Alan, Your ebook saved us
$800 on our new carpet purchase! Here's how!
I just purchased your book the
other day and am thankful I did. However, my wife and I went to a couple of
retailers yesterday and were in awe of the prices for a Frieze carpet.
Either your price estimates are years out of date or the info from your book
will probably save us over $600 for a 32 square yard family room carpet. I
was expecting to pay ~ $40 per sq. yard for top quality nylon Frieze style
carpet, an 8-pound pad, and carpet removal and installation. As you
mentioned in your book, many retailers use the square foot method (we went
to 3 and they all use square foot measurements). The best price we found for
carpets we liked is $6.25/sq ft to $7.60/sq ft. This includes delivery, pad,
install, and lift/removal of existing carpet. Transition bars are included
with the $7.60 carpet and we need 14 feet. The carpets we looked at (I have
samples in my hands now) are;
-
Queen Carpet (Shaw), Style:
San Giovanni (S) Q0801, 100% Anso Caress Continuous Filament Nylon, R2X
stain and soil resistance, SoftBac Platinum backing, and 10 year
Texturegard warranty. Cost ~$7.00/sq ft. That’s $63.00/sq yd!!
-
Masland Carpets and Rugs
(Belize), 9380-613 Native, 100% DuPont Continuous Filament Tactesse
nylon, Stainmaster Xtralife carpet, Textured cut pile. $7.60/sq ft or a
whopping $68.40/sq yd.
Anyway, you get the idea. We
really like the carpets above, but can you clarify if the prices above are
exorbitant or normal for the brand and style? Your book states we really
shouldn’t pay more than ~$40/ sq. yd for a very good quality nylon carpet.
Are the carpets above top-of-the-line or are your quotes a few years old?
You highly recommend finding a carpet installer, but we’re new to the area
and don’t know enough people to ask for references and the yellow pages
only had one name. Do you have any other ideas on how to find a good
installer?
Again, your book is
great!! I never knew the carpet industry was so complex and I’ve learned
much. I just wasn’t prepared for the price quotes from yesterday. Thanks
for your time and any feedback you can provide is greatly appreciated.
Alan’s
Answer:
Since
you are in a small town, you will probably need to go to Pittsburgh to find
a good deal on carpet. Here is the link to the Super pages for carpet
installers. They are from the Pittsburgh area but this may be the best way
to insure a good install. They may charge a small trip fee to come to your
township but a good installer is critical. Be sure they use a
power-stretcher.
A
frieze is a higher priced carpet for sure, but the price you have been
quoted is too high. You could buy wool carpet for that amount. I found the
exact same carpet, Queen San Giovanni online for less than $30 per yard, so your price of $63 is way out of line. I would
think you could find it for less than $35 at a retail store. The choice is
yours, assuming you want to find these same carpets or similar carpets for a
better price, you will need to comparison shop at some other stores. Yes,
you have picked top-of-the-line goods but you could save money by not
choosing (soft nylons) and avoid Soft Back type of backing. Softer
nylons are priced higher for that very reason. I believe that a standard
nylon carpet is more durable and costs less money.
Soft
Back is not something you really need. If your carpet is installed properly
by an experienced installer then I feel the Soft Back features are
pointless. I figure the installation (including tear out and transitions)
and padding (8-pound 7/16" Rebond pad) should cost you less than $10
per yard total, so I think you could do the whole job for about $45 per yard
if you shop around. Or you could do it all for a lot less if you just steer
clear of the soft nylons. Prices have been rising, but there are a lot of
high priced retailers who simply charge too much for their products and
installation.
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Expanded Carpet
Information Search
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Q.
What padding do I have?
I am in
the process of having a house built and specified a number of upgrades
including 8 LB pad. Unfortunately, many of the upgrades were missed during
construction and I had to identify the errors. I am now wondering if the pad
installed under the carpet is the 8 LB that I specified. I have a sample
that I retrieved from the left over rebond pad scraps. Is there an easy way
to determine if the pad used is 8 LB versus 6 LB rebond pad?
Alan’s
Answer:
While
there is a mathematical formula that pad manufacturers use for determining
the density of carpet pad, determining the pad density of a particular
padding can very difficult for consumers to calculate accurately without
having something similar to compare it to. With a pad sample in hand, you
could visit a local carpet retailer and take a look at their in-stock 6 and
8 pound pad samples. A visit to Home Depot or Lowe’s would do nicely. They
have various rolls of pad displayed down their carpet isles that you could
use for simple comparison purposes. The pressure or resistance you observe
when you squeeze padding between your thumb and index finger best determines
density values. A 6-pound pad is easier to flatten than is an 8 pound pad
and the difference will be noticeable. Remember, density is not the same as
thickness. All padding comes in many thickness, from 1/4" to
9/16". Thickness has nothing to do with density. Not all carpet pad is
created equal. Often retailers will say it is 8 pound when it is actually 6
or 7 pound. Some so-called 6-pound padding is really only 5.5 pound density.
It is a tough world out there. Even if a full roll of pad is clearly marked
on the packaging that it is 8 pound, it may not truly be.
There
are a lot of scams and deception in the world of carpet padding. The old
"bait and switch" trick is one of the most common. They know most
consumers won't know the difference between a 6 pound pad and an 8 pound
pad, or a 3/8" thick pad verses a 1/2" thick pad. ALAN
Q
Would a textured Saxony be better than plush for the stairs and hallways?
We've
bought and read your book. Our question is this: we have hallway and stair
areas, and bedrooms to re-carpet. We like Saxony (about 60 oz, high quality)
but our understanding is that it would be best not to use this on stairs and
halls? Is this right? We don't like frieze or loop construction. Would a
textured Saxony be better than plush for the stairs and hallways?
Alan’s
Answer:
A
good quality Saxony would be fine on stairs and hallways, but I would
suggest using an 8 pound pad for better support. There is not a big
difference between plush and Saxony, the key to longevity is proper
installation and maintenance. Before the carpet is installed, be sure to
read the complete warranty information and follow the regular cleaning and
other requirements that keep your warranty in effect.
Q
Best carpet for a wheelchair or walker?
I have a
little boy in a wheelchair, the carpet in our home needs replaced bad. It is
around 20 years old. I find it difficult to push my son’s wheelchair
sometimes due to carpet. Our son has spastic cerebral palsy and he has
trouble walking with his walker due to carpet. What do you suggest? Under
the carpet is particleboard and padding. I even thought about installing
hardwood floors. But we are on a fixed income so what do you suggest?
Alan’s
Answer:
You
should consider a commercial-grade "level loop" or "cut
pile" carpet, no pad, just carpet glued directly to the floor. It’s
not very soft underfoot but is easy to clean, durable and is easy to push a
wheelchair around too. The price is reasonable, you could get it all
done for about $10-12 per yard installed for a 20 – 26 ounce level-loop
single-color base grade.
Q
Best Padding for Carpet Installed on Cement Slab?
Will most
people be happy with a 6lb padding when installing carpet over a cement slab
or should the padding be heavier? We have been told that the 6lb is top
quality and would be fine over the cement.
Alan’s
Answer:
6-pound
density is the absolute minimum I would use in your situation. 8-pound
density padding is better for carpet support, which can help your carpet
last longer, provides a higher Rh factor to help keep the room warmer, as
well as better noise reduction. It’s not much more money to switch from a
6-pound to 8-pound density, maybe $1.00 to 1.50 more per sq. yard.
Q
Mohawk's Child Proof carpet
I
purchased a Mohawk child proof carpet 3 years ago that was advertised as can
even spill bleach on. Yes, you can spill bleach, but the carpet looks
disgusting even after 2 months. It has just flattened out and the dirt lays
on the top, a carpet cleaner said the fibers have broken and cannot be
cleaned. I am looking to replace and was hoping for a suggestion for steps
and bedroom. I do like light colors. I see you say nylon is best so I will
go that route. Also, now that I live here, my bedrooms have large beds and
furniture. How do I replace the carpets now? It would be impossible to the
move king-size bed out.
Alan’s
Answer:
I
have heard more horror stories about Mohawk's "Child Proof" carpet
than any other specialized carpet style. When you take a close look at most
carpet warranties, you will find that they typically don't cover things like
matting and crushing, which you seem to be victim of. It was two months
before it looked bad? That is a horror Now that you are once again in the
market for carpet for your stairs and bedroom, you have to ask yourself some
questions. Namely, how long do you want this carpet to last and how much are
you willing to spend? Stairs take more of a beating than bedroom carpets do.
If you want to use the same carpet in both areas, you need to buy a carpet
that will do well on the stairs, or buy a cheaper carpet and order enough
extra carpet to be able to replace the carpet on the stairs in 3 to 5 years.
Yes,
nylon is the best fiber, hands down. It will wear longer and look like new
longer than any other fiber. But you still need to choose a style that will
tolerate the wear and tear that your stairs require or you will be replacing
the stair carpet too soon. In light of this fact, I suggest you take a look
at frieze styles, and cut Berber styles as an option. Cut Berber is not a
looped carpet like a typical Berber, but is a style that has a speckled
appearance that looks like a Berber but has characteristics of a plush or
Saxony. A cut-Berber with a good tuft twist will do very well on stairs as
long as you use the right pad, and have the carpet installed correctly, as
would a good quality Frieze style. Again Nylon is the fiber of choice, even
though it costs a bit more…and olefin or polyester fibers are definitely
out of the question if you are looking for long term wear and satisfaction.
Q
Stairs that are hard to install
Your
web-site is very helpful in my carpet search. I live in a condo with open
(floating) steps leading to a loft. How do I know if the installers will
install properly? I know that this is not too common. What questions should
I ask the salesman about carpet installation on these steps? I am
considering Masland Toccare (nylon cut and loop) for these steps and the
whole condo where I live. I have another set of steps that enter from the
ground floor up to the main floor of the condo so I need something that will
wear well as this is the entrance from the outside into my home. The padding
suggested was a 3/8" #10 pad. I wanted to use the same carpet
throughout the whole two-bedroom condo. Are there any articles on carpet
color and style trends? I don't want to pick something that is on its way
out. Thanks for you help. My dad was a carpet sales rep for my growing up
years in the 60's and 70's but he passed away at age 64 from cancer. I sure
could use his opinion and expertise now!
Alan’s Answer:
Your stairs are called "Hollywood" stairs and require installation
by a well experienced installer. The usual charge is at least $10 per stair
to install them. If they send out an installer without experience with this
type of stairs, then you may not get the installation you deserve. You may
not be able to determine yourself if your stairs are installed correctly.
Trust your instincts, if the installer fumbles around and takes a long time
to install them, then perhaps he is not trained to install this type of
stair. Ask him if he is experienced in doing this type of step. Ask him if
he knows what these stairs are called, if he doesn't know the term
"Hollywood" then maybe he is not trained in this area. You need to
be firm with the carpet retailer when discussing these stairs. Let them know
you will not tolerate having them installed improperly. Let them know you
will have them back re-do the stairs if they are not installed properly. The
padding they suggested is not what I suggest. I suggest a 7/16" thick,
8 pound padding. It meets the Masland guidelines, will feel better underfoot
and have the necessary support for your carpet. I think the pad they
suggested: 3/8" is too thin and 10 pound is too dense. I think you will
like my suggestion better and cost should be comparable. Masland makes very
good carpets. In buying Masland or any other brand carpeting you have
certain rules you must follow in order to maintain your warranty. I have
found the Masland warranty online for you and suggest you read it very
carefully. Failure to comply with these requirements may void your warranty.
Where to Buy
Carpet?
Alan's
Preferred
Carpet
Dealer Directory
