Installing carpet in your home means lots of possible decisions. You’ll not only have to choose things like color and style, but you’ll also have to consider the type of pile you want and even how much maintenance each choice is going to require. Add one more item to your list of decisions – padding.
Why Does Padding Matter?
The type of carpet padding you choose actually matters quite a bit. Think of the padding as the foundation for your carpeting. Just as your home required a solid foundation, so too does your carpeting. The right padding means support, strength, and cushioning for your carpet. While you can’t see it, you’re certainly going to notice the wear and tear on your carpeting far faster if you choose inadequate padding.
Your Options
As you work to select the right carpet padding to meet your needs, you’ll be presented with a number of different choices. Thickness is one of the most important. Most residential carpets require a thickness of at least 7/16”. If you have a particular carpeting style like a looped Berber, you may need a reduced level of thickness to help prevent wrinkling.
In addition to thickness, you’ll need to look at density. Many carpets need a six to eight pound density for their padding, but you can get it as high as ten pound density. Most people like the six pound, as it creates a soft feel underfoot. Going with the eight pound choice, though, means additional support and longevity.
Your choices hardly stop at thickness and density. There are various types of padding, too. Rebond pad is one of the most common, and it’s typically constructed from recycled urethane foam. Urethane foam padding is another choice, and it tends to be inexpensive and lightweight, but that also means it won’t tolerate much traffic. You could also end up with prime urethane foam, and it tends to be one of the best choices on the market. Wool, fiber, and synthetic fiber pads are another option you may want to consider, but they’re reserved primarily for use in special situations, like Berber carpeting or concrete subfloors where a pad that breathes well is an absolute must.
If a commercial space is where you’re doing the carpet installation, consider a doublestick application. This is where the carpet is glued to the pad, and then the pad is glued to the floor. This is not a simple carpet installation to do, and it is one that end users should be careful about. Doublestick carpet padding applications are most commonly found in areas of high traffic that require a comfortable feel such as hotel corridors and high end dining rooms, to name a few.
Before you make your final choice, talk with your carpet flooring installation contractor to get a few recommendations for the type of carpet you’ve selected.