Hello,
I'm Alan Fletcher, a 30-year veteran of the carpet business and nationally
recognized consumer advocate. I have retired and do not sell or
install carpet. As a consumer advocate, my goal is to inform and educate
homeowners about how to buy new carpet wisely and how to keep from being a
victim of a carpet scam!
Shopping for Carpet
At Home
In-home carpet shopping
is growing in popularity but also has certain risks that you need to be aware of,
and that is what
this website is all about. If you are not careful, you could end up buying
the wrong carpet, get a lousy installation job and pay way more than you
should.
If
you are considering calling a mobile shop-at-home service, or in-home Carpet Retailer
to bring samples to your home,
there are a few important things you need to know to protect yourself from
being scammed, overcharged and sold the wrong goods or materials. If
you are looking for an honest, reputable, locally owned carpet retailer,
you might want to see who I recommend in my Preferred
Carpet Dealer Directory.
The
most important thing you need to know about "shopping at home"
is to not fall prey to any high
pressure sales tactics. If any in-home carpet salesperson tries to pressure you
into buying
right now or tells you that the price quoted is a "Today Only" price,
then you need to show them the door.
Honest and reputable shop at home
carpet retailers will not try to strong-arm you into buying right now. Sure,
the salesperson would like it if you were to buy it right now, but you need
to make sure you comparison shop and get more than one bid or estimate
before you make your final choice. You should
always consider your carpet choices carefully and take a few days
to compare prices, colors and quality, and be sure to check out their
business references and their Better
Business Bureau standing too.
Most
shop
at home Carpet
Dealers
are honest and reputable but unfortunately many are not. There are so many
Carpet Scams you need to watch out
for regardless of who you choose buy carpet from, So take your time, visit all my carpet buying links below
and learn everything you can about
buying new carpet wisely before you visit any local carpet stores or have any carpet
dealer bring carpet samples to your
home. Trust me, carpet scams are everywhere, but I can help you
avoid carpet scams if you are willing to take the time to do your carpet
homework!
Even
if you are able to avoid all the carpet scams you encounter, you still need to
select the
right carpet. If
you choose the wrong carpet, it may not last as long as you expect. That's why I
decided to create a simple Carpet Foot
Traffic Test. My simple two-minute test will help you
determine your level of foot traffic in your home and can help you choose the right grade or quality carpet that can meet your needs and goals.
Some
carpets are rated by the manufacturer using the PAR Carpet Rating System.
This is where they assign a number from 1 to 5 that indicates the durability
level of the carpet. I don't recommend you rely on any carpet rating system
solely to make your carpet choice. Buying the right carpet will require
that you answer some basic questions about what you want to accomplish. For
example, how long do you want your new carpet to last?
Best
Carpet
Selection - Choosing Wisely!
A
common problem consumers face when buying new carpet, is choosing the right
quality of carpet. Every homeowner has different needs & goals that need to
be predetermined before a suitable carpet selection can be made. Some folks are retired
or have no kids or pets and therefore may have light
foot traffic. Other folks have heavy foot traffic from having
large families with lots of small children, pets or active teenagers.
Each different home scenario requires a different grade or quality of carpet. I refer
to this as "Carpet Durability". No matter what the
circumstances, each and every home has very different needs and goals that
need to be identified and considered very carefully before selecting the proper carpet
durability and quality level can be determined. And unless you consider all the variables and factors carefully, your new carpet will not last as long as you might hope.
Learn
About My Carpet Buying Guide
How
is Carpet Durability Determined?
There
are several specifications that determine if a carpet can handle your level of foot traffic.
The main factors are:
Every
carpet has it's own unique manufacturing specifications. It's up to you to
find out what these specifications are and make sure you buy a carpet with
sufficient specifications that will meet your needs. I know it must sound
daunting to you, and it is. However I will help you make sense of it all and
make it less confusing. If you are not familiar with the carpet
specifications listed above, then you should read my Carpet Buying Guide
ebook before you begin
shopping for carpet. You must understand what these terms mean in order to
know how to choose the right carpet for you. Start with my free Carpet
Foot
Traffic Test to see what grade of carpet you need to buy. Then
we will go forward from there...
It's
getting harder to find a reputable carpet dealer these days! That's why I've
created a special hand-picked list of over 350 locally owned Carpet Dealers who
offer Free estimates, Knowledgeable staff, Honest measuring, Fair prices and
Qualified installers.
Shopping for Carpet
At Home
Alan's
Preferred Carpet Dealers
