Any carpeting experts? (Phoenix: house, buying, living)

[Voebe]

I'm brooding about a carpeting problem that is going to develop. Our original carpeting is very expensive, long-lasting carpet that was installed over 20 years ago. It's starting to thin out noticeably in the most-trafficked area, the hall and the path leading to it.


I talked to my excellent carpet-cleaner who resignedly told me to just get tile. He says that carpeting today is so crappy that none of it lasts more than a couple of years. Well, I hate tile. He said that in theory, the padding underneath could be replaced, which would be a little help, but it's expensive, and he doesn't know anyone competent enough to do a good job.


So I guess I'm wondering: Do you know any brilliant installation person who could replace part of the padding, or have you used a brilliant carpeting store that sells miraculously durable carpeting?

[maverick974]

I installed carpet for a living all my life. Still do a few installs here and there.
Any decent carpet layer can replace padding for you. The only question is cost but flooring guys work cheap here in Arizona. I charged more in the mid 80s in Oregon than the going rate is right now in the Phoenix area. Its not a highly difficult job, just labor intensive but it's certainly doable.
Nothing against your cleaner guy but he doesn't sell or install carpet. He probably isn't the right person to talk to about the durability of flooring much like I'm not the best guy to ask about cleaning of carpets. Just sayin.
Also, if you don't mind the feel of berber carpet, that style of carpet lasts forever and it's typically not terribly expensive. It's the way it's made. It's just very durable carpet. As an added bonus, it's typically very easy to clean as its most often made from a material the naturally repels stains exceedingly well.
Let me know if you have difficulty finding someone to relate your pad.

[AZJoeD]

I am not going to profess to be a carpeting expert, but I have spent a lot of time the past few weeks looking at carpet for my house and have done a lot of research on modern carpets.

First of all, I will disagree with your carpet cleaner on the durability of modern carpets. Most carpet manufacturers have focused their efforts on making carpets more durable and resistant to damage, even at the expense of comfort and softness. Most manufacturers feature nylon fibers which are more durable than previous products. If you want something that is softer and plusher, look at polyester, but it won't be as durable.

Secondly, carpets (both old and new) generally do not wear out before they "ugly" out. Carpets like clothes go out of style. The patterns and colors change. Plus they begin to show wear patterns. Even if the carpet is sound it looks bad.

One thing your carpet cleaner is correct about is that padding does break down. But the idea of pulling up carpet that is more than a few years old to replace the padding and put the old carpet back is crazy. You will just end up with old carpet that will still look ugly. Sounds like a big waste of money to me.

[smoochaz]

Joe - I had a pipe burst in between my walls and had a company come in and dry out my carpet and replace my padding for a reasonable price. Daniel AZ Carpet Care - 602-380-5365

[Voebe]

Thank you to all three for the helpful replies.

Maverick, you're absolutely right that my carpet cleaner doesn't sell or install. On the other hand, it's my experience that anyone doing the selling will always assure you of how wonderful his product is, regardless of the facts. I don't know anything about Berber (they make baby food, right?), but I'll look around. Any suggestions of how to weed out incompetent guys assuring me they can replace a pad?

Joe, my cleaner guy told me something similar to what you're saying, about the importance of the fabric (although I don't recall offhand which fabrics). Assuming he said the same thing about nylon vs. polyester, it was his experience that it's mostly the cheaper, less durable one being sold.

Mine isn't ugly-ing. It's just thinning out. It's not visible yet, but I can feel it when I walk barefoot. That's why I was hoping that new padding might buy me a few more years.

And, Joe, where will you be buying your new carpeting? The idea terrifies me. How can they possibly install new carpet in a home full of furniture?

Thanks, Smoochaz, I'll make a note about Daniel.

[AZJoeD]

Originally Posted by Voebe

And, Joe, where will you be buying your new carpeting? The idea terrifies me. How can they possibly install new carpet in a home full of furniture?

You are absolutely correct, it is scary. It is a huge purchase.

I believe that we finally settled on Fabric Depot in Phoenix. Our plan is to do it in two phases. One bedroom and office, then two other bedrooms. This way we can move furniture around and still have a place to sleep.