Carpet Maintenance Key In Education Carpet Install

New York, NY, July 22--A clean, attractive, comfortable and quiet interior environment can enhance students' learning conditions. And carpet can be a key element in creating such environments, according to American School & University. Education administrators and facilities managers need to understand carpet properties to make sure they choose the right product. Schools and universities also need to develop a flooring maintenance and vitalization program to help protect their investment and provide a comfortable and safe environment for students. Maintaining carpet properly means it won't have to be replaced as often. That will yield the following benefits: ·Less stress on landfill space. ·Lower overall energy consumption (a reduced need to manufacture and install new carpet, and dispose of old carpet). ·Long-term cost savings. Choosing the right materials, establishing safeguards and practicing proper maintenance are all part of a comprehensive building maintenance program. The first step in a carpet maintenance program is specifying the desired product. Specification directly affects the maintenance needed and the cost of the program over the useful life of the carpet. The choice of color, pattern and construction all play a significant role in a carpet's ability to release soil and stains and its ability to hide them. Although light colors show soil more readily, dark colors show light-colored soil and lint. Medium-value colors most effectively reduce the visible effects of soiling. The pattern of a carpet also can be a factor in hiding soil. Solid colors show soil most easily, followed by heathers and tweeds. Regular patterns hide soil more effectively, and random patterns hide soil most successfully. Construction plays a major role. Some backing systems offer moisture resistance and will prevent a stain from seeping into the backing. An action-back carpet is prone to produce “wick back.” This is when the stain seeps through the fibers and spreads into the backing. In addition, the stain will wick back or reappear during cleaning, which is difficult to fix. Fiber selection is critical to a carpet's appearance and performance. The main performance factors in a fiber are polymer type and fiber shape. Fiber type affects everything from soil and stain resistance to matting and crushing. Nylon, for example, provides strong resistance to crushing, matting and abrasive wear. Fiber shape affects how the fiber hides soil and resists crushing and matting. Trilobal is the conventional shape used for most commercial carpet yarns. Acting like a prism to refract light so soil is not as visible, this shape may collect dirt in crevices between the lobes. Trilobal shapes with long lobes also can crush and mat prematurely. Hollow filament fiber shapes have a smooth, uniform outer surface with rounded corners that eliminate crevices where soil can be trapped, and its voids scatter light to make soil less visible. Installing carpet correctly is critical to its performance. The Carpet and Rug Institute (CRI) advises using an installation contractor who adheres to the Standard for Installation of Commercial Carpet for all aspects of the installation. Checking the safety record of flooring contractors also is important. A qualified installation team that follows this standard will make sure the floor-covering material gets to the job site on time, and will use the proper tools, materials, adhesives and sealers. CRI's standard specifies the proper temperature and humidity levels for ideal installation, storing and handling protocols, as well as planning, layout and installation techniques. In addition, many advanced installation technologies are available, such as furniture-moving services that ensure a faster, less-disruptive renovation. These types of lift systems move school library shelving, for example, with minimal interruption and may save over the cost of conventional installation.