Buying Wool Carpets - Are Wool Carpets For Me? by Keith Wroblewski

Should I consider buying wool carpets? Wool carpets are wonderful! Wool carpets have made my life miserable! This is actually one of those situations where both of these statements can be 100% true. My hope is to help you determine which one of these groups you belong too before you go through the expense of investing in wool carpets.

I have been cleaning carpets in Boulder Colorado for over 17 years and I have cleaned some wonderful and not so wonderful wool carpets. Wool is soft and it feels great to walk, crawl, or lay on. It feels like walking on soft hair. Wow! It is soft hair! The wool fiber consist of three main parts. The epidermis (cuticle) consisting of protective, overlapping scales on the fibers outer surface. The cortex, which composes most of the wools fiber and the center of the wool fiber is called the medulla. One of the facts that makes wool kinda scary is that it is a protein. Why could this be bad? Wool proteins can chemically bond with other proteins that can permanently attach itself to the wool fiber.

The real protein problem usually arises from our pets. Most of our pets throw up their food which is primarily a Protein base. These pet accidents can quickly turn our beloved soft haired carpet into a visual tapestry of pet throw up, urine stains and other digestive processes that I do not like to think about. Often, these stains will permanently affix themselves and become part of the wool fiber. Another source of protein comes from the food we eat. Baby food may have a high protein concentrate and if applied to your wool carpet it may become a sentimental remembrance of your child's baby years. Wool is considered the finest carpet fiber in the world and if I did not have pets and small children I would seriously consider the expense.You also have to be very careful not to get bleach on your wool carpet. Bleach will actually cause the wool fiber to dissolve and leave you with a hole in the middle of your carpet.This means that putting wool carpets in a laundry room may not be the best of ideas. Many over the counter cleaners have a small amount of bleach in them. The advantages of wool carpet include that it feels soft, holds color very well, wears well, soil resistant, cleans well and it is naturally non flammable. The wool fiber is also very elastic and it can expand 3 to 4 times its' size. This helps the wool fiber be naturally durable.

The negative traits of wool fiber include that it is very sensitive to alkalinity (high PH soaps), costs more than synthetic fibers, costs more to clean, not resistant to Protein stains, will dissolve in bleach and can be damaged by carpet beetles and moths. Consider the pluses and minuses as they pertain to your life and if you decide to purchase the wonderful wool carpet fiber, see our special carpet cleaning care guide for wool carpets at http://www.colorado-carpet-masters.com. You will also find free carpet repair guides, allergy guides, carpet buying guides, carpet spot guides, carpet cleaning consumer guides an much more.

About The Author

Keith Wroblewski is an IICRC Master Carpet Cleaner who has been in the cleaning industry for 20 years. He has produced several free help guides and now offers these guides at http://www.colorado-carpet-masters.com