How to Avoid
Carpet Scams
©2011
Alan Fletcher- Carpet Expert & Consumer Advocate.
1. Selecting the
Right Carpet for You.
This critical aspect of
buying carpet must include
selecting a carpet made with the correct fiber, with a sufficient
face-weight, including enough density and material quality to meets your needs and
lifestyle. Get it wrong and you stand to lose thousands.
One of the biggest problems you will
encounter is with carpet salespeople who don't know very much about the products they
are selling. If you put your trust in a carpet salesperson's advice or
suggestions you may be making a huge mistake. Ultimately you are responsible for
what carpet you purchase, regardless of what carpet the salesperson recommends. If
you end up with an unsuitable carpet you will have no one to blame but yourself.
2. Accurate Measuring will
Save You Money.
Sooner or later you may
need to have someone come to your home to measure for carpet. Here is where
you can encounter a major problem. Measuring for carpet is an art, and few
carpet salespeople are well trained at measuring. While some homes are easy to
measure, others can be quite tricky. You want to make sure that your home is
measured accurately and so there the least amount of material waste
possible.
If over-measured or measured wrong you lose money because you will be
charged for more material and labor than you actually need. If your carpet needs
are under-measured you won't have enough carpet to finish the job. Then they
will have to order more carpet from the mill and you'll have to wait at least
another three weeks before the carpet arrives.
Unscrupulous carpet salespeople
can be very sneaky when they measure your home. and can make extra money by
overcharging you for materials. In order to make more profit, they may say you need more
carpet than you actually do. It's a very common carpet scam. If you are
intentionally over-measured you stand to over-pay by hundreds of dollars. There
are smart ways you can avoid this scam and I discuss them in detail in my
Carpet Buying Guide.
3. Finding Qualified Carpet
Installers
If installed wrong,
your new carpet can lose half of it's intended life-span. This can be a huge
problem for you if you don't know how to tell a good installer from a bad one
especially since three out of four carpet
installers are not properly trained. In most cases, by the time you discover
that your carpet has been installed improperly it's already
too late.
When you buy new carpet
you generally have two choices, use the installers provided by the carpet
retailer, or hire an independent carpet installer yourself. Both options have
their downside but no matter which way you end up going there are precautions
you must take to ensure that your carpet is installed properly. How to Find a Qualified Carpet
Installer
4. Choosing the
Right Carpet Padding
Another
common problem consumers face is buying the wrong carpet padding. Get this wrong and you not
only void your carpet warranty, but your carpet will not last as long as it
should. In some cases using the wrong padding will cause your carpet to develop
wrinkles. Don't trust the
carpet salesperson to make this choice for you either. It is your responsibility
to be sure you are buying the correct padding that matched the requirements set
forth by the carpet manufacturer.
If the carpet retailer makes the pad choice
for you, you will not have any recourse if your warranty is voided from using
the wrong pad. Again, you are ultimately responsible for making sure that the
correct padding is used. There are many different types of padding, in varying
thickness and density. Some are very expensive, some are quite reasonable, some
are better for basements, some are better suited for high traffic areas like
stairs and halls. Learn how to choose the right padding in my Complete Carpet
Buying Guide eBook.
5. Where to find the Best
Carpet Deals!
Everyone wants to get a good deal, and
nobody wants to be overcharged. Carpet retailers are some of the most
unscrupulous business people I have ever encountered. There are a
lot of carpet rip-offs and con artists so if you want to get a good deal
on carpet, you are going to have to do some homework. Good deals are out
there but they are hard to find unless you know where to look and how to
recognize them. Find a Reputable Carpet Retailer Near You.
6. Where NOT to buy carpet.
Which retailer can convince you to buy from them first? They use all sorts of
gimmicks and tricks. See all the carpet ads on
television? They spend plenty trying to get your attention. Who do you think
is paying for those expensive commercials? The consumer. That's you. Retailers mark up the
price of their carpet as needed to offset their expensive advertising campaign. These heavy advertisers are just
a few of the carpet retailers you should avoid if you really want to get a good deal on new carpet.
Take
this Simple Test
Here's
three different residential grade carpets, all similar in many ways but each
also have some very major differences. Your task: Take a look at the carpet
specifications below and answer the following questions. Don't consider the
colors or the appearance in your decision, just use the specifications and the
price.
| # |
1 |
2 |
3 |
| Tuft twist |
5.5 |
6.5 |
4.5 |
| Construction |
Textured
Plush |
Textured Cut
Pile |
Textured
Saxony |
| Gauge |
1/10 |
1/12 |
1/8 |
| Backing |
Polypropylene |
SoftBac® |
LuxuryBac® |
| Stain
Treatment |
Stainmaster® |
R2X® |
Magic Fresh
Carpet Treatment® |
| Face
Weight |
46.0 |
40.0 |
65.0 |
| Pile
Density |
2400 |
2860 |
3220 |
| Fiber
Brand |
Stainmaster
Xtra Life® |
Smartstrand® |
Unbranded |
| Fiber
Content |
Luxurell®
Soft Nylon |
100%
Smartstrand Triexta BCF |
PET Polyester |
| Price per SF |
$2.99 sf |
$2.49 sf |
$2.29 sf |
