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Price Comparison between Old and New CarpetThe homeowner who is the commissioner of this report, was involved in an insurance claim and he did not feel that he got the same qualify carpet. He didn't and there were lots of installation errors.The names of the carpet and mills were left in this report.THE CARPET MANUFACTURER: Royalty Carpet Mills, Inc NUMBER on BACKING: ALI 12248 ROLL # Not Available P O NUMBER: Not Available STYLE NAME: Fashion Isle FIBER MANUFACTURER: Monsanto FIBER NAME: Wear-Dated Traffic Control FIBER/ ID METHOD: Nylon-Chemical COLOR: Dark Blue CONSTRUCTION: Tufted Cut Loop STYLE: Saxony Plush SQUARE YARDAGE: 66 BACK SYSTEM: Conventional Tufted PRIMARY BACKING: Polypropylene SECONDARY BACKING: Polypropylene THE INSTALLATION TYPE OF SITE: Residential DATE INSTALLED: 11/15/95 METHOD: Stretch-In CUSHION: 1/2 Inch Rebond 6 Lb./Sq.Ft. SUBFLOOR: Concrete on the First Level, Particle Broad on top of Plywood on the Second Level AREA INSTALLED: Living-Room, Hallway, 4-Bedrooms, & One Bathroom USE & MAINTENANCE INFORMATION AT THE TIME OF INSPECTION LITERATURE RECEIVED WITH PURCHASE: See Report ADULTS: 3 CHILDREN: 1 PETS: 1 TYPE OF PET(s): Cat TEMPERATURE: 72.5°F - RELATIVE HUMIDITY: 54% VACUUM TYPE: Panasonic Upright FREQUENCY: Daily DO THEY SMOKE? Yes ENTRY MATS: Yes CONDITION of THE CARPET: Good SOIL: None Noticeable HEATING TYPE: Central Force Air Gas COOLING TYPE: Central - Electric CLEANING: New Carpet INSTRUCTION FOR THIS INSPECTION Determined the origin of the old and new carpets. Determined the market price of the new carpet. Determined whether the carpet in installed according to industry standards. THE REPORT Geographical Background Information The carpet in question was installed in the claimant’s free-standing two story house. This house was located in a residential neighborhood, six and half miles from the Pacific Ocean and 10.5 miles south of the Los Angeles County line. The maintenance and condition of the house was very good. BACKGROUND INFORMATION MADE TO THE INSPECTOR The carpet in question was replace due to restoration effort made after a fire. According to the job estimate the form furnished by the reconstruction company the carpet was sold for $27.78 per yard plus $3.83 for pad including labor on both carpet and cushion. In addition to this 10 per cent was added for overhead and 10 per cent for profit. Several corrections were made after the installation, but not all to the claimant’s satisfaction. There were loose edges and buckling in the stairwell and staples were reportedly used in the upstairs-bathroom. No information was furnished by the contractor as to the origin of the carpet. Reportedly the new carpet was the same price and quality as the old. The old carpet had the MEA number 73798. DETAIL PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION BY THE INSPECTOR The carpet was buckling along the edges of the wall in the stairwell. The upstairs-bathroom carpet had staples that ran through the carpet into the tackless strip. The carpet at the base board had a shaved look that dipped off into the base board. IN FIELD TESTING According to the MEA Certifications of Roswell Georgia, the numbers on the old carpet belongs to Philadelphia Carpet Mills and is a style called Settle Slew which was a 54.6 ounce nylon. Quotations on the Fashion Isle by Royalty Mills are to be considered attached documents to this report. These prices were below $20 per yard and the weight of the carpet was given at 45 ounces per yard. The gully width of the tackless strip was measured and was at vary distances greater that 3/8th of an inch. The carpet was pulled back in the stair-well and it was noted that here was no tackless strip on the edge of the stairs. The carpet in the master bedroom was pulled backed and the cushion seams and carpet seams were found to run the same direction only four inches apart as seam in the drawings. These drawing should also be consider an addendum to this report. THE ISSUE OF THIS REPORT The question that I have been asked to address is: how does the price of the carpet and the installation compare to the industry stands and norms? CONDITIONS THAT CAN CAUSE THE PROBLEM The prices of good and services are the prices given by the sellers of those goods and services. Industry Standards used for residential installations are: 1. the CRI105 by the Carpet and Rug Institute of Dalton Georgia. 2. the manufacturer’s installation instruction INDUSTRY STANDARDS, PRACTICES & DEFINITIONS On page six on the CRI 105 -1994 RESIDENTIAL INSTALLATION STANDARDS it says this about seam and a light source: Seams . . . be sure there is agreement between you and the customer as to the locations of all seams that may be required. before the job starts. Usually, seams are best laid toward the primary natural light source. Visibility of the seams will vary with the type of carpet purchased. Carpet seams cannot be guaranteed to be invisible. Concerning Installation of tackless Strip the CRI105 says this page 13: 9.4 Installation of tackless Strip - · Full length pieces of tackless strip should be spread around the wall perimeter with pins pointing toward the wall. · The proper gully shall be slightly less than thickness of the carpet, but not to exceed 3/8 inch (10 mm). · The tackless strip should be cut to proper lengths to maintain the same gully regardless of the shape of the wall. · The tackless strip must be securely fastened to maintain the proper stretch provided by power stretching- Two nails (fastening points) are required for the smallest pieces of tackless strip. · Carpet should NOT by stapled to the tackless strip · Avoid placing tackless strip across door openings or door sills where possible. Concerning carpet cushion on Residential stretch-in-installations the CRI105 says this from page 14: 9.5 Cushion Installed Wall-to-Wall Cushion should be securely fastened to the subfloor with staples or nonflammable cushion adhesive around the perimeter of the installation. Seams shall be secured with staples or nonflammable cushion adhesive. However, tape -- such as duct tape -- shall be used for most seams on rubber cushion. These procedures are used to prevent shifting of the cushion during and after the installation. Cushion is to be installed in the longest continuous lengths possible. The cushion seams should not be installed directly under the carpet seams. Generally, they should be placed at right angles to the carpet seams. When this is not practical shift the cushion so that seams are at least 6 inches (150 mm) to one side of the carpet seams. Foam or sponge cushion with a waffle design should be installed with the smooth side up. Foam cushion seams are to be covered with vinyl coated fabric tape (duct tape) or secured with adhesives. Staples or adhesives are to be applied 6 inches (150 mm) within the perimeter edges all around. Concerning carpet on stairs, the CRI105 says this 10.0 CARPET ON STAIRS Stair carpet should be installed as follows: 10.1 Preparation Stair nosing should be rounded 3/4 inch (19 mm) to 1 inch (25 mm) to prevent sharp stair edges from cutting the carpet and/or cushion. 10.2 Stretch-In Installation - Tackless strip is to be installed on each tread and riser. Pins on the step point toward the riser. Pins on the risers point down to the tread.. The gully between the, strips is slightly less than double the carpet thickness. Tackless strips and cushion are about 1 1/2 inches (38 mm) less than the carpet width, to allow for a turn under on each side of the stairs. Some stairs require tackless strip on the sides to maintain the proper tension. Using a knee kicker, or "stair stretcher." Stretch the carpet tightly over each step. The carpet should be secured to each tackless strip and driven into the gully with a stair tool at the junction of the tread and riser. Curved or sloped areas shall have the carpet tailored to fit the tread and riser without wrinkles and with the edges neatly finished. According to the AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITIES publish by the CARPET AND RUG INSTITUTE it says this about dealer’s responsibilities to the customer: 2. Provide information that is included on manufacturer’s roll tag with each order sold to include the following: (A) manufacturer’s roll number (B) style number (C) uncoded dye lot number (D) color (E) size THE INSPECTOR'S ANALYSIS Based on the price of the carpet alone, there is a 28 per cent difference in the price of the New Reconstruction company versus Superior Carpet’s invoice. When the ten and ten percent add-ons are marked to the price the differences become 41 per cent higher. The dealer should have furnished the information about the new carpet according to industry standards. The installation errors of the carpet are as follows. 1. Carpet seams and cushion seams should not run parallel to one another. The reason for this important due t the stress that is placed on the latex backing near those intersections. Too much sagging results in buckling and eventual delimitation of the carpet. 2. Cushion Seams are to have duct tape or some suitable product to help hold the seam together. The reason behind this is that with time and heat the seams separates due to shrinkage of the pad. This leaves a dip in the carpet above. This dip will lead to performance problems in the carpet. 3. Staples should not be used on the tackless strip as per section 9.4 of the CRI105. The nails on the tackless strip are slanted and should be pointed towards the wall. Stretching the carpet is what is supposed to keep the carpet in place. Not staples. 4. Tackless strip is to have a proper gully width not to exceed 3/8th of an inch, also as per section 9.4 of the CRI105. The reason behind this is so that the carpet will not have a shaved look next to the baseboard. 5. According to the CRI105 Section 10.2, tackless strip should be used on the sides of some stairs to prevent bucking. CONCLUSION
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