality and performance do you need?

To get many years of good looks and functionality from your carpets, you need to choose the right type of carpet for your home or rooms within the home. 

Firstly think, where is the carpet going?

• A dining room or home office will typically receive less foot traffic than a hallway or family room, so a luxurious plush pile in a wool carpet and a light colour will perform well in those rooms. 
• Softness and cushioning is paramount when choosing bedroom carpet.
• In high traffic areas such as the living room , kids room or hallway, a carpet fibre and carpet type which copes with busy family lifestyles is best. Synthetic fibres in a loop pile carpet or a twist pile carpet will offer the greatest resilience to family wear and tear.

Secondly think, who will put the most stress on our carpets?

Households with pets will love our carpet collections specially designed to repel pet odours, withstand sharp claws and cope with whoopsie accidents! Consider pet proofing your floors with our UltraPet carpet collection.

6. The boring but important stuff - maintenance and cleaning

If you select a durable carpet with excellent soil and stain resistance to begin with, it will be easier to keep clean.

Always:

• Use the vacuum cleaner regularly to prevent a build-up of dust, dirt or debris within the depths of the carpet fibres. 
• Clean spillages and soiling promptly in accordance with the manufacturer's care instructions to prevent stains. 
• Carpet to be professionally cleaned every 12 months.

7. How affordable is good quality carpet?

Floor coverings like carpet last for many, many years, so your investment in good quality carpet is worth it. 

Our carpet collections offer a wide variety of carpet types and styles, and a huge price range so it isn't hard to find a beautiful wool carpet or synthetic carpet to suit your budget and your needs.

Use the handy price estimate tool on our website to compare carpet costs and hard flooring costs. That stunning new carpet may be more affordable than you expect! 

Remember: carpet installation and underlay are not included in the online estimate, but your local Carpet Court store will also provide you with a free measure and quote.

8. Environmentally friendly carpets

You can certainly find many floor coverings in our range which are made from renewable sources such as wool, sisal, cotton and jute. 

Some of our carpets even use renewably sourced biopolymer Sorona, made with 37% natural corn sugar. This has a significantly lower environmental impact than other polymers on the market. We also offer carpets sourced from bamboo plantations which are not only FSC accredited, but also have a beautifully natural look and feel.

We supply carpets from leading brands which include sustainable carpet collections designed using eco-friendly manufacturing processes in accordance with Australian standards.

9. Carpet installation - what's the go?

If you're a handy person you might have a go at the DIY option but like most things, if you want a job done right you should give it to the experts. 

Our experienced carpet installers can remove your old carpets or flooring, prepare the subfloor, lay the underlay and your stunning new carpets for a professional finish. We recommend using them!

LEARN MORE

Choosing the right flooring is an important decision and one that you will live with for years. Your floor or carpet is the very foundation of your interior space and often sets the tone for how the room feels.