Pile Types and Underlay

Cut Pile: 

Twist Pile – A twist carpet is where the yarn is tightly twisted and often heatset to retain this feature. It is a hard wearing and durable carpet and is prone less to showing the effects of shading and marks.

Velvet Pile – (Sometimes referred to velour or plush carpet) Velvet pile carpets are luxurious with a close cut pile carpet and smooth feel. The carpets tend to shade more easily due to the pile lying in a different direction reflecting the light differently.

Saxony Pile – Saxony textures are a combination of a longer and denser pile with a soft feel. Saxony textures show footprints and vacuum marks. More textured and tighter variations improve the practicality of saxonies.

Frieze – Freize carpets are similar to saxony but the yarns are more tightly twisted and should always be heat set. They have a dense low pile surface which creates a coarse, pebbly texture. Frieze carpets are very durable and hide foot prints,dust and dirt which makes them great for heavy traffic areas.

Shag pile – The characteristic of shag pile carpets relates to the length of pile up to 50mm long. The carpet gives a luxury look and soft feel but is prone to flattening which means the carpet is more suitable for occasional rooms.

Loop Pile:

Loop Pile Berber – A durable construction variable in natural or berber flecked colours. The loops are made from thick or bulky yarns of wool, Polypropylene or a blend of these fibres to give a cushioned effect underfoot.

Level loop – When all the loops are the same height, a highly flexible and durable carpet in natural colours and is commonly made in synthetic fibres. The tight loop textures tend to hide the marks so are extremely practical.

Multi Level loop – The loops vary to two or sometimes three loop heights to create informal random textures which are very forgiving for marks and stains and therefore very suitable for high traffic areas and busy family rooms.

There are two main types of carpet manufactured in the UK – Woven or Tufted

Tufted –Due to significant advances in technology over 95% of all carpets sold in the UK are tufted. The carpets are made on high powered and fast producing tufted machines by pushing hundreds of yarn threaded needles through a primary backing and then applying a secondary backing with adhesive/latex. Tufted carpet are available in a range of pile textures and some patterns.

Woven – There are two traditional types of woven carpet – Axminster and Wilton. Woven carpets are made by weaving the pile yarn directly into the backing materials at the same time. Woven carpets may be in a tiny minority of today’s overall market but still produces some of the finest carpets which are used for prestigious installations.

Axminster – The pile of the carpet is inserted into the backing as it is woven and cut to length creating U shaped tufts to give a velvety surface. The process allows for intricate designs and multiple colours to be used. The carpet offers extremely good pattern definition and dimensional stability.

Wilton – Wilton Carpets are produced in a similar way to with the principle difference being that that a continuous fibre is woven all the way through. Wilton Carpets tend to be used for plain, texture and pattern carpets using up to 5 colours. The carpet can be sheared to create a range of cut and loop textured effects.