More Common Carpet Buying
Questions & Answers
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7. Buying Carpet Wholesale
There are wholesale carpet sellers that advertise on the Internet. Is it safe
or sensible to buy a carpet through any of these sources? Will I save money if I
buy this way and hire an independent carpet installer?
Response:
I consider it too risky to buy something so expensive from someone in
cyberspace. Too many things can go wrong. Buy from a local "family
owned" carpet retailer. Not a national chain store or home improvement
warehouse. That's where I believe you will get your money's worth.
8. Apartment Carpet
I live in Long Beach California and own an 827 sq. ft. condo that I will be renting. Approximately, how much should I pay for a nylon plush carpet? Don't count the extra fees, your website helped me out with that.
Response:
In a rental you could pay a little a $6.00 per yard for apartment grade carpet, or pay a little more ($7-$10) for an upgraded carpet. I don't recommend spending too much money on the carpet, renters rarely take well care of it and you could end up replacing it more often than you think. Don't buy from a retailer; buy from an apartment carpet vendor. Don't know of any? Call a local apartment complex and ask them who they use. Then call the carpet vendor and tell them you have an apartment that needs carpet and want to have their rep come by with some samples and to measure your place and to give you a firm bid. Tell them you will be a cash account and will provide a check for the job upon completion. This is the best way for you to go. It will save you a lot of money. Let me know how this works out for you.
9. Should we be looking at something different?
I No pets, small home, 2 adults. Want something that is easy to take care of and wears well. I live in a wooded area, so fir needles can get tracked in, but basically, we don’t wear shoes in the house and don’t have any out of the ordinary things going on that would trash a carpet (non smoking etc) I am looking at a carpet that is 100% Solutia Inc Wear-Dated Nylon, Average face weight is 61.3, twist is 5.5, density is 3108. I don’t know if this is good, bad or indifferent, because it is so hard to compare carpets. I know you recommend nylon. Do those numbers sound ok? Of course, our budget does play into this and we can’t afford to just buy the most expensive carpet there is in order to be sure to get the best. Should we be looking at something different?Response:
This sounds like a great carpet for you. However, your work is not done yet. You have not mentioned the price they are charging you for this carpet, and in order to help you be sure you get a good deal, I need to know the brand and style of this carpet and what store you plan on buying it from. You also still need to decide on the right pad, and get it installed properly. Give me some more details and I will help you save some dough. Also, tell me what town you live in.
10. How visible should seams be when first installed?
When my wife and I were shopping for our new carpet I discovered your
website. It was amazingly informative and saved us big trouble. We were starting
from scratch and were all set to buy polyester from a discount store. Your site
really got me thinking about long term value and instead we went to a local
family carpet store that had been in the neighborhood for 40 years. We bought a
beautiful 68 oz. Lee True Traditions ANSO Crushresistor III with a 19# Ultimate
Bigelow rubber waffle pad. They installed Monday and it's beautiful. Plush too,
like walking on air.
However, I do notice the lines where the seams meet in doorways and such. I
called our salesperson and she said that these lines would go away over time as
the carpet wears in. She said to give it a couple weeks and if the lines don't
go away to let her know and they'll make it right. This is our first (and I hope
last) wall to wall carpet and I just wanted to get your opinion of this. How
visible should seams be when first installed?
Response:
I bet you bought a light colored carpet, perhaps an off-white or tan? Just a
guess, but light colored carpets are much harder to hide seams than are darker
colors. Chances are, your seams will not look any better in two weeks than they
do today. So, what can they do to make them look less obvious? Well, perhaps
they can trim them up a bit or in some cases redo the seams. It doesn't mean
they will look any better when they are done. If I am correct and you have
selected a light colored carpet, you may have to live with the seams just the
way they are. Jim, if these seams are very obvious and unsightly, you should
expect them to fix it. On the other hand, if the seams are noticeable to you
because you know exactly where they are, or they are really not too obvious,
then perhaps you might think about just having them come out to trim them up a
bit and go with that.
My advice: Ask a neighbor to come over and see if they can easily find
the seams. If they walk in and are able to point out where the seams are
(without you telling them where they are!) then you have ugly seams and you
should call and complain, but do it quickly! If your neighbor cannot easily find them, then don't
be so concerned. Remember that no seam is totally invisible, but you should
expect them to not appear too obvious or ugly!
(Answers listed are the opinion of the author)
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