Budget Carpeting and the Twist Alternative
For carpeting on a budget felt backed types are a popular choice. For little used rooms, preparing a house for sale and looking to ‘cheer it up’ as economically as possible, or for when budgets are generally squeezed, the felt backed option is often chosen.
Underlay
While felt backed carpeting can be used with underlay, in the interests of saving money it often isn’t. It will tend to be fitted with carpet grippers, or a combination of carpet grippers and glue. With such a thin carpet, the length of the pins used in carpet grippers has to be as short as possible as longer pins could press into the carpet and be uncomfortable to walk on.
In some cases, people allergic to glues used for fitting felt backed carpeting have to rely purely on carpet grippers as a fitting method. If budgets permit, using underlay would be preferable in the interests of comfort, noise suppression and heat insulation.
If no underlay is used, wear to the carpet will be accelerated so the initial savings have to be balanced against likely sooner replacement than for a more expensive and higher quality option. This may not matter if this is a short term solution such as in preparing a property for sale. Often the new owner will likely wish to ‘put their stamp’ on the property anyway by replacing carpets and other fittings along with perhaps redecorating it.
The Twist Alternative
Another carpeting option that is very cost effective yet offers an upgrade in quality over felt backed types is twist pile.
What is Twist Carpeting?
As its name suggests, twist carpeting uses twisted fibres of carpet yarn to produce a durable and attractive surface. There are basically two types, heather and plain twist. Heather twist combines varying shades of the base colour to give a mottled or toned look while the plain version is simply one solid colour.
Twist carpeting is available in natural or man-made fibres.
Benefits of Twist Carpeting
Durability – its structure makes twist carpeting highly durable so making it ideal for ‘high traffic’ areas such as hallways and living areas. It does a good job of resisting scuff marks and furniture indentations, and ‘recovers’ well if a piece of furniture is moved to a different part of the room thus exposing the old indentations.
Value for money – considering the upgrade in quality and durability of twist carpeting compared to felt backed types, it’s very reasonably priced as this carpeting from the Cormar Apollo range shows.
Flexibility – chiefly due to its durability, twist carpeting can be laid in most places in a house including stairways, corridors, hallways and living areas.
Stain resistant – twist carpeting is considered amongst the better types for stain resistance although the usual methods of stain removal such as mopping up spillages as soon as possible should be adhered to.
Easy maintenance – while periodic professional cleaning may be required depending on use, in general twist carpeting is simple to maintain. Regular vacuuming is advisable so as to prevent particles and other debris working its way into the pile.
Overall Benefit of Twist Carpeting
Far from being the short term measure or an obvious budget saving felt backed carpeting tends to be, twist carpets offer an attractively priced yet long term option.
