Carpet

[Werk]

I am a carpet novice. Since leaving home over 20 years ago I have only ever bought one carpet and that was for a hall and stairs so I went for something hardwearing for that.

We are buying a house that is carpeted virtually throughout and we want to replace it before we move in (the sellers have cats and DH is massively allergic).

We would like the same (neutral) carpet throughout and this will be a large area (1500sq ft ish) and on the stairs. Where would we start? What is a good price point for decent quality? What materials should we look for considering this will have to be for reception rooms, hall and stairs and bedrooms?
Basically, what should I set aside in the budget?
Also - how long is the usual lead time for carpet? Do you have to order days/ weeks/ months in advance?
Any recommendations for brands?

We cannot go out to look as we are in a tier 4 area.

Thank you.

For hallway you will need a high traffic one as otherwise it will wear thin.

You will need underlay too .

No idea on brands etc

Thanks - can you re use the underlay? I would say the carpet that is there is probably only about 5 years old.

for the hall stairs and reception rooms high level wear and for the bedrooms general wear and good underlay makes a world of difference we went to a local independent as carpet right wanted a fortune to fit , we went for saxony as its soft underfoot but hard wearing and easy clean, some say go for wool but if anything spills on wool carpets they soak them up and are a devil to clean

if your DH is allergic to cats that have been there before i would get new underlay as the allergens could be in it and over five year things like spilled drinks etc will have filtered through to the underlay

@Werk

Thanks - can you re use the underlay? I would say the carpet that is there is probably only about 5 years old.

Don’t - and buy the best underlay you can afford, it makes carpet wear far better.

A decent underlay is such an important aspect as it helps with warmth, soundproofing and comfort. We went for the thickest but did not carpet downstairs in the hallway due to wear and tear we opted for Karndean the rest is carpet other than kitchen and wet rooms like utility and bathrooms(all karndean)- we spent £4200 all in for 1100sq foot.

The kitchen/ diner currently has amtico which we have thought about extending through the hallway too - after all the mud that has been walked into the house today that might be a good idea.... however, I think some work might need to be done to the floor to get it flat enough for amtico.

@Shadowboy thank you for an idea as to price - we will definitely get new underlay.

I suppose it depends on what look you like, we have a high wool content twist in a neutral tone. We have it on the stairs and everywhere upstairs and in one living room and study downstairs. It's been down 8 years and still looks like new. Decent underlay and fitting. Our fitter cut the remnants into stair sized bits so we can replace those pretty easily but had no need yet.

Previous occupants who had the house about 2 years from new had pure wool berber on the stairs, it was a mess for shedding fluff and was pretty worn when we moved in and was threadbare in a couple more years.

Wool give you the comfort and bounce back, non natural gives robustness but can go flat quickly and is worse for carpet burns and static.

A good blend is the best compromise imo

We did similar in that we sourced the carpet we fancied on line and then got an independent fitter. We showed him what we fancied and he was able to bring us the actual samples of a few and he quoted us to supply and it was literally pennies more and he was also able to have it delivered to him and then just bring it on the days so saved that hassle of trying to keep it all in the house .

As the house was occupied, he agreed to do it over 2 days so we could move the furniture between the 2 halves overnight.