How is carpet made

Other plastic materials used are acrylics, polyester and polypropylene, which is also called olefin. To make the carpeting, the textile materials are formed into pile yarns that are dyed and sewn to a primary backing and then glued to a secondary backing that adds strength and stability to the carpet and separate layer of padding. Woven or non-woven polypropylene is most often used to make both layers of backing, although a small percentage of carpet backing is made with jute, a natural fiber woven into coarse fabric.

Synthetic rubber latex is the glue that binds the layers together. Most carpet padding is made of rebond, a recycled scrap urethane that is chopped and pressed into layers. A thin layer of plastic is bonded to the top to hold the pieces together and give the padding a smooth, uniform surface. The process of carpet manufacturing has several steps. First, the yarns are tufted, which is the process of weaving the fibers into the primary backing. A tufting machine has foot long rollers and up to 12, needles that pull the yarn through the weave of the backing much in the same way a sewing machine would.

A small hook grabs each stitch of yarn to create a loop. In carpet lingo, this is called loop pile construction, for obvious reasons. Photoelectric sensors programmed to produce a specific pile height control the size of the loop.

Higher pile makes shaggier carpet. Depending on the carpet style under construction, the loops may be cut in the next step. Cutting the loops makes for a fluffier carpet that your toes sink into. Cut and loop construction is used to make variations in the cutting process, forming dimensional patterns by cutting some loops and leaving others uncut. The yarn might be dyed before or after tufting.

Dyeing the yard after tufting allows more consistency, greater control and more options. There are several basic methods of dying the tufted carpet:. After the carpet is dyed or the design is screened or transferred, the carpet is steamed to set the colors, rinsed of excess dye and dried.

After the carpet is tufted and dyed, it is bonded to a backing material. They're usually made of polypropylene, polyester or nylon, but they're sometimes made of natural fibers like wool or cotton.

The backing that fibers are woven into is most commonly woven PVC or latex. Carpet padding is usually made of foam rubber. Unfortunately, a whole length of used carpeting couldn't be recycled because each component's ingredients would taint the others. The good news is all of these disparate components can be broken down into their respective parts so they can be recycled.

The bad news is that carpet recycling in its current form is expensive and carpet recycling centers can be hard to find. The expense of recycling carpet is found largely in the time it takes to break carpet down into its raw materials. Currently, it costs anywhere from five to 25 cents per pound to do so [source: CARE]. Anyone who's ever lifted a roll of carpeting knows that costs can add up quickly when it comes to recycling carpet. Still, it's a lot more sustainable to recycle old carpet than to simply toss it in the landfill.

CARE wants to ensure that as much as 40 percent of old carpeting is recycled by Sure, it will cost consumers some coin, but the carpet will end up in myriad other products like manufactured stone, auto parts and roof shingles.

Who knows? A house being totally renovated may end up with new carpet on its floors and recycled carpet on its roof. Sign up for our Newsletter! Mobile Newsletter banner close. Mobile Newsletter chat close. Mobile Newsletter chat dots. Mobile Newsletter chat avatar. Mobile Newsletter chat subscribe. Home Improvement.

Home DIY. How is carpet made? The Process of Making Carpet " ". Generally speaking, low profile loop carpet stands up to heavy traffic best. In some carpet styles the looper then rocks back against a knife, where the small loops of yarn are cut, creating what we call a cut pile carpet. The length of these cut pieces of yarn is referred to as the pile height , and is basically the distance between the looper and the primary backing.

These precision cuts are controlled by a computer, and are sometimes programmed to cut only some of the loops. This method of selectively cutting, called cut and loop construction, creates a recognizable pattern on the surface of the carpet.

Pile height, or nap, is the length of the tuft measured from the primary backing to the yarn tips. Usually shorter pile heights are more durable than longer pile heights. The stitch rate of a carpet is the measure of how close the yarns are together. Stitch rate is measured in penetrations, or tufts, in a given length of carpet, usually an inch. The stitch rate is controlled by how fast the carpet is moved through the tufting machine.

Seven to eight tufts per inch is a good number, while three or four is pretty poor. Face weight is determined by the actual amount of fiber per square yard, and is measured in ounces. A typical carpet may have a face weight of 35 to 45 ounces for example.

Finally, density is a measure of how tightly the yarn is stitched into the primary backing. Higher density carpet will typically wear better than low density carpet. The first method of dyeing is called yarn dyeing, or sometimes pre-dyeing, where the color is applied to the yarn prior to tufting.

The advantages of all yarn dyeing methods include good side-by-side color consistency, large lot sizes, and uniformity. The second method involves applying color to the yarn after the carpet has been tufted. This method is called carpet dyeing. There are several carpet dyeing methods in use, each producing a unique end result. The first technique, often referred to as Beck, or batch dyeing, involves stitching the ends of the carpet together, and then running the tufted carpet loop through large vats of dye and water for several hours.

The Beck process is ideal for smaller production runs, and heavier face weight products. Continuous dyeing is a similar process to Beck dyeing, but involves running the carpet through several processes in addition to just the dye application. Continuous dyeing applies the color directly to the carpet face by spraying or printing.

This process is also used to create multicolor or patterned effects in the carpet. Screen printing is another common method of carpet coloring, where color is applied through anywhere from one to as many as eight silk-screens. The major benefits of carpet dyeing, that is dyeing the carpet after the tufting process, are greater color flexibility, and lower cost.