Carpets.

[Smurfgirl]

Some questions.

• Where can I get cheap(ish) carpets. I am in Hull btw.
• On felt backed carpets is it really ok not to have underlay.
• Is laminate always more expensive than carpet?

TIA!

Carpetright are cheap if you have one near you.

My dad is a carpet fitter. He says that the place to spend the money is on expensive underlay and you can get away with a cheaper carpet!

He recommends an 80% wool twist as hard wearing. These tend to be more expensive but will last well.

Don't always buy the undelay and grippers from the same place as the carpet. They often have cheap carpets but charge OTT for the extras.

Shop araound. The smaller shops are sometimes willing to negotiate on price if you are buying a lot or know someone who can fit it. Therefore not using their 'free' fitting. This is costed into the price of the carpet so is therefore not free really.

We've always upgraded underlay on what the shop suggests. I have a 100% wool carpet & it's not as good as a mix one. I'd go for 75/80% next time. Laminate can be cheaper but you do get what you pay for with laminate I think. Ours is 5.5 years old & despite lifetime stated as 10/15 years for domestic wear I'd replace it soon if I wasn't intending to move house. Depends on you family I suppose. Ours wasn't the dearest but it certainly wasn't the cheapest around & it's got plenty of scratches & dents in it.

definitely spend on the underlay - besides, felt-backed carpets tend not to be as sturdy as woven/hessian backed ones.

We couldn't afford the 80% wool twist we wanted (whole house needed doing), so we got the very best synthetic one we could afford - woven backed, twist pile and (v important to us) stain resistant and guaranteed as such. It's still looking great two years in.

Good laminate will cost as much as good carpet, so depends on your taste - I find carpet more forgiving to dust and crawlers.

We went to a local cheap-ish carpet showroom, and the fitting etc was much cheaper than CarpetRight, and they let us keep all the offcuts (handy for makeshift garden rugs etc).
Nowhere near Hull though!

decent carpet looks a lot better than ANY laminate IMO It just looks fake and cheap sorry.Get the best you can afford with underlay.Carpet right often have sales but it is worth getting a quote from small local companies as they are not as expensive as you might think

Personally I would not buy from Carpetright - they always seem a bit pushy in the salespersony way. Always gets my back up and makes me suspicious!

Personally I would not buy from Carpetright - they always seem a bit pushy in the salespersony way. Always gets my back up and makes me suspicious!

it depends how long you stay in the property and where the carpets are, we have felt carpet in our bedrooms with no underlay as not much is exposed and it has been fine and very cheap..