Choosing the right carpet is very important for many reasons, firstly the carpet you choose must be suitable to the area of floor that you want to cover and also the function of the room. For example check the carpet is suitable for any areas that may be prone to water spillages or high usage. The other important factor is to make sure that the carpet is not slippery, one of the most leading causes of injury for over 65 is due to slipping on carpet.
Obviously you must also be happy with the colour, look and feel of the carpet or flooring. It often pays do some of your own research and then seek professional advice before buying.
The first thing to consider when buying a carpet is the type of fibre that it is made up of, normally this will be a wool mix and can be any percentage a typical example would be a 80/20% wool mix, but beware some sales staff might lead you to believe that it is 80% wool but in fact its only 20% wool. Generally budget priced carpets are not made from wool but made of nylon or polypropylene or similar manmade product.
Always look at the twist of the carpet, generally the higher or tighter the twist the better or more expensive the carpet will be and should also ensure higher wearing levels. Carpet weights are normally in ounces of fibre per square meter or yard of carpet. Some man made carpets have a very cold feel to them almost plastic feeling so I would always try and have the best quality carpet in living areas that you will relax in like the lounge.
Whilst many people are using a mixture of carpet and other modern finishes like laminate flooring, carpet generally is the most cost effective flooring pound for pound. Also check how long the manufacturers guarantee the carpet for, typically this will be anything from five to twenty five years, the better the carpet the longer the guarantee should be.
Finally compare prices or try and buy your carpet online, there can be very large savings just buy looking round.
