Carpet Express' Flooring Blog

At Carpet Express, we take our motto seriously. “America’s Floor Store” is more than just a catchy tag line. It is our commitment to be America’s one-stop-shop for everything flooring. We’ve made a name for ourselves for having the best prices on carpet, vinyl, and hardwood flooring, but don’t forget we also carry America’s most sought after brands of high-end carpet at very low prices. These luxury brands include: Tuftex, Kane, Wundaweve, Stanton, Royal Dutch, Nourtex, and Dixie Home, to name a few. Whether you’re carpeting a starter home or a luxurious penthouse, look no further than Carpet Express.

Many consumers seem to be learning about the great value of carpet tiles. There is an ever-growing list of advantages presented by carpet tile.

Performance. Originally designed for commercial applications, most carpet tile has excellent heavy-duty backing. These products are very durable and perform great under heavy traffic.

Carpet tile is the ultimate DIY product. There is no need for carpet pad, tack-strips, or stretching-in the carpet. There are no huge rolls to wrestle with, and if you stain or ruin an area, you can simply pull up one carpet square and replace it, rather than replacing an entire room.

Great prices. These high quality carpet tiles are sold around 75¢ a square foot. These products were originally sold for $1.50 to $3.00 a square foot. Here’s why: When manufacturers make large runs of carpet-tile, they have small quantities leftover. We buy up these leftovers and that translates into huge savings on high quality products for our customers. We also purchase carpet tiles with slight defects not suitable for a 1^st quality commercial installation, but are just fine for residential use.

If you are in the market for new carpet, especially in a den or playroom, you should really check out our fantastic deals on commercial carpet tiles specials.

Engineered Floors may be less than two years old, but it continues to make a big impact in carpet manufacturing. Located in Calhoun, Georgia, Engineered Floors is making a tremendous impact in the low to mid range priced carpet. Without a doubt, solution dyed polyester is the best value in carpet today, and no one makes it as good looking or as cheap as Engineered Floors.

The price is cheap but this is the highest quality polyester in the carpet industry. Brand new state of the art fiber extruders, twisters, and heat setters produce the durable fiber that makes these fantastic products. It’s fantastic (not just because it is cheap) but because it performs great too. The fiber is solution dyed which makes it is extremely stain proof, and able to stand up to aggressive cleaning. It’s a filament so it will not fuzz, and the fiber has a high twist level which makes it very durable.

Carpet Express sells a style called “Cadillac” for $1.22 a square foot. This is probably the best deal on higher end residential carpet I have ever seen. This is an exceptional value for a 45oz casual trackless carpet.

Engineered Floors was founded by Bob Shaw (the founder and former CEO of Shaw Industries). It will be interesting to see what Engineered Floors will do next!

From October 7th to October 21st, Mohawk is again putting their Smartstand carpet fiber to the test. They are putting the carpet against African Elephants! With a collective weight of over 50,000 pounds, Mohawk is claiming it is the equivalent of 650 10-year-old children!

Posted By: Jim Young Jr.

Mohawk has really hit a home run with Smartstrand. We are very excited about these products. Smartstrand carpet with DuPont Sorona leads innovation in sustainable flooring with its “renewably sourced polymer.” Just in case “renewable sourced polymer” sounds too technical to you (as it did to me), all it means is that the carpet fiber is largely made of corn sugar. For me and the rest of us at Carpet Express, this is very exciting. This corn sugar sourced ingredient, “Bio-PDO,” is not just great because it comes from a renewable source, but it also directly reduces the need of petroleum in polymer production. Say that three times fast!

By using the natural sugar found in corn, 37% of Sorona is being made from renewable resources. Smartstrand is a one of a kind soft soft soft carpet fiber, it offers durability and stain protection, and it is making less of an environmental impact. Talking about having your cake and eating it to!

Smartstrand carpet fiber requires 30% less energy than the production of an equal amount of nylon. Greenhouse gas emissions from the production of Sorona® are 63% lower than nylon manufacturing. This energy reduction results in approximately one gallon of gasoline saved per every seven square yards of carpet.

Fact: Every seven yards of SmartStrand saves enough energy and resources to equal the equivalent of one gallon of gasoline!

View the product line and colors here.

Private Labels Carpet: A Public Hassle

Private label carpet is a term for when a dealer changes the name of a carpet style to a unique name used only by that dealer. So, the carpet has the dealer’s private label name instead of the manufacturers’.

This is a very common practice among retailers. Big box stores like Lowes and The Home Depot are notorious for private labels. These companies use “private labels” to prevent customers from comparing prices with other retailers. In other words, these retailers don’t want you to see a style you like in their store, and then shop around for better prices elsewhere.

Here is an example of a private labeling. Shaw Industries may have a style that they call “Cadiz.” The Home Depot may sell this style under the name “Forever.” Lowes may call it “Time Out.” When Shaw makes it for Carpet One Stores it may be called “Free Port,” and when it’s made for Carpet Express, we will call it “Hard Rock.” The style that Shaw Industries calls “Cadiz” is literally sold under thousands of different private labels. Private labeling makes it very difficult for customers to compare prices when shopping for carpet. It is very confusing when the same carpet has so many different names.

There are a few ways of working around private labels. That’s why it doesn’t hurt to have some experts on your side. Before you make your next big flooring purchase, give one of Carpet Express’ experts a call first. Saving money isn’t always easy, but the flooring experts at Carpet Express can make sure private labels don’t stand in the way of big savings.

Installation is probably one of the most important issues when purchasing your floor covering. As a consumer, we will spend hours (and sometimes days!) making a decision on what kind of style, color, or particular product we want to beautify our home. Now after the decision is made, we will ask, “how soon can you do the job?”

No time has been spent and no questions have been asked about installation. All the time and effort spent has now been wasted, because the installation is a disaster.

Please take the time to ask questions about the labor. Find out as much as you can about what you are being charged for. Ask for some referals or maybe even a job you can go and look at.

If you are hiring the installers yourself, beware of the shade-tree mechanics. Ask if they have the proper insurance or carry worker’s compensation on their hired help. Get two or three quotes from different installers, and then go with the one that you feel the most confidence in.

Don’t let a cheaper price be the deciding factor, because usually this is the installer that will cost you the most in the long run.

For more information about installation, call (800) 922-5582, or email info@carpetexpress.com.

Question: I am in New Jersey and have remodeled a sunporch with concrete floor that has wet kids coming in from the pool in the summer, but is also used year round as a TV/game playing room.

The indoor/outdoor carpet has been removed, and we want to re-carpet with something low-pile, but would like a little more cushion. What would be a good pad to put down that can get a little wet (not too wet, just some wet feet and swimsuit bottoms)?

Thanks,
Frank

Answer: This is a great question because padding can make a big difference in the performance of your carpet. Based on the information that you gave me, it sounds like the only water that will be getting on the carpet or padding is just what the kids bring in from the swimming pool. I would compare this to a situation very similar to walking out of the shower into a bedroom with carpet in it.

This is not a lot of water, but is still something to be concerned about. They make pads with a moisture barrier on them, such as Stainmaster pad to name just one of many, so I would check out some of these type pads which would seem to be the most suitable for your situation. If I can be of any more help in finding you some of these type of pads, please just let me know.

Thanks for the question,
Mike Jones

Carpet Express, Inc.
(800) 922-5582
915 Market Street
Dalton, GA 30720

Question: We purchased carpet from Home Depot manufactured by Dixie Home. Began to notice matting and packing down in front of chairs, then in high traffic areas. We have had inspection by Stainmaster and Dixie Home. They say that is normal, not covered as normal traffic, and I have no claim. This began to show after only one and a half years. Warranty was for 7 year against normal wear, against matting and packing. We are in our 60s, and are not in this home but around 8 months of the year, so we just want people to question and read the fine print on the warranty.

Sincerely,
Anita & David

Answer: I am sorry that you are not happy with your carpet that you purchased at Home Depot, but some carpets just look more matted or crushed compared to other types. For instance, a real loose Frieze with a long yarn might look matted compared to short tight twisted carpet. It will not matter what the yarn is, it will just appear to look matted and that’s why the warranty may not apply in your situation.

I don’t know this for sure, but Stainmaster is usually pretty good about taking care of claims. I just don’t know if you were sold the right carpet for what your expectations were. Sometimes inexperienced sales personnel don’t really listen to what the customer’s needs are, and they get lost in just trying to close the sale.

If we can in any way help you get the proper carpet for your home, just call or email us here at Carpet Express. We’d be glad to help you get the carpet you’re really looking for.

Thanks,
Mike Jones

Question: I am installing a powder room. I plan on ceramic  tile for the floor. Does the tile need to have grout under the toilet, and if so does the grout need to be sealed under the toilet, and if so, how long do I have to wait after grout and/or sealing before I can install the toilet?

Thanks,
Sue

Answer: At the time you’re grouting the tile, it would be just as easy to grout under the toilet. The toilet will be removed at this time, so there won’t be any extra time involved in doing so. As far as sealing the grout under the toilet, it really isn’t necessary, but if your toilet hasn’t been put back at the time you’re sealing the rest of the floor, go ahead and seal it, also. Either way should be fine, whether there’s grout or sealer under the toilet or not. It’s best to install the toilet back after the tile has had time to bond to the floor, which in most cases is approximately 24 to 48 hours. You could even grout the floor after the toilet has been reset, if you wish.

Hope this helps,
Mike Jones