Carpet tiles are made up of laminated layers of material starting with a non-woven primary backing, a high performance precoat, a thermoplastic compound, fiberglass reinforcement and a final backing which can be another type of thermoplastic, PVC, cushion or other variant.  All of these layers must be compatible and work together to be stable.  Any inconsistency in the materials will cause a reaction in the tile.  Application of the layers or compounds that bind them applied at varying temperatures can cause uneven stresses in the tiles

One of the biggest factors and influences creating problems is the green movement and the use of recycled content in carpet tile backings.  Carpet tiles have always been a challenge to manufacture and curling has been part of the learning curve for years.  Curling would come and go as manufacturers learned about stabilizing the product.  Today with the race to be green every manufacturer is working on ways to use recycled materials.  We’re in one of those learning curve phases of product development.  This is unique because the driving force is the same for all carpet tile manufacturers; be green, use recycled content and make the product recyclable.  This is a tall order and one that the industry doesn’t have a real strong grip on right now because we are still on a learning curve.  As a result we’re seeing claims coming in daily on almost every manufacturer’s carpet tile product for curling edges.

One of the responses from manufacturers is that the installers didn’t use enough adhesive.  The adhesive used on carpet tile is pressure sensitive and it’s only supposed to stabilize the product on the floor laterally.  It is not supposed to stick it to the floor to make it lay flat.  Etch this statement in stone, “carpet tile, out of the box, is supposed to be flat, square and stable.”  This is an indisputable fact.  Glue is not supposed to keep carpet tile flat nor make it so.  If you take a carpet tile out of the box, lay it on a flat surface and let it relax, it should do so without any edge curl.  If the edges curl the tile is inherently unstable, which means the curl is built into the tile.  This isn’t intentional but it indicates an instability in the tile.  No elaborate testing is necessary to prove this physical characteristic as it is the law of physics at work.  For every action, in this case an uneven stress level in the layers of the tile, there is an equal and opposite reaction, which is the curling of the tile edges.  If you cut a small square out of the middle of a curling carpet tile and lay it on a perfectly flat surface, like a glass top table, that small square’s edges will also curl.  This lends further credence to the built in stress.

We’ve had flooring contractors calling from all over the country lamenting about this problem.  In fact as I began writing this column I got a call from one about a problem he has with curling carpet tile, amazing.

There is no acceptable level of carpet tile curl, nor is there an industry tolerance for it.  Carpet tile must lay flat, be square and be stable out of the box.  Adhesive will not, nor is not supposed to stick it flat to the floor.  You could bolt a curling tile down and where it wasn’t bolted it would curl.  This is not an installation problem, a moisture problem or any other type of problem.  It’s a carpet tile problem, plain and simple.  If you need help with a carpet tile problem call us.  No one knows more about this than LGM; that I can promise you.

Let’s look at the science.  Adhesives are not moisture suppression products.  The only true moisture suppression materials are non-permeable moisture barriers placed directly beneath a concrete slab.  There are also some specialized products can be applied after a slab has been bead blasted or ground and a few topically applied specialty suppression products; none of them are adhesives.  Any non-permeable flooring material applied to a slab becomes a moisture barrier.

Adhesives are susceptible to compromise from moisture and alkalinity.  What some would have you believe is that a new science has been developed to make adhesive products moisture resistant.  Moisture vapor emission can turn adhesive to mush or dust under a flooring material.

If a slab has an RH (relative humidity) of 90% and a MVER (moisture vapor emission rate) over 5, the likely hood of having an installation failure is extremely high.  What you may not be hearing, found in the small print, is that the alkalinity which destroys most adhesives, should not exceed 9 or 10 ph.  If you have RH of 90% the alkalinity levels are definitely going to exceed 9 or 10 ph.  You’ll be lulled into a false sense of security and if a failure occurs the small print will be invoked leaving you high and dry.

Preventing moisture related flooring installation problems can be a very lucrative business and many want to jump on the band wagon of marketing a product that they say will prevent moisture related flooring installation failures.  Remember what I’ve said many times, “Words don’t change science – ever.”    There are, in fact, installation systems that actually do prevent flooring installation compromise from moisture and alkalinity in a substrate.  None of them employ traditional adhesives or adhesive systems.  All of them are unique.  They don’t try to place a bandage on a hemorrhage.  None of these systems have ever failed.  They are also a complete paradigm shift from what anyone in the industry has ever been exposed to.  A reason you may be more inclined to believe an adhesive can solve moisture related problems.  Don’t head down that slippery slope.

Installation systems that are not affected by moisture and alkalinity and will not fail are EnviroSTIX, an installation system that is applied directly to the back of hard backed flooring materials before it is installed.  Free Lay, an applied poly acrylic system that goes on Kanga Trac cushion that can be applied to any carpet product (also marketed as Contact Release from Bentley Prince Street, Inc.).  There are hundreds of thousands of yards of flooring material installed with these systems, in the worst of conditions that have not failed.  There are also systems available from Velcro, with more coming, that are unaffected by moisture and alkalinity.  These are special systems developed by unique companies and individuals that address a host of installation issues, not just moisture.  You may be skeptical but we’ve been working with all of these systems to solve problems and there’s no doubt they do.  If you need help call us, we’ll help you avoid catastrophic losses.

For more information visit www.LGMandAssociates.com

Stretched in carpet should have a perpendicular engagement of the tackstrip.  It should not cascade over the tackstrip.  Perpendicular engagement will hold the carpet firmly and maintain the stretch.  Carpet cascading over the tackstrip will allow the carpet to become loose at which point it can wrinkle, regardless of how much stretch it receives.  A power stretcher should always be used on stretch in installations but if the cushion is too thick and soft it will compromise that effort.

So what’s the best cushion to use?  A cushion that is not higher than the tackstrip pins and preferably no higher than the tackstrip base.  The cushion should also be 8 to 10 pound density so as to firmly support the carpet, maximize its performance and prevent it from loosening up.  This type product costs a bit more but it will certainly save you in re-stretch complaints.  That said, if you have a re-stretch claim the easiest way to remedy it is to pull the carpet up and replace the cushion with a low profile, high density product.  If you just keep re-stretching over a cushion that is too high and too soft you’ll keep doing it.  There are several cushions on the market that fit the bill; one we often recommend is Healthier Choice.  Not only is it one of the best performers it’s also one of the “greenest” available.

You may not give much thought to the cushion and the influence it can have on the carpet but it can be compared to putting the appropriate suspension system on a car, allowing it to handle and perform at its best.    Think you can’t sell a better cushion?  Just compare the lower profile, higher density carpet cushion to the shoes your customer is likely wearing – some type of sneaker or athletic shoe.  These have firm foundations and high density soles, a comfortable feel, good support for feet and body and last years – the right carpet cushion will do the same thing.

A comment we’ve heard for decades is consumers saying “and we bought the best cushion they had…..”  While that may be true, you didn’t sell them the best cushion available.  You may also think you can’t sell the best cushion available because it’s more expensive, it is, but it will differentiate you from the competition, minimize your complaints for buckles, wrinkles and restretches and improve your sales and reputation.  In case you were unaware, higher quality flooring product sales have and continue to increase because if consumers are going to spend their money today they want to make it count.  Don’t be an “Also Ran” in this economy; be a stand out.  Sell the best products, show them first and extol their value, start with the cushion and see the difference.  If you believe you can, you can; if not, you won’t.  It’s what separates winners from also ran’s.

A dealer contacted us and wanted to know if the dark spots on a carpet were mold.   The space the carpet had been installed in had suffered some mold issues and the concern for dark spots on the carpet was that it too had a mold issue.  As we stated, mold can grow anywhere and on anything if it has a food source.  And mold, there are thousands of types, can survive any type of environment or condition.  Carpet, whether nylon, polyester or polypropylene, is basically plastic.  It is not, in and of itself an organic food source.  If it gets wet and it’s dirty, then you have a medium for mold to grow.  Since the carpet had black spots on the face yarn and backing it was thought to be contaminated with black mold.

Black mold will have a very distinctive appearance.  It can look like small colonies or clusters growing on a surface and when full blown can turn surfaces completely black.  In this case the black on the carpet had a distinct pattern and linearity.  It was fairly defined and less random, which mold would not be.  It was on the surface and on the backing but on the backing it was more subtle and spread out.  There were also signs of moisture in the form of water stains that could be easily distinguished on the carpet backing; indications something was spilled or someone tried to clean the dark areas.  (photo depicting this included)

The evidence indicated the black marks on the carpet were not mold but a foreign contaminant introduced to the carpet surface.  The dark, actually black marks looked like copier toner.  In addition the carpet also had discoloration marks where it had turned yellow. (photo) This further indicates an oxidizing agent came in contact with the carpet bleaching out the blue dye component from this green colored carpet.   It could be concluded from the evidence exhibited that the carpet was not afflicted with mold but had been influenced by someone having spilled or dropped something on it; actually more than one something.  The culprit affecting this carpet was not mold.

Very often complaints for mold on carpet are actually something else.  In schools there are often concerns for mold under pencil sharpeners.  This would be shavings from the wood and the lead.  In offices the black is often from copier toner having been spilled and in any number of places the dark spots may just be a residue from a spill or poorly attempted spot cleaning that soil is being attracted to.  Most of the time mold is not the problem and if it is someone got an organic material on the carpet which allowed the mold to grow.

Please contact www.lgmandassociates.com for more information.

A dealer contacted us regarding damage to carpet at a customer’s home and asked if I would take a look at photos included in his email to help him determine what had affected the damaged carpet.  He stated that he’d never seen carpet get threadbare at a sliding glass door – fading yes, but never loss of fiber.  He further stated the carpet is about 15 years old, nylon, and short pile and added the consumer has no dogs or cats that would have caused this damage.  This condition is only occurring in front of the sliding glass doors.  The exposure is westerly and receives lots of sun.  Westerly and South Westerly exposures are most susceptible to sun damage and the closer to the equator, or further south in the US, the greater the chance of sun and UV damage through windows.

The damage to the carpe in this case is being caused by UV degradation from the sun.  The exposure to the sun will actually “bake” the fiber, brittle it and cause it to decompose.  After years of bombarding sunlight the carpet fiber will succumb to the influence and break down.  Direct sunlight coming through sliding glass doors will also damage vinyl flooring over time; the vinyl will look like it has been burned.  In this case it was suggested the dealer install a stone accent of some kind to protect the new carpet from future damage.  This   would also act as a design element and further protect this critical area from soil and wear.  With no protection for the flooring material, over time, the sun wins.   Wood flooring can dry out, crack and warp with intense exposure to sunlight and other types of hard surface flooring can brittle, curl at the edge and change color.  One should not get the impression the flooring material is defective in any way as it is only reacting to a damaging influence.  Sun and UV damage will normally take time and the change created will be gradual.  In these type cases you need to look outside the space for the answer as to why the flooring material has undergone physical or color change.

If you have questions or need help on a flooring or substrate issue of any kind, contact us at www.LGMandAssociates.com.

Should you install your solid wood flooring directly over concrete, the experts give you the facts.

There are many questions about gluing down solid wood flooring to concrete. The traditional industry standards for wood floor installation limited the direct glue down of solid wood flooring over concrete to short pieces or parquet patterns. A well made engineered wood floor looks like a solid floor but avoids some of the installation difficulties. The backer of the engineered flooring helps reduce the movement with moisture changes. For many applications this is the best solution.
Flooring incert

Small Flooring Incert Including Antique Heart Pine

With the advent of elastomeric adhesives gluing solid flooring directly to concrete has become more common. NOFMA produced a technical publication outlining recommended procedures for installing solid wood floors to concrete about five years ago. Despite the inherently higher risks of gluing solid to concrete it has become an accepted practice for many people in the industry. This installation method takes more effort to manage the risks. Moisture issues are the primary concern. Test to see if the concrete is dry enough. The ASTM F2170-2 test is a widely accepted procedure which measures the relative humidity inside the concrete. It is often prudent to apply a sealer to the concrete just in case moisture is introduced into the concrete at a later time. Then if the concrete gets wet in the future a trowel on moisture cured urethane vapor barrier or penetrating sealer such as Bone Dry which was applied prior to installing the floor can keep the water away from the wood. An alternative to a glue installation is to install a plywood subfloor over the concrete then nail down the flooring.

Author: Carol Goodwin

Website: http://www.heartpine.com/blog/