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Some Useful Information and Tips to help you choose and care for your carpet

Colour Checklist

Pattern

Choosing Texture

What To Expect

Caring For Your Carpet

Glossary

Colour Checklist

Which colour is best for you?

Establish some basic facts about the room you wish to carpet with this checklist. Think of the way a colour appears in nature to create the effect you want. If you have several objectives, decide your priorities to key unto a lead colour. an accent colour will do the rest.

What is the purpose of the room?

Warm colours from the red and orange families are great in areas conductive to family activity, like kitchens and family rooms. Cooler colours lead to introspection and calm, a mood you might seek for a living room or main bedroom.

How much sun and natural light?

A room with little or no direct sunlight may be warmed with sunny colours; a bright room can be tempered with cool or neutral colours.

Which colour do you like?

Your personal preferences are important guidelines in colour selection. Use colours you like - colours you feel comfortable living with.

Here's how it can work:

Situation: A basement studio used by a couple's twenty-one-year-old daughter. Located below the living area of the main house, the room is used both for work and for relaxation, but has only one small window and so gets very little light.

Priority: To bring instant colour and warmth to the basement area, using a colour scheme designed to be bright, comfortable and inviting at any time of the day. Colours need to be in harmony with the rest of the house, while allowing for the occupant's own 'stamp' of individuality.

Suggested colours: Bold, bright primaries mix well with clean, simple shapes to balance the lack of natural light and give a kinetic, spacious effect. A contrasting decoration scheme of yellow, blue, and red highlights and different planes of walls, ceilings, shelves and stairs, and creates a fresh, young, contemporary feel.

Solution: A rich terracotta-red carpet was chosen and the ceiling painted in the same shade in a bold move which, in this case, emphasises the basement room's cosy, underground feel without making it claustrophobic. Against this, the clean lines of classic modern furniture provide a foil for ethnic ornaments.

Pattern, Texture, Form Checklist

Plan your colour scheme together with textures, pattern and furniture you will use in a room. The room itself is your framework, so consider the style of architecture, the room's proportions and architectural details.

What is the basic theme you want for the room?

Deciding on a single theme - whether contemporary, cottage, traditional, ethnic or other - will streamline the decision making.

Are you happy with the size of the room?

Rougher textures, areas of pattern, and generously proportioned furniture will draw in a room. To make a space appear more spacious, eliminate or minimise pattern, and use a predominance of smooth surfaces with compact, clean-lined furniture.

What about sun and natural light?

Tip the balance in favour of strong, warm textures for a room that receives too little sunshine. Make the most of abundant natural light with smoother surfaces. For carpet, this may mean looking at even piles rather than irregular loop piles or sculptured textures.

Here's how it can work:

Basic theme: The owners have converted a spacious, sunny master bedroom into a combined bedroom and play area for their six year-old son. They like the traditional feel of the house but aren't slavish about staying with that theme, preferring an environment that is bright, fun, and tailored specifically to the age of their children. Sun and natural light: The two-storey house, in an established suburb, gets a great deal of light on the upstairs windows, where pull-down blinds take some of the glare out of the sun.

Priorities: First, to optimise space so that the room can double as both a bedroom and a play area. Second, to choose hard-wearing, practical colours and materials that, while standing up to the rigours of family life, will also be bright and attractive to young eyes. Third, to include some features that allude to the age of the house and the vaulted construction of the upstairs rooms.

Solution: A cool, fresh decorating scheme using apple green with bright blue highlights and with hand-drawn aeroplanes whizzing around the walls emphasises the traditional features of the architecture while creating the lively, inviting effect. Furniture is painted to match the walls and is pushed to the side to optimise space and to maximise the effect of a wool rug with a graphic design in primary colours. Dirt-resistant and easy to clean, yet soft enough to be kind to tender young hands and knees, the hard wearing good looks of a loop-pile wool carpet in a two-tone colourway are a sensible yet stylish choice to finish off this room scheme.

Choosing Texture

The variety of surface textures available in carpet is more enormous than ever. Contributing to the textural diversity is the type of yarn used. Some yarns are hard and tightly twisted, others are soft and bulky. Yarns, especially the bulkier ones, can be felted to make them firmer - or heat or chemically set to retain twist. Yarn apart, you'll find the three basic texture choices are loop pile, cut pile or a combination of the two.

Loop Pile

Level loop pile has loops of yarn of uniform length. This texture wears well and doesn't show up footprints. Multi-level loop has a sculptured look, achieved with loops of yarn at different heights.

Cut Pile

Cut pile is achieved by cutting the tops of the loops so they stand upright and form an even surface. The yarn has been twisted lightly and heat or chemically set. You'll often find the words 'velour' or 'velvet' used for this type of carpet.

Hard twist cut pile uses yarn very highly twisted and set. This texture can minimise tracking, shading and fluffing. Semi-shag is a longer cut pile with a shaggy appearance.

Cut-Loop Combinations

Cut-loop has a sculptured appearance created by cutting some loops while leaving others uncut at the same or a lower level.

There are also multi-level loop piles, where the higher loops have been cut to give a combination of cut-and-loop pile. Carpet designers can use this to produce a well defined pattern, combined with a sculptured effect.

Which texture you choose will largely depend on decorating considerations. There are other factors, however, to take into account which affect the appearance of the different pile carpets.

Tracking

Tracking is the effect of imprints on your carpet left by feet. It is more common on cut pile than loop pile surfaces but it is temporary and will disappear after each vacumming.

Shading

Shading is the development of irregular light and dark areas on a carpet. The effect is similar to that caused by footmarks, but is permanent. If you are considering a cut pile carpet, keep in mind that, whatever the fibre, all are subject to the possiblity of shading. The effect is more apparent in plain, dark colours. Shading is an appearance characteristic and it doesn't effect the carpet's durability. It isn't considered a defect of manufacturing.

Flattening

Most carpet styles and textures can show some effect from pile flattening or a change in pile lay due to frequent walking or other forms of traffic. This change of pile lay is often more noticeable in plain, cut pile carpets due to the difference in the visual appearance of the side and top of the tuft. Vacuuming and pile lifting will revive the pile temporarily, as will wet or dry methods of cleaning. After a period, however, the effect will again be evident.

What To Expect Buying Tips

1. Look around at what's available. In main centres manufacturer's showrooms are also worth visiting to see their full ranges of carpet.
2. Determine your budget to include underlay and installation.
3. Browsing with samples of fabrics and paint colours from the room/s to be carpeted will help narrow the possibilities.
4. Take home the largest available carpet samples to see how they look down on your floor. Consider them in different lighting including artificial lighting at night - colour alters in different lighting conditions.
5. Choose a reliable dealer. Family, friends and acquaintances who have recently purchased carpet may be able to recommend retailers they have found competitive and helpful.
6. Retailers generally offer to measure and quote on an obligation free basis. They are able to work from house plans or come to your house to measure up.
7. A written quote is a binding agreement and preferable to a verbal quote. Check if the quote includes measuring, underlay and fitting and laying.
8. If you are getting competitive quotes ensure they're on the same basis - that the carpet metreage and the type and quality of underlay are the same.
9. Talk to your retailer about how the carpet will be laid. Double check measurements and the amount of carpet required. Make sure you are happy about which direction the pile will lie, and that you understand the laying procedure.
10. Pay as much as you can afford for your new carpet. Carpet is an investment, and a quality carpet will live up to expectations for many years. A cheap buy is not necessarily a bargain.

Caring for your Carpet

Most carpets look great when first laid - it's time and continual use that provides the true test. How long you can expect a carpet to keep that 'just bought' look depends on a number of factors - whether the carpet is right for its location and whether the fibre offers the combination of qualities necessary for a carpet to keep its good looks. Another factor is the care you give the carpet.

If you vacuum regularly - say once a week, or even every day for carpet in high-traffic areas - and treat spills as they happen, then you may need do nothing more to maintain a well-chosen carpet for quite some time. A thorough vacuuming should include under beds, behind drapes, inside wardrobes, along skirtings and beneath furniture to discourage possible attack by insects.

Because different fibres have varying dirt resist capabilities, some carpet will need more attention than others. Some synthetic fibres are surface coated to improve their resistance to soiling and staining. Foot traffic, certain chemicals and cleaning methods can significantly affect this coating, leaving it ineffective.

Wool has a natural, in-built soil resistance. Unlike synthetics, it is moisture absorbing - this means it doesn't tend to attract static which in turn acts as a magnet for dust and dirt particles floating in the air. Nor can dirt easily penetrate the mesh of opaque, scaly wool fibres, so soil is easily vacuumed off the surface of a wool carpet. Dirt, working its way into the pile of a synthetic carpet can dull the transparent to translucent fibres and alter the appearance of the carpet.

Stain repellent sprays aren't recommended for wool carpets since they have limited durability. Some carpet manufacturers won't accept responsibility for complaints about colour if a treatment has been used.

Accidental burns are another concern affecting the long term looks of your carpet. With synthetic carpets, particular care will be needed to avoid these. Many synthetic fibres melt on contact with cigarettes or matches, leaving black scars that are difficult to remove. Wool won't ignite easily and scorches rather than melts so any burn marks that do occur can usually be removed with a brisk brushing.

Synthetic fibres are tolerant of wet conditions and contrary to common opinion, wool carpet also needs only reasonable care in areas such as bathrooms. Wool can absorb up to 30 percent of its weight in moisture vapour without feeling damp or wet. (This characteristic contributes to wool's natural flame resistance and its low static build-up). If you spill water on a wool carpet, blot it up with a dry absorbent cloth or paper towels, applying gentle pressure as you do so.

Tips

• Rugs or mats put down in high traffic areas such as entrances can prevent wear and extend the life of your floor.
• A good quality, effective vacuum is the best tool you can own to maintain your carpet. a rule of thumb is to vaccum at least once a week. A vaccum with a rotating brush is best for low cut pile carpets, but turn the brush off or change the head for loop pile or berber carpet to prevent excess fuzzing.

Cleaning Spills

Stains can easily be prevented by acting quickly when spills occur. Even when time is not on your side, follow this simple removal process, use the correct cleaning agent and you'll be delighted with the difference you can make.

Scoop up solids before cleaning.

Blot out as much liquid as possible using a clean white absorbent towel or sponge.

Clean with the correct cleaning agent from the spotting chart or use woolclean. Apply the cleaning agent on to a clean towel - not directly on your carpet.

Rinse with cold or lukewarm water.

Blot Dry with an absorbent towel or use a cold air fan to complete drying.

Do not Rub or Scrub your Wool Carpet as this can cause Permanent Pile Distortion.

Cleaning Agents for Spills

1. Cold water.
2. One teaspoon of wool detergent with 1 teaspoon of white vinegar and 1 litre of warm water.
3. Clear household disinfectant.
4. A dry cleaning solvent (e.g. White spirit). Use only on dry carpet.
5. Chill with aerosol freezing agent or ice cubes in a plastic bag. Pick or scrape off gum.
6. Mix 1/3 cup White vinegar and 2/3 cup of water.
7. Warm water.
8. Nail polish remover without lanolin.
9. Surgical alcohol.
10. Rust remover.
11. Vacuum.
12. Mineral turpentine.
13. Call a Wools of New Zealand Approved WoolCare Technician for assistance.

Spot Removal Chart

Professional Cleaning

Professional cleaning once every one to two years will do wonders to revitalise your carpet and keep it hygienically clean. It is an essential step in looking after your carpet and a significant factor in ensuring your carpet lasts longer.

The most important thing to remember when organising professional cleaning is - only use a qualified professional. Carpet cleaning is a science that requires skills and expertise that can only be obtained through formal training. Untrained operators may do your carpet more harm than good.

To help, Wools of New Zealand have established a network of Approved Wools of New Zealand WoolCare Technicians, the most highly trained and qualified technicians in Australia. Membership is by invitation only to ensure the very best level of service.

All WoolCare Technicians are specialists in wool carpet care. In fact they have all received specialised training from the Wool Research Organisation of New Zealand and the Australasian Carpet Cleaning Institute. WoolCare Technicians only use formulas that are safe for your family and pets and their service included specialist spot removal treatment for serious spills and spots that you haven't been able to fix.

To make an appointment with your nearest Wools of New Zealand Approved WoolCare Technician, call 1800 808 034.

Glossary

Anti-static - Carpet specially treated to reduce the effects of static electricity.

Antron - A brand name for nylon, registered as a trademark by Du Pont, a nylon fibre manufacturer.

Axminster - A traditional method of manufacturing cut pile carpet. The yarn and backing are woven at the same time to produce highly patterned designs of many colours.

Berber - A term that originally referred to the traditional hand weaving of North African tribespeople who used handspun yarns made from the underlyed wool of local sheep. This homespun, natural coloured look has been developed on a commercial basis by carpet manufacturers.

Boucle - (pronounced boo-clay) - A heavily textured loop pile.

Broadloom - Carpet manufactured in 3.66m widths (the pre-metric 12 foot width) to minimise seaming.

Coving - Returning a floor covering up against a wall surface. Properly laid, it will look continuous with the floor carpet. In fact, it's a strip of carpet laid separately.

Cut Pile - Carpet in which the tops of loops are cut to a uniform length, lightly twisted and heat set so the yarns stand upright.

Fernmark - The black and white, stylised fern symbol respresenting Wools of New Zealand. This brand is to be found on premium carpet products which use a majority of New Zealand wool and which meet strict international performance standards.

Frise - (pronounced free-zay) - Also called hard twist, this carpet pile uses highly twisted yarn for a more textured cut pile effect.

Loop Pile - Carpet with yarn loops of uniform length.

Multi-level Loop Pile - Carpet with loops of yarn at different heights creating a sculptured effect.

Pile Weight - The weight of pile per square metre or square yard of carpet.

Pilling - Small balls of fluff. Plush - A cut pile carpet in which the tuft ends all blend together.

Ply - The number of single yarns twisted together to market he final yarn. Two and three ply are used most frequently in carpet productions.

Primary Backing - In tufted carpet, this is the woven backing onto which tufts are inserted by needles. Tufts are bonded into place with latex applied on the reverse side.

Saxony - A dense cut pile carpet made with heavy yarns treated so each tuft end can be easily seen. A shorter pile than shag pile and generally a closer weave.

Secondary Backing - In tufted carpet, an additional backing is bonded onto the primary backing with latex.

Setting - A process used to fix the twist in yarns when they are to be used in cut pile textures requireing good tuft definition.

Shading - The apparent change of colour in an area of a cut pile carpet caused by pile laying in different directions. It is permanent and not a manufacturing defect. Also called pile switch, pile reversal, puddling and watermarking.

Shag Pile - A long pile, normally loosely woven carpet used mainly for decorative purposes.

Stainmaster - A brand name for nylon fibre that has been chemically treated to resist some stains.

Tufted Carpet - the tufting method of carpet manufacture was developed commercially in 1946 and has seen spectacular growth since then. Hundreds of needles thread the yarn through a lightweight backing, forming loops or tufts of the required length. An adhesive coating is then applied to the reverse side, anchoring tufts in position and a second backing of jute or foam is applied for extra strength.

Velour - Cut pile carpet with a uniform, velvet-like surface.

Wilton - A woven carpet. Textures can be in cut pile, loop pile and a combination of cut and loop pile. A carved appearance can also be achieved. Normally Wilton carpets come in one to three colours, but can include a up to five colours.

Woolmark - Symbol certifying that the carpet contains wool and has met mandatory performance standards.

Wools of New Zealand - Formerly the New Zealand Wool Board, this company lends its name to premium carpet and clothing products contain a high proportion of New Zealand wool.