Keep Your Home Warmer This Winter with Carpet

by Expert Contributor Jim Casar, Owner of Carpet Warehouse

It’s cold outside! Not surprising: It’s January! As we strive to keep our homes warm and our energy bills low, carpeting is a great way to achieve those goals! It’s not a myth that carpeting in your home can retain heat lost by hardwood flooring. In fact, well-fitting and well-made carpets can contribute to retaining heat in a room, which is one way to save on heating costs over the winter months.

So how do carpets and area rugs keep your floor warm? Rugs provide warmth because they act as insulation between the floor and your feet. They keep the surface from losing heat at a rapid rate.

Something that can make a difference in warmth is the carpet’s stitch count (aka needle count). The higher the stitch count, the denser the rug and the more insulation it offers. A thick rug with a low stitch count won’t block out the cold as well as one with a high stitch count. So, when looking for a rug to keep your room warm, look for one that’s thick with a high stitch count.

A rug’s material will also affect its ability to provide insulation against the cold. Wool, well known for its warmth, is one of the best insulators and is also soft on your feet. Because wool rugs can be expensive, consider acrylic or nylon rugs, which also provide insulation but are more affordable.

To achieve maximum warmth in a room, size matters. A rug that covers almost the entire floor surface or wall-to-wall carpeting keeps the room warmer. But if one large rug isn’t practical, coordinating matching rugs will do the trick. In addition to adding color and style, area rugs can also keep your room cozy.

The carpet pad underneath your rug also influences the quality of your carpet and can add insulation to your carpet or area rug. Look for dense carpet padding, which is usually listed as the weight of one cubic foot of carpet padding. The greater the number, the more dense the padding. Residential carpeting is typically between 5 and 8 pounds per cubic foot.

Thickness is also important because the thicker the pad, the better it is at insulating. Always check with the manufacturer or your flooring expert to make sure you’re purchasing the right padding for your particular carpeting.

As the winter months have us spending more time indoors, don’t forget these “winter coats” for your floors. By using carpeting and the right padding, you’ll be able to save money on heating and keep your feet warm. Talk with your flooring professional, to determine the right combination of carpet and padding to warm up your home.

www.CarpetWarehouseCo.com

620 Parkway Drive, Broomall (Lawrence Park Industrial Park)

• Residential carpeting

• Commercial carpeting

• Waterproof vinyl plank flooring

• Quality pre-bound area rugs and remnants

• Carved college logo rugs including Penn State

• A full-service workshop for cutting/binding

• Installation for all the products we sell