There is nothing that looks like, feels like or performs like carpet. It enhances the peace and quiet of your home by absorbing sound. It insulates against the cold, cushions your feet with comfort, and adds safety—helping to prevent slips and falls and protecting dropped objects from being damaged.

Because carpet is a key decorative element in the home and a major purchase, you must keep several factors in mind during your selection process. Perhaps the most important things to consider are these: Does it fit your taste, and does it match your lifestyle?

Location/ Use
Before purchasing carpet, you need to answer the following questions:
How is the room going to be used? Will it have heavy or light traffic? Will the room be the center of activity for family and entertaining? Is there direct access from outside, or will the carpet be away from entrances?
Will the carpet receive direct sunlight?
Where there is to be heavy traffic (usually the family room, hallways and stairways), choose the best carpet you can afford.

When shopping for carpet, look for performance rating guidelines with various brands of carpet. This rating system offers guidance on choosing the carpet that will perform best for various traffic needs. Most guidelines will be based on a 5-point scale, with the number 4 or 5 rating being best for the highest traffic areas. A 2 to 3 rating is good for areas with less traffic.

Color
Because it covers so much living space, carpet is the foundation of your room’s décor. It can be a neutral color, blending in with fabrics and other surfaces; or it can be a vibrant focal point of the room, making a
statement that reflects your style.

The selection of carpet color is a very personal choice. Carpet comes in almost every color, pattern, and texture you can imagine. You will want to select a color that unites your decorative elements and creates
the atmosphere you desire. Ever-popular beige carpet can make a room look spacious; but for a bolder statement, look for a common color in your furniture and draperies. Choose a carpet with a similar hue.

Environmental colors, like blues, deep greens, rosy quartz, and stony neutrals are becoming increasingly popular. Warm colors can turn up the heat in a room that lacks light, while cool greens and blues have a calming effect. Lighter colors make the room seem larger; darker colors provide coziness.

© The Carpet and Rug Institute

There are also practical considerations in
color selection. New stain and soil resistant
technology makes today's lighter color carpet
much easier to clean, allowing more decorating
options. Medium and darker colors, tweeds,
and textures will help disguise common soil
in your home's high traffic areas.

Cost
Your budget and your needs are two key
elements in selecting carpet and rugs. There
are a wide range of choices and costs from
which to make your selection. Ask yourself
how long you expect to keep your carpet
before replacing it. A better grade of carpet
will give you a greater length of service
than one of lesser quality.

Buy the best carpet you can afford for the
heavy traffic areas of your home—halls,
stairs, and family rooms. A medium grade
will provide good service in rooms with
less traffic— bedrooms and guest rooms.

The cost of carpet is based on many factors,
including fiber, construction, quality, and
design. The total project will include the
cost of cushion and installation. Be wary of
the cheapest products or services.

We will provide you with a complete cost
estimate—one that includes cushion,
installation, moving of furniture, hauling
off old flooring materials, and any special
needs that you may have. Remember—a
high-quality, professional installation can
extend the life of your investment.

Measurement:
To determine the approximate quantity of
carpet you will need, multiply the length (feet)
of the room by its width (feet) for the square
footage. To obtain the square yardage, divide
that figure by 9. Add 10 percent to account
for room irregularities and pattern match.
It is best to have our staff take the final
measurements to ensure that you purchase
the correct amount.

As professionals, we know how to make
adjustments to include hallways and closets,
match patterns, plan seam placement, work
with room irregularities, and account for
rooms with widths greater than 12 feet.
(Most carpet is produced in 12- and 15-foot
widths.)

Quality Factors
The type of fiber used and the way the carpet
is constructed etermines the basic performance
of the carpet. ghQuality can be enhanced by the
way the fibers, or yarns, are twisted and heat
set, and by the density of the tufts. Deep pile
height that’s densely tufted, has a luxurious
feel; however, pile height is really a matter of
personal choice and does not, in itself, denote
durability.