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Myths and Misses
Everybody knows more about carpeting than the experts. Did you know that? For example, despite years of testing from the Carpet and Rug Institute and the E.P.A everybody knows that carpet causes allergies, has formaldehyde in it and can actually kill you. It is boring, dirty, and bad for the environment and causes halitosis. It is even worse than cooties.
Read MoreThoughts on Flooring Replacement and Installation
Let’s say you have large muscular strangers in your house, moving your furniture and family around and you think to yourself, how did this happen? It all started when you realized that your floor covering needed replacement.
If it was carpet it was “uglied out”. Huh? Carpet rarely wears out, that’s why you see 10, 15 or even 20 year warranties on it. Wearing out in the carpet world means physically wearing away the surface fibers of the carpet. Can you see the back of the carpet? No? Then it is not worn out, it is uglied out. This is what happens when you get that carpet on sale that was normally $30 a square yard but because they liked you it was only $15. Listen; at best we get what we pay for. If you paid $15, it is worth $15. No retailer in their right mind would sell anything for less than its true value. Really.
Read MoreOn the Quality of Carpet
Keep in mind that in order for a store to stay open they have to make money. Why would any sane store owner sell something for less than its true value? What makes this carpet worth 30 % less today than yesterday? Also wouldn’t you be upset
if you bought the same item before the sale and you overpaid? If the carpet is worth $30 Sq.Yd. then sell it for $30 Sq.Yd.
(Secret) (Carpet mills never have sales) (Really)
Read MoreFlooring Buyer’s Guide Part 2
A good pad = upgrade???
This does not make sense. How can your carpet be protected from foot traffic if I don’t automatically use the best carpet pad?
Let’s start at the bottom and work our way up. First of all it is my job, not yours, to specify the pad that goes under your carpet. As with anything, there is a correct pad and an incorrect one. There is a lot of confusion about carpet pad (also known as underlayment). In recent years the Carpet Cushion Council (Yes there is a committee for everything) has devised a chart for pad that goes under your carpet. It is actually fairly simple. Floor traffic is rated in two classes for residential use. Class 1 and Class 2, clever huh? They are respectively light and heavy traffic. I told you this was simple. Most of the pads you will see is rebond. This means that it is made from rubber that is either left over from various manufacturers or is recycled content that is cleaned and pressure cooked to the desired density. If you ever get a chance to tour a carpet pad facility it is pretty amazing. We actually have one here in Phoenix.
Read MoreESD Flooring: A Shockingly Innovative Product
I have an an arcane subject today for my commercial floor buyers. If static electricity is an issue at your company or manufacturing facility, then electro-static dissipative flooring may be the answer.
First, why bother? It’s only a little shock. Really?
The human body can generate up to 30 000 Volts in static electricity depending on the type of clothing we wear, the type of upholstery we sit on or floor coverings we walk on. The resulting discharge from the electron imbalance when we touch a grounding source is often felt as a static shock when touching another object. This energy discharge is problematic when working with flammable gasses or sensitive electronic equipment, and the static charge needs to be dissipated via ESD floor coverings or other ESD products, in a controlled manner in order to avoid damage to equipment or people. There are two types of these floors. ESD flooring is an excellent form of facilitating a uniform flow of static electricity directly to a ground point. Most types of vinyl flooring claim to be anti-static. This means that they do not contribute towards the build-up of static electricity in the human body. They also do not drain the static charge already built up. High levels of static are generated in dry areas, and conditions are much worse inland away from the coast.
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