One of the most popular types of carpet available for home installation today is Berber carpet. Different from the synthetic high-traffic carpets of the 1960's and 1970's, or the high pile (fluffy) carpet of more recent years, Berber carpet offers stylish looks as well as durability. Berber carpet is not a specific type of carpet (such as wool or nylon), rather it is a weave of carpet consisting of dense small loops that can be in a patterned formation or a solid color. One of the biggest reasons that many people choose a type of carpet is ease of care.
Berber carpet prior to 1985 was typically made of nylon (a synthetic fiber) or a nylon/wool blend. These carpets were usually manufactured in light, neutral colors (such as beige or off-white) and were not very popular due to their light color. In 1986, Stainmaster (made by DuPont) was developed, and this coating went a long way to increasing the popularity of the carpet as it made maintaining it much easier. Also at this time, olefin, a type of synthetic extremely stain resistant fiber became readily available to carpet manufacturers. Berber carpets made from olefin were nearly stain proof, because except for oil based stains nothing could penetrate the fibers.
To make sure the Berber carpet in your home doesn't need frequent care, pick a Berber that's made of olefin and one that has a high density. While this carpet will resist dirt and stains better than others, once you do have to treat it, you'll need to follow a few simple rules. Since Berber carpet is so dense and closely woven, any stains that do penetrate it will be harder to remove. Also, the close weave will mean that once cleaned with a steam cleaner and solution, Berber carpet will take longer to dry than ordinary types of carpet.
Do not over saturate the carpet and be sure to pick a dry day to attempt to clean the carpet. Humid days mean that carpets will take much longer to dry. Depending on the time of year, you can also turn up your heat or air conditioning to allow the carpet to dry faster. You may feel tempted to make more than one cleaning pass on your carpet, but with Berber, it's important not to keep adding more solution into the carpet, because it will be harder to remove (vacuum out) and dry.
All and all, Berber carpet is one of the more durable versions on the market. You should not have too many problems maintaining it for years.
Enrique Cleanotto has sinced written about articles on various topics from Home Management. . Enrique Cleanotto's top article generates over 5400 views. to your Favourites.
