Carpet question - any fitters out there?

walmer3

Hi, this isn't strictly a money saving question but it does have some financial implications so I hope no-one minds me posting here. I know there are always loads of experts on this board. And nice people too (crawl, crawl)

We moved into a new house about 15 months ago and the builders had carpets fitted for us as part of the moving in package. They're all light beigey coloured. I've noticed recently that in several of the rooms, an inch or two in from the skirting boards, there is slight discolouration/difference in the pile. It looks like it would be where the gripper is positioned underneath. The end result is a kind of 'line' or border pretty much around the circumference of the rooms where the carpet is laid. Is this normal to happen in such (still kind of ) 'new' carpets?

I've got an inspector from the building company coming round on Tuesday to discuss other snagging issues and I'm thinking of raising this with them too. If anyone was able to provide any comment/advice it might be handy for me to have it 'up my sleeve', so to speak.

Thank you so much in advance : )

broonbear

i seen something very similar years ago, fitters had put some gripper down that had been lying outside most of the winter [ found out later ] it was wet and discoloured so the felt backed carpets just soaked up the dampness off the gripper leaving a dirty line. They were very cheap carpets though.

walmer3

Thanks. This is a bit strange as it's not quite dirty looking, in fact where the line is, is almost paler than the rest of the carpet. It could be what you've suggested though, with these builders I wouldn't put it past them to have done anything like that... (the fact I'm still snagging more than a year on, tells you!):rolleyes:

paulsad

Could just be where the pile is stretched over the grippers if its really bad probably due to cheap carpet or no underlay...good luck

Anne3333

Are you sure it is not just the edge of the hoover creating the line?

walmer3

Anne3333 wrote: »

Are you sure it is not just the edge of the hoover creating the line?

Anne that was something I wondered, but we use one of those Roomba thingies which go right to the edges. The line is about an inch and a half thick, and about two inches in from the skirting board. The hoover goes right to the skirting board. I've got this horrible feeling that the builder will try to deflect responsibility and say that this is standard with all light coloured carpets. I've never had light coloured carpet before so I have no idea. LOL or it could just be the builders' cheapo carpet range but even then, surely it shouldn't happen after such a short time. Thanks for the suggestions.

Anne3333

Ah, wonder if it is the contact-sensing bumper hitting on the edge of the gripper?

underlay_guru

Hi. the problem is most definitely one of these fitting problems:

CHEAP AND NASTY GRIPPER: There is an influx of cheaply produced carpet gripper coming in from China at the moment. Some have ungalvanised pins, which will rust in a very short period of time...also the ink from the print on top of the wood will come away and penetrate the carpet;

NO UNDERLAY OR UNDERLAY TOO THIN: If the fitters have used gripper and no underlay it may cause a ridging effect after vacuuming. An underlay should always be used when installing with gripper......A felt-backed carpet DOES NOT have built-in underlay. If they have used NO underlay at all, the complaint should AUTOMATICALLY go to the fitter. NO carpet should be fitted without an underlay....The underlay supports the carpets' backing, preventing it from warping and flattening prematurely.

If the underlay is thinner than the gripper, this will cause a ridging effect. If they have used underlay, what does it look like? Let me know, and ill tell you instantly if it is suitable for the rooms or not.

RUBBISH CARPET: If the builder have thrown the carpet in for free, its quite possible they have bought the cheapest junk they could find. The pile may not be dense enough to cope with the foot traffic, causing premature wear. Some carpets that retailers sell as part of a 'Full House Deal', are usually products which are only suitable for moderate bedroom use, not suitable for stairs, lounges etc, and will be screwed to bits in a year!

You should REJECT these excuses:

"A CHARACTERISTIC OF LIGHT CARPETS"
"USING WRONG HOOVER"
"NORMAL WEAR & TEAR"


....Unless you have been constantly been shuffling around your room perimeters on your heels all day, then your problem is either substandard fitting or materials. When the inspector comes round, I would definitely raise this, and take no other excuses!

walmer3

Thanks everyone for comments, and underlay_guru thank you very much for that very comprehensive reply. We've had a look at the underlay. It's about the same height as the gripper or possibly slightly lower, a paper weave surface with rubber on the floor side. The surface is sandy coloured and the rubber slightly darker.

The gripper is branded 'Premier Gripper - 1 - Premier Gripper'

Does that help? Your thoughts would be most welcome.

underlay_guru

Hi,

from your description, the underlay sounds like 65lb unbranded rubber underlay. Commonly sold in the trade as 'Standard Gold', it is only suitable for moderately traffic areas, such as bedrooms, and is the cheapest rubber waffle underlay the trade can buy. I would not have recommended this for any other areas of the home apart from bedrooms and light-use lounge areas. It is here:

http://www.carpet-underlay-shop.co.uk/own-brand-65-lb-carpet-underlay-1507m2-11-p.asp

The gripper is not a UK recognised brand, therefore would assume this is a Chinese import. As mentioned earlier, some of these imported grippers are of poor quality: The pins rust, leaving brown dots in the carpet pile, and also the ink from the printed surface of the gripper has been known to penetrate the carpet backing, leaving damage to the carpet on top.

There is also a slight possibility that gripper with the wrong pin length may cause some damage...