carpets - carpet is soft floor coverings. the quality of carpet depends not only on the method of...

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CARPETS

Carpet is soft floor coverings. The quality of carpet depends not only on the method of

manufacture, but also on how well the carpet is made, the fibres used, quality of fibre,

and the density of pile. A good quality carpet should be able to withstand wear from

constant footfalls, spillages, cigarette ash, and grit and also have the ability to recover

from the effects of heavy or sharp furniture. Its shape and color should be stable even if

deep-cleaned or constantly exposed to sunlight. The pile should be dense and made from

strong fibres, held firmly in position.

Carpets are used extensively in all types of establishments because of their appearance,

the safety factor, warmth and sound insulation. Durability, appearance and ease of

maintenance are the major concern when choosing carpet and floor. There are many

carpets from which to choose, with a wide price range, and carpet performance may be

judged by.

Durability depends on-

Resistance to wear. Resistance to abrasion. Good construction with tufts well held.

Appearance depends on-

Resistance to flattening. Soil and stain resistance. Color fastness to sunlight, water, shampoo, and rubbing.

Safety depends on-

Flame resistance. Comfort depends on-

No build-up of static electricity. Length and softness of pile.

COMPOSITION-

Carpets primarily have three components- an underlay, a backing, and a face or pile. The

pile is held to the backing with knots (in case of woven carpet) or with adhesive. As

underlay is essential if a carpet is to be laid.

UNDERLAY/ BACKING -

Underlay or under-felt acts as shock absorber between the carpet backing and any un

evenness in the sub-floor, which could cause

pile to wear out. It tends the carpet to feel softer

and more luxurious as well as helps to absorb

pressure from furniture, provide increased

sound and heat insulation.

An underlay may also be attached beneath the

carpet backing, when it is referred to as the

secondary backing, or it may be installed separately.

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BACKING The primary backing is the one in which pile of the carpet is anchored. It may be made of

natural material such as jute, hemp or cotton, or synthetic material such as polypropylene,

nylon, various resins, or synthetic rubber or of a combination of natural and synthetic

materials. Normally the primary backing

has bonding material that may be of rubber,

latex, plastic, synthetic adhesive which

holds the fibre in place. A secondary

backing sometimes laminated to the

primary backing provides additional

stability; improve shape and resilience and

more secure installation. These are not

necessary for woven carpet.

PILE Also called the face of the carpet, this is the part which is seen on the surface and walked on. Hence it should be strong and resilient. The pile may be made of a blend of

fibres or exclusive synthetic or natural fibre (such as wool and cotton; silk is used in very

expensive luxurious carpet). The blends used are typically of wool and rayon; wool and

cotton; wool, acrylic and rayon; and so on. The synthetic fibres usually are polypropylene

polyester and acrylic. The pile fibre density, height, twist, and the weave affect the

carpets resilience and durability.

Different types of pile are-

HARD TWIST PILE-

This is a cut pile with heavy

twist built into the yarn,

giving it a pebble look. It is

used mainly in plain carpets,

but it can be combined with

other types of pile to give a

textured effect. Hard-twist

pile does not show shading

and tacking.(shading is the

twisting of pile, caused by

footfalls or the moving of

heavy furniture, and shows

up as dark patches. Tracking

is the smoothing down of the

carpet in heavily used area.)

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LOOPED PILE The pile is uncut and is made up of a continuous series of loops. It can give various

textures, from a thick and knobby pile to the closely curled low-loop pile that is like an

irregular cord carpet. Looped pile is used in Wilton and Tufted carpets.

CUT PILE-

The loops of the pile are cut is such carpets. Tufted and woven carpets are produced in

cut pile; Axminster carpets, it is the only type of pile produced.

SHAG PILE-

This can be produced on a tufting machine or on a Wilton or Axminster loom. The pile is

long and shaggy and has luxurious look.

TYPES AND CHARACTERISTIC-

TYPES OF NON-WOVEN CARPETS-

These carpets are produced by attaching the surface pile to a pre-fabricated

backing.

TUFTED CARPET-

Tufted carpets account for about 95% of

the total carpet production in the world.

These are available plain or patterned and

are usually made of synthetic fibre

blended with wool. The tufts are needled

into a backing- usually made of

polypropylene in sheet form, but

sometimes made of hessian. The tufts are

locked into place with latex along the

back. Then either the foam layer or a

secondary backing of woven jute or

polypropylene is added. If a foam backing is used an

underlay is not required. The pile is either looped or

cut. Tufted carpets do not fray.

Shag pile carpets are usually singled-colored

tufted carpets with a long, luxurious pile. The pile

can, however, look tangled if it gets heavy wear.

They are hard to maintain, too, since the long pile

hides a lot of dust.

BERBER CARPETS- These carpets have short, nubby tufts.

The pile is dense and looped, characteristic made from

natural, un-dyed sheeps wool. They are available in natural neutrals such as white, off-white, fawn, beige etc.

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BONDED CARPETS- These carpets are

neither woven nor tufted. The one feature

that distinguished bonded carpets are that

the materials used are glued, heat fused,

or in some other way bonded together.

They are all, therefore, typically

manufactured from manmade fibres. A

well bonded carpet is bonded and

economical.

BONDED PILE CARPET- These

generally have a pile of nylon or polypropylene, which is stuck to a PVC backing. These

are also available tile form.

ELECTRO STATICALLY FLOCKED CARPETS- Bonding is also used for flocked carpet,

which have thousands of small fibres electro statically bonded to an adhesive-coated

backing.

NEEDLE PUNCH CARPET- Another method

of bonding is needle punch or needle loom. A

mixture of fibres is punched by needles and

entangled through a backing fabric.

KNITTED CARPETS- These carpets are produced by

interlacing yarns in a series of connected loops, as in woven

carpets, the pile and the backing are produced

simultaneously. Multiple sets of needles interlace the pile,

backing, and stitching yarns together in one operation.

TYPES OF WOVEN CARPET-

Some of the highest quality carpets are made by the weaving method. The pile and the

backing are woven together here so that the pile is locked into position. The weave

consist of warp and weft yarns interwoven to form the face pile and backing at the same

time. The pile may be cut or uncut. Woven carpets may be of three types Wilton, Axminster and Oriental. Wilton and Axminster are name of the loom on which these

types of carpets are woven. The main difference is that the Axminster loom allows any

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number of colors as the threads are cut off and reintroduced according to the

pattern/design.

WILTON CARPETS-

Wilton is the most expensive weave

used for carpet manufacturing. These

may be produced as patterned, Cord,

Brussels, or Plain.

PATTERNED WILTON- these carpets are woven on a type of loom known as a jacquard

loom. This is an apparatus that produces pattern from colored yarns. A perforated card

contains the pattern/ design. These carpets give added warmth and resilience. Once the

carpet is done the pile is cut and closed. No more than 5 colors are used.

PLAIN WILTON These carpets are made without adding the jacquard apparatus to the loom. They have extra jute threads called stuffers added to the backing to compensate for the lack of the spare colored yarns as filling.

CORD- These carpets are plain Wilton carpets with an uncut pile.

BRUSSELS- these carpets are patterned Wilton carpets that have an uncut pile.

AXMINSTER CARPETS-

An Axminster-type power loom is capable of weaving high quality carpets with many

varying colours and patterns. These carpets

are woven is such a way that the pile is

almost entirely on the surface. Each pile

tuft is individually inserted into the

backing, leaving no dead threads to

reinforce it. The pile is less close and

longer than in Wilton carpets. The backing

is very durable. There are three types of

Axminster carpet-

SPOOL AXMINSTER- This is the most

popular Axminster carpet and single piece

can have an unlimited color in the pattern.

The carpet is woven in such a manner that

the pattern is visible on reverse side also.

GRIPPER AXMINSTER- This carpet is similar to spool Axminster carpet, the only

difference being the use of a maximum of eight colors, due to i