To think UK should have moved on from carpeting by this stage

[Finlesswonder]

It's gross, it's ugly, it's high maintenance, and in a world of global warming, it increasingly feels like a dust and burning sun heat trap.
Why are people in this country still obsessed with carpeting?

With kids/animals the spilled food/vomit/piss/crap/hair gets ground into them and is difficult to remove and the smell lingers.

No spilled food, vomit, piss, crap or hair on my carpets. I dread to think how people live if they have to choose their flooring taking those things into account.

the spilled food/vomit/piss/crap/hair

This reminds me of the washing new clothes thread, with people panicking about the stink, filth and lice. Where the fuck are they shopping?What the fuck are you doing on your floors? Is this kind of rhetoric supposed to make you sound clean?

We have carpets upstairs. Our house would be so cold and draughty if we didn't. When it's cold most of the year it makes sense to have carpets and curtains etc. To insulate. If we had a hotter climate hard floors would make more sense. I think unless you can change the climate I don't think you'll persuade most brits to give up our carpets and massive rugs!

Same!

Another ridiculous post where one size doesn’t fit all. Clearly hardly anyone living in a Mediterranean country would have carpet down, it’s too warm and you’re likely to have bare feet a lot of the time. Here in my Yorkshire house, with my sheepskin slippers and carpet in the living room, stairs and bedrooms not only is it perfectly acceptable and comfortable but war. Mine are pure wool Berber from end of lines or slight seconds so affordable too and more environmentally acceptable.

I challenge the OP to spend a winter in the north in a Victorian house and retain the same view.

Posted too soon, someone tell me why every Florida holiday home I’ve stayed in (7 or 8) had naff polypropylene carpets in every room except the bathrooms and kitchen area around the units.

MN really is just about competitive snobbery most of the time.

While I agree that carpets are not very nice or practical in most instances, most people on this thread are just here for the pearl clutching and competitive snobbery on how clean they keep their house, how dirty other people are etc etc.

And if they have carpet, some have to mention how high the wool content is 😂

I did mention earlier about returning to putting dishes on the floor. I am now leaning towards sawdust to mop up all the blood, piss, vomit etc for the floor

Tbf there's also competitive slobbery too. Competitive slobbery can even be combined with competitive snobbery. I could tell you about the time I retrieved the partially defrosted pheasant from the cat and still cooked it.

I have carpets to keep my sitting room warm but on the other hand I have original Victorian shutters to do the same job.

You can get flooring from The Unnatural Flooring Company that looks like sisal coir or sea grass but is entirely made from synthetic fibres and can be scrubbed or bleached if necessary. I am thinking of getting it for our bedrooms as carpet does get grubby looking and real sisal etc stains and is affected by chair legs etc.

Tbf there's also competitive slobbery too.

I really haven't seen it.

While I agree that carpets are not very nice or practical in most instances

In some instances.
Most of us don't vomit, piss or crap on our carpets, or wear outdoor shoes indoors.

I would love hard flooring but i live in social housing on the top floor

@RampantIvy great example of the pearl clutching snobbery I mentioned above. I honestly can't think of anyone I know who "pisses or craps" on their carpet, but maybe you do.

Maybe they are as horrid about your house as you are about there's.

Perhaps if more people bought wool carpets (natural by product of sheep, naturally flam retardant) then the UKs farmers would get a better price for their wool. Currently we get paid leas than the cost of shearing for the fleece so ultimately making a loss. However shearing the sheep has to be done for welfare, so we have no choice!

I see there’s no way to edit spelling errors unless someone can tell me how?!
anyway yes I think YABU. We should be furnishing our homes with natural fibres. Wool keeps us warm in winter and cooler in summer. Ok I know some carpets are synthetic but buy wisely and buy wool! Same goes for your duvets, clothing and loft insulation. It’s a natural fibre and we should be shouting about its benefits more and more!

What are you on about? My post refers to GasPanic's post at 14.05 today - see below:

With kids/animals the spilled food/vomit/piss/crap/hair gets ground into them and is difficult to remove and the smell lingers.

I don't know anyone who does that to their carpets. No pearl clutching from me.

Keeps heat in, much quieter for your neighbours if you live in a flat. Not that unhygienic if you vacuum and occasionally shampoo it. Anyway, it’s the floor - unless you want to eat directly off it, who cares?

You have obviously never lived in an old draughty farm house with no central heating !

Living in a cottage around 300 years old I couldn't imagine wanting anything but carpet in the lounge and bedrooms (hoovered daily, vaxed every 2/3 months) Stone flooring in the kitchen and utility - it's marvellous at hiding the muck. Each to their own and all that.

I don’t have any myself (renting) but I am partial to a carpeted bedroom or at very least a nice rug for some coziness underfoot

You'll be begging for it in winter. It's only because it's so hot now that you feel this way

Carpets insulate floors, so make home warmer, decreasing fuel bills. We live in a cold/mild climate in Britain. They are easy to clean with the right equipment.