Are Polyprothylene Rugs The Best Option For Outdoors?

Do you want to add some colors and beauty to an outdoor space and probably create atmosphere of some 'rooms' , then you should be considering using polypropylene rugs. Outdoor area rugs made of polypropylene material can be used for this "rooms" effect.

Polypropylene rugs are synthetic fibers made by the extrusion of molten polymer . Additives are added to it to improve on their quality in addition to their inherent properties.

Why is Polypropylene Rugs Unique For Outdoors?

Outdoor polypropylene rugs are the commonest and the most popular outdoor rugs because of the clear cut advantages they have over other types of rugs.

They are easy to wash. You can clean by just hosing them off. They are light , tough and very colorfast in sunlight. Polypropylene rugs do not ignite easily. Some additives are used to make them flame -resistant.

Polypropylene rugs can be used outside under varying temperatures and seasons. They are highly moisture resistant( don't hold water) . Polypropylene rug is mildew resistant and has long wearing durability. It has long wearing durability and therefore can be used in hgh traffic area.

When compared with other types of rugs in terms of price, durability, manageability polypropylene rugs remains the best option for outdoors .


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Kitchen Area Rugs:Stress Free Way Of Creating a Comfortable And Multi-Purpose Kitchen

A kitchen that is dull , looking congested, having things placed just anywhere or appearing empty can be unappealing to any homemaker and makes the kitchen uninviting.

You can handle this situation by employing the power of kitchen area rugs. Kitchen area rugs are excellent means of adding beauty,comfort,class and at same time carving out atmospheres from the kitchen open space .


Multi-Purpose Space Advantage
Kitchen area rugs are used to create different atmospheres within an open space and decongest the kitchen. You can create a dining atmosphere with kitchen area rugs instead of having table , chairs kept just anywhere. Then you keep all the dining materials at that corner.

If you have little children who may find their way into the kitchen , especially if the kitchen is big enough ,you can create such children corner with a kitchen area rug.

Comfortability advantage
Tiles, hardwood and stones are classy , beautiful and gorgeous but can be uncomfortable underfoot especially while standing for a long time . Use kitchen area rug on the floor beside the sink and working surfaces . This will give some cushioning and softness underfoot.

Color/Beauty Advantage
Kitchen area rugs can add a lot of color, charm and brightness to your kitchen . Area rugs for kitchen come in different patterns ,sizes and shapes. They can be from Indian, Scandinavia, or of oriental origin. The oriental rugs are particularly popular for their varieties of decorations and patterns. It will be better you go for kitchen area rugs with repetitive patterns .

If you are so keen on really adding some beauty to the kitchen ,you can place a kitchen area rug somewhat at the central position of the kitchen. It should be moderate in size and need not be too colorful.

Using a Kitchen Area Rug
Kitchen area rugs should be made of materials that can stand stain. They should be soft and non-absorbent . Polypropylene rug is good as a kitchen area rug. A kitchen area rug should have non-slip backing . Rag rugs and shag area rugs can be used as kitchen area rugs.

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Carpet Cleaning Methods-Do You Know The Right Method To Use?

Maintaining a clean nice looking carpet is the delight of everyone that uses carpet flooring but once the ugly stains, dull appearance and dustiness begin to show, the question becomes-Which of the carpet cleaning methods do I use to get back my bright, nice looking carpet?

Again leaving the carpet dirty also causes damage due to the abrasive effect of the dust, sand and other soiling materials. Therefore carpet cleaning is important both for aesthetic purpose and durability. Now let us examine the common carpet cleaning methods available.

Common Carpet Cleaning Methods:
There are no 100% best carpet cleaning methods. Each method of carpet cleaning has its own pros and cons.

The popularity of a method determines the availability of its cleaning materials.

a. Steam Carpet Cleaning (Deep Extraction Method):
This is the most popular among all the carpet cleaning methods. This is because it does a near to natural cleaning. A deep down cleaning is obtained using this method. Liquid detergent is sprayed thoroughly, and then followed by a controlled injecting of hot water (of about 150 degrees). The solution is force down the carpet pile, which dissolves the dirt and soil(organic and inorganic material that stick to the carpet fiber) and then extracted with a strong vacuum machine.

This is the carpet cleaning method recommended by almost all carpet manufacturers but critics point out to the fact that there is always the problem of overwetting which can damage the carpet fibers , carpet backing and cause mildew . In as much this is a point, it can still be averted by using a professional carpet cleaning company for the exercise at least for first time/or being extra careful incase you decide do it yourself.

Another criticism of this method of carpet cleaning is that you will need to used it in conjunction with other cleaning method to get a good result in places where there is heavy traffic and the carpet is really soiled thereby requiring some form of scrubbing . (Learn more about Steam Carpet Cleaning)

b. Rotary Method:

In this carpet cleaning method, carpet cleaner is sprayed from a tank and then worked into the carpet with rotary nylon brush. This brush scrubs the carpet and then a wet vacuum is used to extract the dirty solution. You may have to use an a strong extracting machine to effect perfect vacuuming of the solution. The brush can damage the delicate carpet fiber.

c. Foam Method:

Here, very dense and thick foam is applied on the carpet surface and then worked into the carpet by a revolving brush. This loosen the soil and dirt and subsequently extracted using a vacuum. The carpet dries fast. Defoamer is added to the vacuum system to break up the thick foam .

The use of foam reduces the amount of wetting of the fiber but the brush can damage delicate carpet fibers. This method works for removing dirt at the surface and does not get deep down the carpet pile.

d. Bonnet Method:

Liquid cleaner is thoroughly sprayed on the carpet. The floor machine is used to spins the absorbent bonnet (somewhat like giant towel made of cotton or rayon pad) on the carpet . The bonnet scrubs, cleans and absorbs the dirty solution.

Overwetting is very remote but the carpet cleaning method is superficial and not effective if the carpet is really dirt and the spinning of the bonnet can damage carpet fiber.

e. Dry Carpet Cleaning:

Here absorbent dry powder is applied to the carpet then gently worked into the carpet fiber using a cleaning towel or machine and then vacuumed. It is near impossible to completely vacuum all the powder. Remnants of the chemical cleaner causes fast resoiling . This method is perceived as being unnatural for a cleaning exercise.

Learn more about Dry Carpet Cleaning

What I Suggest You Do:

The method you choose among the available carpet cleaning methods will depend on the level of soiling of your carpet and availability of the cleaning materials.

In case of heavy soiling settle for steam cleaning . This will get the work done for you but be careful not to overwet the carpet . Sometimes the steam method have to be used in conjunction with one other carpet cleaning method in cases the carpet is highly stained due to heavy traffic . In such situation the rotary method can be used to affect some scrubbing of the carpet.

If you have a relatively new carpet with light to average soiling then there is really no need using steam cleaning . In such case , use lighter cleaning methods like foam or bonnet method. I personally do not recommend dry cleaning(dry chemical cleaning) for the whole carpet. It is best used for highly localized situations where you may want to clean a highly trafficked , soiled area of the carpet . Learn more about Dry Chemical Cleaning Method.

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Need a Guide on Selecting Carpet Fiber Right For You?

Basic idea of the expected qualities of a good carpet fiber is necessary in selecting the right carpet. A quality maybe seen across all fiber types while some maybe peculiar to a particular fiber type. There is no perfect carpet fiber.

Really the above statement is what it is. Every carpet fiber has its strengths and weaknesses. They are being continuously improved. I think what you should be looking for is what is in the market that best suit your need at a reasonable price. That said, lets examine:

Qualities to Look Out For in Carpet Fibers:

Moisture Absorption and Desorption

Most fibers tend to absorb moisture when in contact with the atmosphere and this quality is affected by their chemical and physical properties .
This quality is defined as moisture regain. Carpet fibers that absorb water tend to be easy to dye and process. Naturally those with low moisture regain tend to dry faster.

Resistance to Chemicals and Stains

A carpet fiber should have the ability to stand the effects of materials it comes in contact with. It should be able to reasonably withstand the chemicals, organic materials and gases it will surely come in contact.

Luster

This is the level of gloss or sheen of a carpet fiber.

Resiliency

For a carpet fiber to be useful to the user it should be able to bounce back to its original form when pressure is applied to it. Carpet fibers are constantly under stress as a result of usage. Stress can come in form of human traffic, heavy objects, and changes in temperature and humidity . A fiber should be able to handle these forces without damage.

Closely related to resiliency is abrasion . Abrasion resistance of a carpet fiber is its resistance to mobile stress.

Thermal and Flammability

This quality is very important for safety. A carpet fiber should not ignite easily and should also be self-extinguishing.

Common Carpet Fibers in the Market:


There are two types of carpet fiber : Synthetic carpet fiber and natural carpet fiber.
Nylon, olefin, polyester and acrylic are synthetic while wool, silk and cotton are natural fibers.

Nylon

Nylon is by far the most popular carpet fiber for both residential and commercial applications. It is the most common fiber used in the manufacturing of wall to wall carpet. Its popularity stems from the fact that it has quite a number of advantages over other fibers. It is strong , tough and durable. It has good resiliency and relatively inexpensive too!

It is easy to clean and can really resist matting. Due to its inherent
susceptibility to stain , it is treated to be able to resist stains. A popular example of stain resistant nylon is the stainmaster from Invista (formerly DuPont). Stainmaster nylon fiber is the most popular carpet fiber brand in US especial for residential carpets.

Primarily, there are two types of nylon carpet fiber; they are the type 6 and 6,6 . Although type 6,6 is marketed as a premium brand by Invista, the two are very similar in properties. The difference that may be doesn't really count in the expected end- user values.

Polypropylene(Olefin)

It is second to nylon in popularity. It is pigmented, that is color is added to it while in molten state. This makes it colorfast and resistant to sun fading.It has low moisture absorption and desorption ,this makes it resistant to soil but unfortunately undyeable. It has good stain resistant except for oil and grease stains. It is resistant to mold and mildew, and easy to clean.

Olefin has low fiber resiliency and crushes (flattens) under stress, therefore it manufactured in BCF(loop-pile) only. Due to its low abrasion resistance and low melting point , it can fuse if a heavy object is dragged across it.

Polyester

Polyester is not as common as nylon and polypropylene in carpet production. It has an excellent resistance to mildew and abrasion. It has good stain resistance. It has poor resilient property and susceptible to crushing. Polyester is normally sold in heavy face weight creating a rich luxurious feel .

Face weight is a product of pile density and pile height. Avoid high pile height; it crushes fast. The pile density should be high.
It is made in staple fiber(cut pile) and reasonably durable. It pills and stained by oil and greased.

Wool

It is a premium carpet fiber and have prestige attached to it .Its usage in carpet manufacturing is dated centuries back. It is crush resistant and durable. It is expensive and represent a very low percentage of fibers used in carpet making.

It resistant to pilling. It has a rich , luxurious look and feel . It is commonly used in rugs . It is easy to clean but will require a little more carefulness. It soils easily.


Which Carpet Fiber is Right For Me

As I said earlier , concentrate on defining your need and use it as basis for selecting from brands and types available in the market. This makes selection easy for you. For instance, if you have kids and pets which makes stains very likely and also want to give your living room a posh look.

Then you will be thinking of a carpet that has good stain resistant , easy to clean , high densed pile fiber to give a soft , luxurious look and feel and then a nice color to match your taste.

If you love playing around with colors and likely to repaint your living room in the next one or two years then it is very likely that you will be dyeing your carpet and therefore not a client to polypropylene. Olefin carpet fiber is good for outdoor carpeting.

Personally, I will advise that you keep to the popular good performer-nylon ,for indoor carpeting but if you are a bit adventurous you can try out good carpet brands in polyester and olefin.

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