Need new carpets.....help?

[Carol]

Alllllright, confession time for me.

I have a cat. I cook. I drink coffee and red wine....although not necessarily at the same time And I am a klutz. Alot of stuff gets on my carpets that shouldn't be there. And unfortunately the carpet I have is very poor quality. If I spill a cup of coffee, the carpet gets permanently stained....even if I run my steam cleaner over the mess when it happens. So, its time for this horror show of a floor covering to go away.

Trouble is -- I don't know a darn thing about carpets, and when I start putting feelers out, I'm met with a big high pressure shell game. I'm really not sure what to ask for when shopping for carpeting. Most of the larger carpet shops won't even talk price per square foot until they can send the sales person out to pressure you in person....er....I mean, take a measurement.

Easy to clean is certainly a priority (can they make the actual carpet out of ScotchGuard? LOL!!) When I'm at home, I tend to go around barefoot, so something feels reasonably good to my feet is good. And of course I could easily dream of spending money I'm not sure I have and look at lots of underpadding to cushion my workouts.

So...what should I watch for, what should I avoid, and how can I determine what a good value is?

 

[hoshin1600]

I'm more of a remodeling type of guy and not really a carpet expert. But what I do know is that the padding underneath makes a big difference. That's what's gonna give your feet that soft cushion feel. My advise is to go to a real flooring or carpet store and yes let them measure the room. Don't be afraid it will be ok.
Places like home depot actually use outside venders who couldn't care less about you or the quality of the job. HD has a very very low satisfaction rate for instalations. Not to mention they are going to sell you the cheapest under pad. HD and Lowe's are the worst deal going unless you know exactly what you want and are going to do the install it yourself. The pros also need to know the configuration of the room because certain manufacturers only make certain widths. Once they know the needed width they know the manufacturer they can go with and thus the price.
Go with the carpet store and be strong you can say no! Lol
Carpet can be less expensive than anything else when you look at the final costs. I think you will be happy in the end.

 

[hoshin1600]

I also want to mention that the reason a reputable carpet place needs to "take measurements" is not to pressure sell you. But to protect their own behinds. No one at the store will tell you this but I will tell you what they are thinking..People are stupid!!! The customer will come in and say the room is 12 ft. When the carpet guy shows up, the room is actually 12 feet 3 inches
Customers says "yeah I measured the room. I know I have a size 12 shoe so I stepped the room off". Then customer gets arrogant and upset because his measuments were wrong and the price has now changed and it wasted the installers day. Oh I could tell you stories ....lol

long story short.....pick a pro with a good reputation and let them do their thing...any extra "cost" is usually worth it. In the long run its usually cheaper anyway.

 

[Carol]

I also want to mention that the reason a reputable carpet place needs to "take measurements" is not to pressure sell you. But to protect their own behinds. No one at the store will tell you this but I will tell you what they are thinking..People are stupid!!! The customer will come in and say the room is 12 ft. When the carpet guy shows up, the room is actually 12 feet 3 inches
Customers says "yeah I measured the room. I know I have a size 12 shoe so I stepped the room off". Then customer gets arrogant and upset because his measuments were wrong and the price has now changed and it wasted the installers day. Oh I could tell you stories ....lol

long story short.....pick a pro with a good reputation and let them do their thing...any extra "cost" is usually worth it. In the long run its usually cheaper anyway.

Thanks very much! That is VERY helpful information. I had a couple of people tell me to just go to the big box stores, because they are cheap. To be honest I was really trying to avoid that because I think that's the attitude that the previous owners of this place had. They redid the carpeting and the kitchen (another story...) with what was probably the cheapest stuff that Home Depot had. There is an independent carpet shop down the road from me, and I was thinking about giving them a try first.

I'm a bit of a research geek so I like to dig through choices on my own (plus I'm kinda private), so the home visit thing took me by surprise. But it makes perfect sense!

 

[jks9199]

A proper carpet shop won't be limited to whatever width the manufacturer provides; their installers should be able to attach the seams. Just going to the big box stores is going to get you big box service... Their installers and carpet vendors will be basically builder grade, maybe a touch or two better. A true carpet shop will have a wider range of choices, and should be able to talk to you in the store, and then send someone out to measure. As I understand it, the pad makes a huge difference in the feel, but the quality of the carpet will matter too, and will effect the durability and stain resistance.

 

[hoshin1600]

A proper carpet shop won't be limited to whatever width the manufacturer provides; their installers should be able to attach the seams. Just going to the big box stores is going to get you big box service... Their installers and carpet vendors will be basically builder grade, maybe a touch or two better. A true carpet shop will have a wider range of choices, and should be able to talk to you in the store, and then send someone out to measure. As I understand it, the pad makes a huge difference in the feel, but the quality of the carpet will matter too, and will effect the durability and stain resistance.

Of course any carpet installer can do seams. My thought was that it will effect the price. Since the installer may have to actually make a seam to make up for a few inches or go with a different manufacturer and get a larger width that will fit in one shot. Let's not forget waste costs money too.

 

[Buka]

Carol, what are we talking for square feet? And are you looking for fashion or just practical carpet floor covering?