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THE CARPET
FIBER: Nylon
ID METHOD: Chemical
FIBER COLOR: White
CONSTRUCTION: Conventional Tuft
YARN STYLE: Saxony & Frieze Blend
BACK SYSTEM: Conventional Tuft
PRIMARY BACKING: Polypropylene
SECONDARY BACKING: Polypropylene
INSTALLATION STATISTICS
TYPE LOCATION: Residential
METHOD: Stretch-In
CUSHION: 1/2 Inch Rebond 6 Lb./Cu. Ft.
SUBFLOOR: Plywood
AREA INSTALLED: Livingroom
USE & MAINTENANCE STATISTICS AT THE TIME OF THE INSPECTION
LITERATURE RECEIVED WITH PURCHASE: Not Determined
ADULTS: 2 - CHILDREN: 2 - PET(S): 2 Cats
DO THEY SMOKE? No
SPOTTING AGENTS: Consumer Type
TEMPERATURE: 72.3°F - 22.3° C RH 48%
VACUUM TYPE: Built-In
VACUUM FREQUENCY: Two Or Three Times A Week
ENTRY-MATS: Yes
SOIL: None Noticed
HEATING TYPE: Forced Air Gas
COOLING TYPE: Central - Electric
CLEANING: Never Been Cleaned
SITE CONDITIONS
This carpet is installed in a freestanding, 4,500 square foot, two-story house
that was reportedly built in 1992. A professional housekeeper was on duty at the time of
the inspection and reportedly is full time. The condition and furnishings of the house
were neatly organized and well maintained.
GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
This house is located in the Santa Monica Mountains on a steep slope overlooking
the San Fernando Valley.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION MADE TO THE INSPECTOR
This carpet was installed as the result of previous water damage and not the
result of the same problem. Shedding was not noticed until approximately six months after
the installation. It got worse with time. No correction has been attempted. According to
the claimant, this is the first inspection made concerning this problem and reports that
he wants the carpet replaced.
DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM AREA BY THIS INSPECTOR
The claimant directed this inspector from an attached garage to a sunken livingroom
immediately off to the right when entering the house. Windows had no drapes but a
protective coating filled the outside wall overlooking northward to the San Fernando
Valley.
There was no apparent problem when the inspector looked at the carpet from this entrance.
Upon close inspection, the inspector's slacks were covered with ¼ inch to ½ inch
filaments.
The carpet was vacuumed by the professional housekeeper with the claimant's built-in
vacuum unit for a few minutes and the vacuum cleaner head was covered with filament. The
vacuum cleaner head had a soft brush with no burrs. There was no beater bar. The rotary
brush was lightweight and was powered by suction of the vacuum. There was no pile height
setting for the vacuum head.
A remnant was obtained from a closet in the garage that was stored in a roll. A one-foot
by two-foot section was cut from this roll and was brushed vigorously. It did not create
shedding. The latex of the carpet did not appear to be sparse or brittle.
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 the same compounds mentioned above, but
there were no moisture readings either.
THE ISSUE
The question that I have been asked to address is what has caused the carpet to shed.
GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATING THE ISSUE
Excessive shedding can occur when:
1. There is excessive foot or mechanical traffic
2. There is improper maintenance or from the use of a stiff brush on a vacuum cleaner
3. There is improper bundle wrap of the latex
4. There is ultraviolet degradation.
INDUSTRY STANDARDS & DEFINITIONS
The IICRC REFERENCE GUIDE FOR INSPECTION OF TEXTILE FLOORCOVERINGS contains the following
definitions in its Glossary of Terms:
beater bar - A ridge on the rotation cylindrical bar of an upright vacuum cleaner or power
head attachment that agitates or "beats" carpet pile, vibrating and loosening
soil in the process. Can be used in place of a brush agitator and is most effective when
used on carpet with a pad or cushion underneath.
filament - A single strand of any kind of bier, natural or synthetic. Filaments of natural
fiber must be spin into yarns, and synthetic filament may be extruded directly into yarn
form.
staple fiber- Natural or synthetic fiber of a specific, relative short length (5-8 inches
for most carpet applications), which must be spun or twisted into yarn (cp continuos
filament). Synthetic staple fiber begins as continuos filament that is chipped into a
specific short length (4-7.5") for use in a fabric. see "parallel
spinning."
THE INSPECTOR'S ANALYSIS
Shedding is a common experience of owner's of new carpet that typically last for six
months. This type of problem is due to short ends of staple filaments that do not get
anchored into the latex. This shedding problem was reportedly not noticed until after six
months making it unusual when compared to other products in the market place.
Maintenance and usage do not make the likely candidates for the cause of this problem. Two
adults, two kids, and two pets with a professional housekeeper does not constitute an
excessive or abusive usage from this inspector's opinion. The vacuum head would work
better with a beater-bar, but the soft brush is not improper to cause shedding. In
addition, ultraviolet light and moisture testing both support that maintenance is not an
issue.
Latex can contribute to a shedding problem, but this too is an unlikely candidate. Latex
should both wrap and penetrate the yarn. The wrapping gives the yarn tuft bind strength
and the penetration helps prevent filament slippage. When penetration is weak, other
problems such as sparse application or a brittleness of the latex are often associated
with the backing. In addition, the filaments are generally longer.
Ultraviolet degradation is clearly the cause of this shedding problem. The issue of
ultraviolet degradation is to determine whether the light is excessive or to determine
whether there is a defect in manufacturing. If it is manufacturing, then there could be an
absence of UV inhibitors in the yarns.
In previous cases, this inspector has run 300 hours of AATCC 16 E at a government approved
laboratory. If shedding occurs on an unaffected remnant, then there is likely a problem in
manufacturing. In the absence of this test, the inspector's opinion is there is a defect
in manufacturing based upon the appearance of what looks like ultraviolet screening
protection on the windows. In previous inspections, such treatments have been adequate to
prevent degradation on non-defective carpet.
CONCLUSION
Based upon background information, observations, and field-testing done at the time of the
inspection, it is the inspector's professional opinion that the shedding is due to
ultraviolet light degradation.
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