Visual Color Change in Carpet: Soiling
Author: Terry Weinheimer (94 Articles)
Terry Weinheimer, resides in Oregon where he is a certified flooring inspector, floor covering consultant and educator.
Some traffic patterns that develop on a carpet are the result of soil abrasion. When granular soil is not thoroughly removed from a carpet through frequent in depth vacuuming it will scratch the fiber so that a permanent change is made in the way that light is reflected from the pile. When the carpet is thoroughly cleaned the soil is removed but the abraded areas are permanent so the appearance of a color change remains.
Common Identifying Characteristics
- The traffic areas appear dull, dark, or even yellow or gray in front of furniture and in traffic lanes.
- Outside of the traffic lanes the pile is still standing erect and it appears brighter.
- When an inspection light is used in the traffic areas the color appears much closer to that of the non-traffic areas.
- The tips of the pile have taken on a course or rough feel in the traffic areas.
- The pile tips in the traffic areas have a frayed appearance.
On many of these installations the consumer will state that they vacuum frequently. In truth they may be vacuuming several times per week but in reality the vacuuming is not thorough or the machine they are using is in bad condition or totally inefficient.
Soiling and soil abrasion are site related conditions and not a manufacturing defect.
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