Re-carpeting the entire house

[Phil_D]

In the near future im going to be recarpeting the entire house. I recently went to carpet right, found some carpets I liked and then called up online carpets.co.uk to find out they sell the exact same ones under different branding for pretty much half the price!

The carpets i've looked at are stain safe polypropylene with the ones for the bedrooms having a longer pile length. Ive been advised by a family member that a wool/poly mix would be much better for longevity - is there much truth in this?

I've received tons of samples of various wool mix carpets and they don't feel any different to the 100% poly ones and they aren't any more expensive. infant i'd say the 100% polypropylene one i originally liked are a little softer.

 

[Burdekin]

Phil I would avoid Carpet right, too expensive for the carpet and fitting. Check out your local company; our local guy is cheaper, fitting included, better quality and he knows carpets inside out and gives honest advice.

 

[Nick67GT]

^^^^^^^^

What Burdekin said above.

One of our local independent carpet shops has a massive selection and if they don't have it, they match something identical from a small sample. They also quote fixed price fitting which is very competitive.

The other things to look out for are roll ends and/or room sized remnants. These are often high quality carpets at really good prices, which means you can consider higher grades for your existing budget.

I'd personally avoid polypropylene carpets, especially the longer pile types, which will flatten off quickly and become hard under foot. On the othe hand, they last for ages and can be scrubbed to within an inch of their lives when accidents happen.

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

Phil I would avoid Carpet right, too expensive for the carpet and fitting. Check out your local company; our local guy is cheaper, fitting included, better quality and he knows carpets inside out and gives honest advice.

100% agree. Our local fitter is cheaper, does a better job and can get better carpets as same patters as the big boys.

Plus you get a better job.

 

[angellonewolf]

I've received tons of samples of various wool mix carpets and they don't feel any different to the 100% poly ones and they aren't any more expensive. infant i'd say the 100% polypropylene one i originally liked are a little softer.

wool mix makes it last longer keeps the spring so does not flaten down as easy as polyprop thats the reason for the mix this only works well if you hover over the carpet regular as it keeps the pile better as it move the wool around and flufs it up

if you got kids/pets use the just polyprop stuff carpets are cheap these days my front room from a carpet bloke was 140 cash i fitted myself the room is 4.5x5 meters square in 5 years time rip it up and lay another as by that time it could do with a tidy up quick repaint and new carpet for £170

 

[angellonewolf]

if you can do your self the fitting buy a full roll of carpet you might be supprised how cheap it is

 

[Phil_D]

I don’t plan on buying from carpet right! I basically found what I liked there and priced it up online. Some good info on the poly wool blends so will look into that. There’s a local carpet fitter who I’m going to go check out tomorrow

 

[Rig Pig]

I fitted a poly carpet in my bedroom, it was lovely deep pile, looked a treat and was nice to walk on, however it went flat within a couple of years and looks horrible now, it's shortly getting ripped out to be replaced by an oak floor.

 

[CompoSimmonite]

Mate, since dec'd, had large sucessful carpet business. He told me there is no such thing as "Free Fitting" as the cost in built into what you pay. Far better to buy just the carpet and then get an independant fitter rather than one who will be paid by a free fitting carpet supplier who will want it done as cheap as possible.

 

[angellonewolf]

or fit your self

fitting carpet its not that hard hire the kicker i bought mine fitted 10 carpets with it at least for my self and a few mate places

 

[bigegg]

or fit your self

fitting carpet its not that hard hire the kicker i bought mine fitted 10 carpets with it at least for my self and a few mate places

Not stairs tho - i made a complete hash of mine.
It would have been far better to pay a fitter the £50 he wanted.

Underlay + grips are MUCH cheaper online as well - I got a full box of grips and a 30m roll of u/lay for about 35 quid (for both) from a local company which I found on the bay.

 

[gaz1]

the underlay under my carpet had a high tog value as i was placing it on a concrete floor under the axminster carpet

i forgot about it most of times as could walk bare feet on the carpet even in middle of winter but soon found it cold on kitchen carpet as just the carpet no underlay underneath it

this is where i got mine from

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12mm-Thi...hash=item2c5fdf771f:m:mU2gl5L791UPFl4eF-xo0Pg

Tog Rating: 3.9 tog approx.

 

[bigegg]

the underlay under my carpet had a high tog value as i was placing it on a concrete floor under the axminster carpet

i forgot about it most of times as could walk bare feet on the carpet even in middle of winter but soon found it cold on kitchen carpet as just the carpet no underlay underneath it

this is where i got mine from

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12mm-Thi...hash=item2c5fdf771f:m:mU2gl5L791UPFl4eF-xo0Pg

Tog Rating: 3.9 tog approx.

That's the place I got mine - just went for the bog standard cheapo foam stuff for mine tho.

 

[angellonewolf]

Not stairs tho - i made a complete hash of mine.
It would have been far better to pay a fitter the £50 he wanted.

Underlay + grips are MUCH cheaper online as well - I got a full box of grips and a 30m roll of u/lay for about 35 quid (for both) from a local company which I found on the bay.

i can do stairs as well takes me longer than a fitter last one i done took 4.5 hours but around here hall landing and stairs is £75 and up depending where you go have seen up to £125 so if i work half a day to fit its worth my time

to fit carpet down the stairs to make it easy measure the how wide the step is normaly around 80cm use a long stright edge and cut the carpet from the back to the right size flip it and lay

i was shown how to do it years ago when i went to my sisters her otherhalf is a carpet fitter one day iwas up there he said he needs some help fitting a carpet as the lady was charged to remove the items from the rooms before fitting so requires another man so i turned up once we removed the stuff he said to me i will do the rooms you can do the stairs (i was bricking it) he said its easy cut the carpet the right size for the steps and laying is the easy part he showed me 1 step and said do the rest when he had done the other room came back and said thats as good as i could have done it (i was well happy) on doing another room he showed me how to fit a carpet and then a lino i was only shown once but knowing the basics makes the fitting fairly easy

and yes i can still make mistakes but as i was told with a carpet kicker if you cut it a little short you can stretch it or if you cut in the wrong place (even he said he does it now and again (very inoften)) he said if you speak to a carpet fitter that never make a mistake he a lying a good carpet fitter can sort out any mistakes even stitch or glue a cut in the wrong place and thats the mark of a good carpet fitter

dont think he does this every day poss 1 or 2 times a year but he said it does happen

 

[angellonewolf]

normaly i just buy screwfix heavy underlay about £36 for 10 meteres prob not cheapest 100gram i used it in most rooms of the house good stuff and easy to cut with a sharp blade can fit a room with it in a very short time

 

[slim_boy_fat]

Wool every time.

 

[brightspark]

2 ways at looking at buying carpets. if u want them to last 30 years buy a decent wool fibre mix they will clean very easy or buy cheap carpets and change every 5 years if its going to get ruined with kids drinks and food .they don't clean easy as the fibre gets scratched with dirt and wont come out like wool does

 

[RichardM]

Things to consider:
After Christmas is a good time to buy, lots of people want the new carpet fitted for Christmas so after it's a slack time.
Get prices from local independent shops.
Check underlay specs as well as pile density.
If you want it all done in the same or just two colours you'll probably get it cheaper.
Clearing the rooms yourself or the fitters?

 

[angellonewolf]

Clearing the rooms yourself or the fitters?

your self getting a carpet fitter to empty a room cost a fortune

 

[Olderisbetter]

Have to agree with all the big names not being that great, I use a company that has 2 branches and always beat anything i get offered, Plus they have been in the game years and tell me how the carpet will wear and look, The sale sale sale and 50% of and free underlay are all schemes to get you in...Anyone remember Paul Eyre with the money back in 5 years deal... I have had some great quality carpets from one local place that does end rolls, I fit my own carpets as i have the kit and my mate let me help in for a few days FOR FREE to teach me lol