[ Home ] [ Appearance Retention Reports ] [ Browning Reports ] [ Cleaning Errors Reports ] [ Color Loss Reports ] [ Delamination Reports ] [ Design Flaws Reports ] [ Double Stick Reports ] [ Fading Reports ] [ Fuzzing Reports ] [ Installation Reports ] [ Latex Problems Reports ] [ Lines, Bands, & Streaks Reports ] [ Maintenance Reports ] [ Matting & Crushing Reports ] [ Pooling Reports ] [ Shedding Reports ] [ Side Match Reports ] [ Specification Reports ] [ Thickness & Weight Reports ] [ Upholstery Reports ] [ Water Damage Reports ] [ Yarn Slippage Reports ] [ Yellowing Reports ]

[ Bands Make Pile Distortions Correctable ] [ Bands from Shearing ] [ Fading four-inch Line ] [ Line Disappears in Width ] [ Heat Setting ] [ Length & Widthwise Lines ] [ Roll Crushing ] [ Shift Marks ] [ Stop Marks not Severe ] [ Streaks appear in One Direction Only ] [ Streak in an Wilton ] [ Stop Marks ] [ Tension Variation ] [ UnCut Loop Report ]

[ Home ]

Fading four-inch Line

This report was done for a consumer where a roller in manufacturing caused a latent defect with the dye.

CLAIM STATISTICS FOR THIS INSPECTION
PROBLEM REPORTED:    Color Loss
PROBLEM FOUND:    Fading
DIAGRAM:    No
SAMPLES:    Carpet
PERSONS PRESENT:    Inspector & Claimant
THE CARPET
MANUFACTURER:    Queen Carpet Corp.
STYLE NAME & NUMBER:    Tradviata 2974
COLOR NAME & NUMBER:    Chinchilla
FIBER:    Nylon
ID METHOD:    Chemical
FIBER COLOR:    Mauve
CONSTRUCTION:    Conventional Tuft
YARN STYLE:    Saxony
SQUARE YARDAGE:    Not Given
BACK SYSTEM:    Conventional Tuft
PRIMARY BACKING:    Polypropylene
SECONDARY BACKING:    Polypropylene
INSTALLATION STATISTICS
TYPE LOCATION:    Residential
METHOD:    Stretch-In
CUSHION:    7/16 Inch Rebond
SUBFLOOR:    Concrete Slab
AREA INSTALLED:     Livingroom, Hallway, & 3- Bedrooms
USE & MAINTENANCE STATISTICS AT THE TIME OF THE INSPECTION
LITERATURE RECEIVED WITH PURCHASE: Not Determined
ADULTS: 2 - CHILDREN: 1 - PET(S): -1
DO THEY SMOKE?    No
SPOTTING AGENTS:    Nature's Miracle
TEMPERATURE: 69.5°F - 20.8° C RH 54%
VACUUM TYPE:    Upright
VACUUM FREQUENCY:    Weekly & More
ENTRY-MATS:    Yes
SOIL:    None Noticed
HEATING TYPE:    Aqua Thermo Gas
COOLING TYPE:    None
CLEANING:        Professional
METHOD:    Stanley Steamer
TYPE OF CHEMICAL:    Alkaline
TREATMENTS APPLIED:    None
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THIS REPORT
Assess the problem reported and make a determination of the responsible parties.
SITE CONDITIONS & GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
This is an owner-occupied, single-story, 1900 square foot home that was built in 1997. It is located in a residential neighborhood with other houses, most which were built in 1959. This neighborhood is located in a hilly section Torrance, which is located approximately five miles from the Pacific Ocean. This condition of this dwelling appeared to be excellent. It furnishes were near and orderly and there were two professional housekeepers on duty at the time of the inspection. The family pet is a large dog.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION MADE TO THE INSPECTOR
The carpet was selected as part of the building and moving in process. Only the claimant's wife believed that there was a fading problem during the first year. After the carpet was cleaned for the first time, light colored areas were noticed.
DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM AREA BY THIS INSPECTOR
A four-inch wide line running in the direction of manufacturing was immediately noticeable in the livingroom. This line started at 27 inches from the wall's edge that was closes to the front of the house. A similar, but fainter line was noticed about 10 feet, three inches from this first line. This line was located on a second panel in the livingroom. A third line was noticed in the hallway and a fourth similar line was noticed along the wall in the master bedroom. All four of these lines were lighter than the surrounding carpet and had a pink hue.
Other green spots that had apparent color loss were also noted in the livingroom and in the hallway. These spots had irregular edges and color loss was on the tops of the yarns. There was no unusual hand to lines or spots nor were there unusual odors. Color loss was primarily on the top section of the yarn.
ON-LOCATION FIELD TESTING
An ultra-violet light was used to draw a reflection from substances with fluorescent dyes. Yellow reflections will come from most urine stains while blue or lavender reflections will come from inappropriate detergents. The results of this test revealed that there were no reflections.
Numerous moisture tests were performed using a Delmhorst Moisture Sensor that would indicate the presence of moisture locked-up in same compounds mentioned above. No readings were found in the color loss area, but there were modest readings throughout the installation that the claimant felt could be related to his child spilling water.
Numerous pH tests were taken using a digital type pH meter with a low moisture probe that made direct contact with the faceyarns. All tests were made using distilled water with a pH of 7.0. The test results were between 7.8 to 7.9 in both discolored and non-affected areas. One of the green spots in the hallway registered 9.5. The 7.8 to 7.9 readings would be indicative of recent cleaning; the 9.5 reading would be indicative of a special spotting agent. Another green spot did not have contrasting pH reading compared to the surrounding carpet.
THE ISSUE
The question that I have been asked to address is what has caused the carpet to fade.
GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATING THE ISSUE
Fading problems can occur when:
1. Bleaches, oxidizing agents or other chemical residues have been applied to the faceyarn
2. Sun light or in particular ultraviolet rays from the sun affect the dye
3. Atmospheric gases causing a dye degradation
INDUSTRY STANDARDS & DEFINITIONS
According to the FLOOR COVERING DICTIONARY it says this about fading:
FADING - Loss of color. Caused by actinic radiation such as sunlight or artificial light, atmospheric gases including ozone, nitric oxide, and hydrogen sulphide, cleaning and bleaching chemicals such as sodium hypochlorite, and other household and industrial products, chlorine chemicals or swimming pools, and other factors. Commercial installations in areas where such exposures occur require extreme care in selection of colorfast carpet. All carpet will fade under certain conditions. The greatest sun fade potential is a Southwest exposure while the least is a Northwest or North exposure. Unprotected carpet, those in front of windows without drapes, in a Southwest exposure can show very noticeable color loss after as little as 6 months. Examples: A brown carpet will fade to light green in ,areas where it receives direct sunlight because the color component most severely affected is red. A green carpet will fade to yellow because color component most affected by the direct sunlight is blue.
THE INSPECTOR'S ANALYSIS
Ultraviolet light and pH testing indicates that the lines were not created by the claimant's usage and/or maintenance. Typical fading to light takes place near windows, not in straight line. Instead, straight lines in the direction of manufacturing are indicative of a manufacturing related problem. A likely scenario would be that contaminants from wheel rolling on top of the faceyarns interfered the dye's bonding to the filaments.
The irregular shaded green spots are also indicative of a color loss and ultraviolet light and pH testing does not support improper use of chemicals. However, their shape does indicate that some type of spill caused the spot to form. If deemed necessary, laboratory testing could be performed to determine a more exact deficiency in the dyes, but given that the line is a straight path of four inches wide lines, this appears to be a manufacturing related problem.
CONCLUSION
From a professional opinion, based upon background information, observations, and field-testing done at the time of the inspection, the color loss in the carpet inspection is related to problems inherent in the manufacturing process and is the manufacturer's responsibility.