Carpet vs. Hardwood Flooring Comparison
Same Day Carpet Cleaning Calabasas — Carpet and hardwood: These are two of the most widely recognized of all flooring materials, and also the two that are the most different from one another. One is an entirely synthetic, soft, quiet, inexpensive material with a relatively short lifespan, while the other is a natural, hard, and expensive flooring material that is likely to last longer than you own your home. However both have their jobs to carry out, and you may well find yourself using both materials in different locations in your home. Each has a variety of characteristics that make them favorable in specific environments to match specific needs. Understanding the idea of the materials will permit you to settle on an educated decision about how best to utilize them in different areas.
Carpet vs. Hardwood Flooring
Most current carpet is created by threading closely spaced loops of synthetic fibers through large sheets of backing material. There are some natural-fiber carpets—mostly cotton or wool—but the vast majority use synthetic materials, such as nylon to polyester. Carpeting is manufactured in huge rolls, and customers buy it by the foot, in whatever amounts they need.
Modern hardwood flooring generally for the most part comes in one of two structures. Strong hardwood flooring is, as the name proposes, sheets of strong wood that are processed from rough lumber taken from felled hardwood trees. These boards receive a smoothly sanded face on the top surface but are left slightly rough on the bottom. The edges are formed with tongue-and-sections that permit the sheets to interlock as they are installed.
Another type of hardwood flooring is known as designed hardwood flooring. These boards are created by adhering a relatively thin surface layer of real hardwood to a thicker (and cheaper) core layer of high-quality plywood. This construction not only makes the flooring more affordable, but it gives the boards hardwood stability against expanding and shrinking due to changing humidity levels. Most forms of engineered wood flooring have the same tongue-and-groove construction and are installed in the same way as solid hardwood flooring.
Appearance
Carpet
Carpet offers more assortment in terms of color, texture, and feel, but both hardwood and carpet are available in hundreds of styles to meet almost any interior design need. Carpet is not only soft to the feel, but also to appearance, as carpeted surfaces generally have a gentle, soft appearance within the room design.
Hardwood
The look of hardwood flooring is recognizable to anyone, and its main appeal is the natural wood-tone colors and the appealing pattern of the wood’s grain, which varies depending on the species of wood. Hardwood flooring creates a bold statement, as firm to the eye as it is to the feet.
Water and Heat Resistance
Carpet
The synthetic fibers used in most modern carpets make them highly resistant to water damage, but it’s important to prevent water from seeping down into the backing layer or to the wood subfloor beneath since mold can fester down below the carpet itself. For this reason, carpet is never recommended for wet areas such as bathrooms or where spills are likely, such as in kitchens. Carpets are also easily damaged by heat, as from burning cigarettes or hot pans. And some carpet materials can emit toxic gases if a serious home fire ignites.
Hardwood
Wood flooring isn’t suggested in any area where water or dampness is a steady presence, although it’s often fine in a kitchen, where spills can be wiped up immediately. Nor is most wood flooring recommended for below-grade installation against a concrete slab, since ground moisture frequently seeps up through the slab. However, engineered wood flooring may be stable enough to use in these circumstances. Hardwood can be scarred by serious warmth, however gentle imprints can sometimes be sanded out and refinished.
Best for Water and Heat Resistance: Tie
Neither rug nor hardwood flooring are suggested for moist or continually damp conditions, like restrooms or storm cellar pieces. While carpet fibers are immune to water damage, the backing fabric can foster mold and mildew. Hardwood can easily be damaged by water. Both materials can be scorched or burned by cigarettes.
Care and Cleaning
Carpet
Routine cleaning isn’t especially hard with carpet since it involves simple but frequent vacuuming. But some people feel that it is impossible to totally clean carpet because stains soak in and settle permanently and because dust and micro-bacteria are easily trapped in the fibers. Carpet is regarded as a poor flooring material for people who suffer from allergies. In order to get a thorough cleaning, make sure you call an expert such as Green Carpet’s Cleaning as they know what to do to clean and remove stains in your carpets.
Hardwood
Of the two materials, hardwood flooring is by far the easier to clean. Just sweeping or vacuuming removes loose dirt and occasional mopping with a wood cleaner will remove deeper dirt and stains.
