The Different Types of Carpet Fibers available

Nylon

The most frequently used carpet fiber in the world, highly desirable due to its exceptional durability, versatility, and reasonable pricing. Though it has many strengths, the greatest is its…strength. Nylon is incredibly durable and resilient. Because of its resistance to matting and wear, you will never see a visibly worn carpet path in even the busiest spots of your home.  It can be dyed in an endless variety of colors and made into numerous styles and textures. Nylon is commonly used in residential and commercial applications.

Todays most advanced nylon carpet fibers actually reduce dirt and soils ability to stick or transfer onto the surface of the carpet. These specially treated fibers will even bead up liquid spills rather than allowing to soak in. This makes carpets manufactured with these new generation fibers much easier to keep clean and looking like new longer than ever before. Some fiber manufacturers are producing fibers that feel as soft as cotton (such as DuPont’s Tactesse® BCF fibers and DuraSoft® by Wear-Dated), yet will outperform many other conventional carpet fibers.

Branded Nylon

Brand name fiber such as DuPont Stainmaster®, Solutia WearDated®,and Honeywell Anso® usually indicates additional yarn testing and/or additional soil and stain treatments have been added.

Polyester

Used in residential and a few commercial applications, polyester has good color clarity, colorfastness, and resistance to water-soluble stains. The appreciation for polyester’s versatility as a carpet fiber continues to grow. Polyester offers exceptional softness, making it ideal for thick, cut pile styles. Polyester is also naturally and permanently stain resistant and fade resistant. Carpets made from this fiber are easily cleaned, although they lack the durability of nylon carpet - they are however less expensive than wool or nylon.

PET Polyester

A new movement in the industry is PET Polyester fiber. PET carpet is made of polyethylene terephthalate - recycled plastics and packaged goods, the most common ingredient being soda containers. PET carpet is durable, water resistant, and static resistant, though it may lack the comfortable feel of other carpet types. This “food-grade” PET Polyester fiber is considered to be better quality than “carpet-grade” polyester fiber.  Click Here to learn the whole story on this carpet revolution!

Polypropylene

Also known as Olefin, this fiber resists fading, generates low levels of static electricity, is favorably priced, and can be engineered in outdoor applications.  Due to its manufacturing process, polypropylene inherently resists stains. It is a value-oriented fiber.