Carpet Pad

my 10 yr old pad: has lumps / seperation problems. in double wide MH. can be felt thru the carpet. carpet is short napped / normal 4 new mh buy. considering replacing w/fake wood flooring. ? any cheap / easu solutions??????
............BOB,..............

It sounds as if your carpet and pad were cheap and probably installed badly. Thus the lumps and separations. If you want a cheap and easy fake wood solution, put interior grade plywood down, paint or stain it, seal it, and be done.

You'll have a cheap and easy solution that will fit informal spaces, but nothing that will look great in a formal situation. I used that technique in my yurt and love the results.

wat is the density of the flooring?

With three dogs, we have accidents, vomit, urine the worst. which pad, or no pad should be used? When I shampoo the rug the pad is what smells the worst. thanks

With three dogs, we have accidents, vomit, urine the worst. which pad, or no pad should be used? When I shampoo the rug the pad is what smells the worst. thanks

Hi Beth,

You probably don't need to replace your padding. Shampooing isn't going to remove the odor. Pet urine contains acids which causes the odor and the only way to remove the odor is to treat it with another acid, which is why I would recommend a vinegar/water solution. There are pet odor removers you can also buy, but vinegar is cheaper and fumes won't be a health concern. 1/4 cup vinegar to at least one quart of water will do it. You need to saturate the carpet to ensure that it'll get down to the pad. You can then either blot up the excess or use a shop vac to do a more thorough job of it.

HINT: If you don't know where all your dog has urinated, a black light will show you! Just be sure to do it in the dark!

I don't know what they are trying to sell you here with the rubber padding but don't go for it. Pick anything but the rubber. When the padding goes bad it is a nightmare to remove. It degrades in 3 stages:

1)This stage isn't so bad it come up just by pulling then you have to scrub up the stickyness left over with hot water.

2)This stage is almost like chewing gum. It's a paste that you have to scrape off of the floor then clean with some good elbow grease and hot water.

3)Now this is the worse by this stage the rubber has become as hard as a rock and is now securly attached to the floor below. I haven't quite figured out how to remove this level yet.

As you can figure the diffrent stages very from area to area in the room based on traffic flow and heat sources. If you don't belive me for any reason just google "removing old rubber carpet padding" and you will see the many people that have delt with nightmare of trying to remove this stuff.

FYI: We aren't selling anything, but we do try to educate others as to their options and help with problems. We always value considered, rationally presented opinions, even differing ones.

If you had taken the time to look over the site content here, you'd see that there are several types of floor padding which have pages, articles and comments. Each type of floor padding has their own pros & cons - just as any product does. We try to cover every flooring type and help others with their flooring questions/needs.

Hi there. I'm creating a play room for my kids and am thinking of getting some sort of fun area rug for the room. Most of this rugs are thin though. Because I want this to be a comfortable place in which to play on the floor, I'm thinking of putting carpet padding under an area rug. Does this makes sense? Is carpet padding just for carpets, or can I buys some to go under an area rug?

Hi TC,
If that's what you want to do then go for it! ;~)
The only problem that I can see is that if you get padding that's rather thick then you might be setting yourself up for a fall - as in a tripping over the rug problem. Hopefully you can find a happy medium between what you want and what would be more practical.

I've noticed that the foam carpet pads have a hard, smooth side and the other side is the soft foam. Which side goes down to the floor?

Hi Willy,

Is there a side that kinda reminds you of a waffle? That's the side that goes up, that the carpet sits on.

Hi Flooring Lady,

I am going to install an expensive wool berber with a fairly large loop. The vendor says he wants to use a jute pad. I told him that I had heard that jute would be hard to clean. He says he is using synthetic jute that is 42 ounces as it will allow the berber to be flatter. He says if I want, he will install a sythetic composite material. What is your advice on this?

Also, we have a bedroom and a den linked together by a six inch step the width of the rooms. He plans to put the grain one way on the larger bedroom area and have it go the other way on the the den area to save yardage. Am I asking for trouble by doing this?

Thanks for your help.

Hi Lindsay,

I personally don't like the idea of synthetic materials, oftentimes they are petroleum based and can off-gas for quite a while. The fumes sometimes are noticeable and they're not good to breath in. Rubber pads are usually a good choice - you probably read about those in the article above.

As far as running the grain different areas, that's a decision best up to you. If you're not concerned about saving yardage and think it wouldn't look 'right' to have the grain going in a couple different directions, then by all means go with the extra yardage. It's your choice, not the vendor's.

Be sure to look over the different articles here about Berber carpet so you can familiarize yourself with problems others have had and how to avoid them.

Good luck with your new carpet - I'm sure you'll love it!

Hi Flooring Lady,

I wrote to you on July 13 about using a jute pad for a new berber wool carpet. You said you didn't like the idea of using a synthetic. What kind of padding would you recommend for a tufted loop pile berber? The loop is fairly large. I need to make a decision right away and want to know what is the best recommendation
Thanks.

Lindsay

Thanks.

Lindsay

Hi Lindsay,

I think that jute might be too 'fragile' for this kind of a carpet. If you want to go with something natural, I'd recommend natural rubber. A synthetic material should be ok too, VOC's can be a problem, but these days, there are many products that are low or no VOC. The manufacturers are getting 'greener' all the time.

Does the installer know how well the jute holds up in the long run? I know that Jute padding is susceptible to rotting if over-wetted, odor development, and natural degradation.

All I can say is go with your gut instinct. Have you seen and touched the jute padding? Do you think it will provide the comfort you want under your feet?

Hi We have a very nice rubber pad under the carpet in our basement. We had some water flow into the carpet/pad but pulled it away from the cement floor within 24 hours. Is the pad ever fully dry so I can continue using it? Thank you.

Hi Catherine,
So long as you have it exposed to air it should dry out eventually. Just be on the lookout for mold & mildew.

I would suggest fnding the source of your water problem and have it taken care of. When carpeting and pads get wet it can open up a whole host of health concerns.

WE ARE TRYING TO DECIDE THE BEST PILE FOR OUR NEEDS. WOULD A CUT PILE/BERBER COMBINATION WEAR AS WELL AS OUR PRESENT ALL BERBER/SMALL LOOP/LARGE LOOP CARPET HAS WORN? IT'S 15 YEARS OLD AND WE WANT TO REPLACE IT. WE APPARENTLY HAVE BIG FEET AND WEAR TRAFFIC PATHS RATHER QUICKLY ON OTHER TYPES WE HAVE USED.

Hi Sue,

It should hold up well, but that might be a good question to ask the manufacturer. I don't know what brand you're planning on using, what the carpet is made from, etc. Berber made of natural materials tend to hold up better in general over berber made from synthetic materials.

Hi Flooring Lady-

We are installing new carpet in a home under construction and have a small child and two pets. We are debating between a rubber pad and a foam pad. One carpet dealer says rubber is better and the other says that rubber doesn't stand up as long as foam. What are your thoughts?

Thanks

Hi Corbin,

In my experience, rubber holds up better. Remember, that's just my experience.........

Hi Flooring Lady,
I just got a large silk/wool rug for our living room. We have children and spend a lot of time playing & sitting on the floor. I would like to get a thick rubber pad for it. How do I find a good one? Do I look for a rug pad or a carpet pad. I tried buying a nice thick carpet pad from a home store but it was hard to get it without buying carpet from them. Any ideas?
Thanks!

Hi Monica,

You should be able to find something at your local Lowe's or Home Depot (or similar). I doubt you'll get the sales pressure to buy new carpet too! In fact, they'll probably me more than happy to help guide you in a proper selection to meet your needs/wants in a carpet pad. ;~)

Hi there Flooring Lady,

We recently installed wood floors in about 600 sq ft of our house and were overwhelmed by the off-gassing of the flooring in the first few days after installation. We're now getting ready to install some carpeting and although we're stuck with the carpet we already paid for we do have the opportunity to purchase whatever type of padding we want. Right now we have it narrowed down to a Synthetic Rubber pad (SCI Sponge Cushion - Full House model) or a very low VOC foam (Healther Choice - 7/16 Green model). We were wondering which you thought would be the better choice in terms of off-gassing and toxins?

Thanks so much,
~Michael

Hi Micheal,

Sounds like either one would be a good choice.

SCI Sponge Cushion - Full House model is non-toxic, safe carpet pad from synthetic latex that is environmentally friendly. Green carpet pad with no formaldehyde or toxic chemicals that off-gas.

Healthier Choice: This pad is also environmentally friendly. It has virtually no VOCs i.e. styrene, formaldehyde or 4-PC. In order for carpet to receive the "green label" from the indoor air quality testing program, a carpet cannot give off more than 600 ug/cubic meter. Frothed foam pads, on average, only give of 35 ug (virtually undetectable). Its off gassing is 150% less than carpet. Also, "Healthier Choice Green" frothed pad is treated so as to eliminate bacteria growth. This means that if you have a pet spill, and you clean it up, the residue will not breed more bacteria and begin to smell. This also applies to foods like spilt milk etc. Furthermore, Frothed Foam Carpet Cushion will not crumble, or disintegrate like rubber.

Hi Flooring Lady,
3 days ago we rented a Rug Doctor and cleaned our carpets. I think we got carried away (the carpets were quite dirty) because we now have a mildew smell. What should we do? Do we need to replace the pad, or can we just let it dry with fans? Would it be beneficial to pull the carpet back to get to the pad? We have 3 small kids and a dog, and my husband has asthma. I don't want to mess with mold and mildew, but I'm not sure how bad it can get just from cleaning the carpets. Please help!!!! Thanks!

Hi Gena,

Can't hurt, that's for sure. I'm concerned about the smell though. I'm not a big fan of carpet because of the allergens that can get trapped in it and I'm afraid it sounds like you gave the allergens just what they needed to grow... moisture.

You may have to resort to taking the carpeting outside and perhaps even purchasing new padding. I'm a bit at a loss for words here, I don't know what you are wanting or willing to do.

Is it absolutely necessary to use a carpet pad? Can I just buy the carpet and then buy a second carpet to put over it? A double layer if you will. Then I would only be spending $1.16 per sq. yd. and not 58 cents for the carpet and $3.76 for the pad. Its on a concrete slab. Thank you for any info you can provide.

Hi Jenn,
You really need a carpet. It is important, helps provide better wear (durability) for your carpet. Padding springs back when walked on.

Hi Carpet Lady-
Can a carpet pad be replaced and re-use the existing carpet? Our carpet is only about 5 years old, but dogs and water damage have stunk it up. Is this worth doing?
Thanks so much for the info-
JILL

Hi Jill,
I don't feel it's worth doing. Chances are the carpet pad will also carry some of the pet odors.

Just bought new carpet for the living room. The padding we purchased is foam and has a netting on one side. What I need to know is which side of the padding goes against the carpet, the netted side or the plain foam side. Thank you.

Hi Pat,
Net side goes up. ;~)

Everything I've read indicates that the flat rubber padding is the best. I'm having a problem with the $14 sq yard price. My second choice is the 8lb pad for about $4 sq yd.
Does the flat rubber padding justify the price?

Hi,
I was wondering if you can tell me a few name brands of "healthy carpets" I was reading about the good padding, thank you. I would like to buy the best carpet for an allergic person.
Thank you,
Lynn

Hi Joe,

Honestly, I couldn't tell you. I don't know exactly what the products are (name of the product line, manufacturer). When you gather that info, you can reasearch online and compare them in greater detail to make you decision. As with anything else, sometimes you're just paying more for the name.

Everything I've read indicates that the flat rubber padding is the best. I'm having a problem with the $14 sq yard price. My second choice is the 8lb pad for about $4 sq yd. Does the flat rubber padding justify the price?

Thank you!!

Hi Lynn,
Actually, the best carpeting for those with allergies is no carpet at all! Carpeting will trap many types of allergens and must be vacuumed often to keep the problem to a minimum. I think that the *healthy* carpets you're referring to are probably those that have low/no VOC. Most carpet manufacturers are now making carpeting with low/no VOCs so that there is very little or no off-gassing, using more natural fibers and less petroleum based materials. There's lots of them now, I'd suggest looking for carpeting you like and visiting the manufacturers website(s) to check to see how environmentally friendly they are and make a decision from there.

Several manufacturers, including Milliken, Interface, Bentley Prince Street, Mohawk, Shaw, and Collins & Aikmen have either committed to entirely PVC-free manufacturing or produced PVC-free carpet backing.

DuPont: Sorona fibers – biobased “Bio-PDO” corn-sugar derived chemical, but currently with limited availability in carpets. www.dupont.com/sorona

A really good article can be found here: http://www.metrokc.gov/procure/green/carpet.htm

Is there a special kind of carpet pad to keep moisture from coming through on a concrete slab home. (In the midwest so we get all varieties of weather.
Thanks.

Hi jt,
It's not so much carpet pad as it is the cement. It needs to be sealed - and sealed well or you could even put down a moisture proof subfloor - links to these can be found here. Carpeting usually isn't recommended at all in a basement because it harbors all sorts of allergens (dust, pollen,mold, mildew, etc.) - add the humidity factor into the equation and it quite literally helps mold & mildew breed. Other options could include a floating floor (engineered hardwood, etc.) stone, ceramic tile, the list goes on - any of which are friendly to those with allergies.

We are about to install new carpet throughout our office. I was told that in a commercial setting that it is better to glue down the carpet instead of installing a carpet pad. Is this true?

Hi Mandy,
This can be true - it depends on many factors though. It can depend on what type of carpet it is (how thick), how much traffic it's going to be getting, how much objects will be moved around or dragged on the floor (furniture, etc.). Just remember though, that if you choose to glue down carpeting and you later want to remove it, it is more of a *job*.

Can you tell me what is the best kind of padding to put under an area rug in our family room that will be on top of hardwood floors.

Hi Melissa,
If it's an area rug, why are you so worried about padding underneath? Is it almost as large as the room? I would recommend something waterproof at least, in case something is spilled on the rug so that it acts as a barrier between the rug and the wood floor. There are many types of padding to choose from and I really don't know what qualities you're looking for so I really can't offer a suggestion.

Hi, I tore up some old carpet. Underneath were oak floors. Although I considered refinishing, I'm thinking about new carpet. It looks like a berber is what I'm looking for. It would be throughout the entire lower level. Do I need a carpet pad? It looks like a flat, rubber pad would be best? Or could we install it without a pad at all? And, would it have to be glued without a pad?
Thanks

Hi Sandy,
Yes, you will need carpet padding, there are many choices too. Most people like the flat rubber pad better. You don't want to glue the carpet down.

I'm wondering how to reduce creaking in old hardwood floors. We have laid down a thick carpet and pad but the cracking floorboards are still audible (to our downstairs' neighbors). Any suggestions?

Ann

Hi Ann,
Do you live in an apartment then? If so, this sounds like an issue you'd need to take up with your landlord. Usually some well-placed screws will do the trick, but a landlord may not want you to do that yourself.

Our 15-yr old berber has pet stains that return within a week after cleaning. I've been told the cause is the soiled carpet pad. Would replacing the carpet pad with a rubber or waterproof pad and cleaning the carpet before relaying it prevent stains from recurring? We are trying to decide whether to replace the carpet (which we like)with vinyl plank flooring.

Hi Pat,
The problem is not necessarily the carpet pad. Often what happens is that the stains are cleaned on the surface and then the stain wicks its way back to the surface.

what carpet and pad would you recommend we install in our duplex to reduce sound transmission between
the upper and lower apartment?

can a good pad and carpet make a difference?

thanks

A carpet pad and carpeting will add some noise reduction; it's not, however, meant to block out all sound. Choosing a higher-end carpet pad is going to increase the longevity of your carpet. It doesn't make sense to save a few pennies by installing a cheap carpet pad.

Hi! We are finishing our basement as a media / play area for our kids. What type of padding and carpet would you recommend? It will be laid over concrete so we want something thick as there will be a climbing structure down there for the kids. Thanks!

Kim,

Not knowing the quality of your concrete I would suggest you consult a professional to determine if you need a wood subfloor or even something more if you have persistent moisture in the basement.

Depending on the moisture level they may install a plastic barrier to protect your padding and carpet from moisture or even suggest a durable high-density polyethylene sheet under the wood subfloor.

I would invest in the consultation from a professional to protect your carpet in the future.

We will be moving into a rental home that has beautiful hardwood floors. My older dog can not walk on wood floors, so we would want to buy large area rugs for all of the rooms. I have seen the new antibacterial padding made for wall to wall carpeting. Would this work if I put it under the area rugs? Would this be waterproof enough in case the dog would have an accident if cleaned up immediately? And also would this padding stick to the wook flooring when we atemp to take it up?

Mary,

I would suggest talking to a professional as you have a wide variety of options depending on your budget. They can advise you which type of carpet to purchase and if backing is necessary. There are antibacterial rugs that have a rubber backing as well which might be preferable. Your budget is also a factor.

We are installing a 52 oz Berber carpet in our basement over Dri-Core subfloor panels. They want to install a very thin (less than 1/4 inch?) pad and we would prefer a thicker, more "cushiony" pad for comfort. But if we do that, it will void the warranty. Does that make sense, or should we go with the thicker pad and void the warranty?

Brian,

It wasn't clear if it would void the warranty on the carpet or the padding or the installation. I would suggest getting a second quote/estimate. You will be prepared to either defend your choice or comply to the installer's recommendation and keep your warranty.

Does office carpet need a padding or does it go right on top of concrete?

Hi Cara, That is entirely up to you. The benefits of having a carpet pad I outlined in the article above so I would say you would just need to decide what your preference is. Carpet padding really adds minimal cost so it boils down to what you want.

I currently have a white carpet in my house and it has gray areas all over it; I also have 2 pets. I am guessing the gray areas are where I have shampooed or scrubbed up animal vomit and the padding underneath has maybe transferred dye into my white carpet. I am getting new carpet and am thinking about the white waffle rubber pad. Do you think this would help solve my cleaning problems and keep my new light carpet from showing these stains?

Sue,

I would recomend you also replace your padding when replacing the carpet. My reasoning is stated within the article.
In regards to the spots it could be a variety of reasons why the stains keep appearing. You might consider using Stain Solver for future pet mishaps.

please let me know which pad kills more noise btwn floors - 6lb or 8lb and by how much?
I currently have 6lb pad installed and looking at what my options are to kill more noise. also - why some pads have film on top of them? my pad does not, can I just put a sheet of plastic btwn pad and carpet?

Ilya,

Not knowing what type of sounds you'd prefer not to hear I want to state that a carpet pad and carpeting will add some noise reduction; it's not, however, meant to block out all sound. In saying that the 8lb will provide a firmer walk and it's been suggested that it can absorb a bit more noise.

You mentioned a film do you mean the netting? The netting has a waffle like texture to it. There are moisture barriers meant to prevent moisture from seeping into the padding after a spill.

I have carpet that had alot of pet stains on it I have had it steamed cleaned twice and its good for a day or two and then the stains come back. Can I replace just the padding and have the carpet steamed cleaned again with hopes of having the stains permently removed?

Kim,

There could be a variety of reasons why the stains keep appearing once the carpet is completely dry. You might consider trying StainSolver to clean the spots and see if it improves before trying to replace the padding.

Try the various cleaning approaches mentioned first, with the anticipation you may need to replace the padding.

I have purchased "2" new Shaw Rugs and I also am in the mids't of placing Laminate flooring down. We have acomplished "1" room thus far but before we place the rest of the already purchased flooring down in the house we need to know what kind of padding to put down under our rugs that we have already purchased.
We contacted the company where we purchased the flooring after we had it in place and we asked them for their opinion on what can and cannot be used on this flooring.
We informed them that the floor is a Laminate and that it states that we are to "NOT" use a RUBBER BASED, "LATEX", or "PVC" product on these floors. We were told that this type of flooring is a "WATERBASED URATHANE" flooring and that these materials I named will harm our floors by discoloration.
I trust you and I feel that after reading some of your other posts that you can give me the answer that I am searching for.
Do you know if there is such a thing as a "Waterbased Urathane" flooring and if so what do you recommend?
Thank you for your time and I sure hope that you can give us the answers to this question......winter is comting on fast and I sure would like to have these floors done before it arrives. I am also tired of the mess in my house, I would like this project finished by the holidays.
Signed,
lauralismom
chosenp@mchsi.com

Lauralismom,

Water-based Urethane is a water-based polyurethane, very likely to have been used on flooring. I recommend that you follow the manufacturer's suggestions to not use rubber, latex, or pvc backed rugs on your new floor.

You should be able to determine either by the packaging or the place of purchase if your shaw rugs have any of these backings on them.