What About Durability?
The performance of the carpet in a hotel, motel, or other hospitality facility is based on many criteria. The buyer/customer should understand how the elements of carpet construction affect the overall performance of the carpet itself. The construction method should be appropriate for the installation type and the traffic requirements; the backing systems should be appropriate with the desired performance; the fiber and yarn size should correlate with the gauge; and the method of dying should be the right color set for the installation. The most common error that a buyer/customer will make is selecting carpet based on only one criterion.
All buyers should consider this: While pile density is important, so is the gauge, the yarn size and many other construction parameters that are determined by manufacturers at the time of production. It is important for the buyer/customer to work with a sales agent and explain how they expect the flooring product to perform over time and allow us to help you with finding carpet that will best suite your overall needs.
Performance aspects of carpet can be associated with pile density which is the amount of pile yarn in a volume of carpet face. For example, a given carpet weight, lower pile height and higher pile density will have better performance for the money. Density is also influenced by the number of tufts per inch when counting across a width of carpet, for example, a 1/8 gauge carpet has eight tuft rows per inch of width and a 1/10 gauge carpet has 10 rows per inch of width; and the size of the yarn in the tufts. Where the traffic conditions are extra heavy, a density of 5,000 or more is required.
As you can tell, understanding the durability of carpet is not a simple equation. A sales agent can help you find the right durability for your facility.
