Choosing the best carpet for basement is not always dilemmatic. Moreover, carpet is considered as one of the best floor covering options for basement.
There are some carpet features that make people keep optioning carpet. Those include the carpet warmth, softness and cushioning that make it an ideal choice for covering the basement cold floor.
Further, carpet also comes with the flexible materials. Though the basement cement floor is not level well, it will be possible to install carpet without leveling the floor in prep session.
Many people are curious about the carpet type they want to use in the basement.
Is there any carpet type that would be better for underground living than other type?
This is the question that may also keep questioning them. Many people also concern the higher moisture levels as the common problem found in basement flooring installation.
In fact, the moisture levels in the basement as under-ground living areas are higher than the ones in the above-ground living areas.
Truly, the best carpet for basement can stand longer and even longer than a four-season climate without any mold and mildew because of the carpet.
Thus, some guidelines are necessary to help you select the best carpet for basement.
Without taking too much time, let’s just have a quick read on the following review sections and never miss any single part of information included in this article.
Use Synthetic
The first criteria of the best carpet sued is that the carpet is using synthetic fiber.
In this case, carpet with synthetic fibers can be the best option for basement due to the breathable feature.
This means that the carpet does not potentially recollect moisture like the natural fibers do.
Since the basement is underground, it must be damp. That’s why the carpet chosen must be able to withstand the increased moisture levels.
This way, the synthetic fibers are able to put off the moisture, preventing the carpet from getting the risk of increasing mold and mildew.
Today, manufacturers majorly produce the synthetic broadloom featuring synthetic backing material.
This feature is very much important to let the carpet to breathe. To ensure whether the carpet need the backing or not, double-checking is a must before you finally purchase.
Read Also: Cut And Loop Carpet Styles
Style Options Carpet for Basement
For basement, there is no limitation about what kind of carpet style to use. This means that you can just purchase any carpet style for your basement.
However, you will typically need to match the carpet to the performance you want to have.
You can even choose and use the looped Berber carpet with the Saxony styles if you are sure that your basement doesn’t have a high level of moisture. Truly, you can install any carpet in your basement along with the proper finish.
In this regards, there have been a large number of qualities you can opt to meet the most of your needs.
Best Carpet Padding for Basement
Another criteria of best carpet for basement is that the carpet has a carpet padding.
This is due to the fact that most of the carpers used for residential applications use padding.
In this case, it is much essential to add a soft padding on a cold and hard basement floor to provide the floor with warmth and comfort.
For basement, it is recommended that you choose polyurethane foam instead of a rubber pad.
Further, if you prefer installing a carpet with padding, Kanga style is more recommended than the rubber-backed carpet.
Best Carpet Qualities for Basement
Moisture issues have become the major problems that people always concern. Basement is one of the underground level spaces with the risk of moisture. Mold and mildew can be greatly grown in the moisture areas.
Thus, installing in the basement can also be dilemmatic though other people insist on saying that carpet is the best material to consider for basement. Hence, choosing carpet with the best qualities is a must.
In this regards, there are some basic qualities that make the carpet perfect for basement.
Firstly, the carpet must come with the low pile for the fast drying process. Carpet with the high pile takes more minutes to dry while the one with the low pile needs only a short time to dry.
Secondly, it much recommended to choose a cut pile carpet since it will be more durable to install in the basement than the other carpet type.
Next, the best carpet for basement must be pad-less. It is best described that padding will make the carpet absorb and traps water.
Later, man-made materials carpet is also considered good for basement. This way, the man-made material is nylon. This means that carpet with nylon material is recommended for basement.
Other criteria for the best carpet for basement is that the carpet must be sectioned. Purchasing wall-to-wall carpet need to be removed once it gets soaked.
One more criteria is that the carpet must feature waterproof. This feature comes with the special backings to prevent moisture from passing through the carpet.
Best Brands Carpet for Basement
Do you believed that best carpet must come from the best brands?
Why not?
Brand is one of the signs that represent the quality. The better the brands, the higher qualities the carpet is considered having.
So here are some of the best carpet brands you can consider selecting for your basement.
Shaw LifeGuard
To prove that the carpet is the best for basement, Shaw comes to present a 25,000-gallon swimming pool line along with the LifeGuard carpet to see how well it stands up to the excessive water. The result shows that there is no leaked.
Shaw LifeGuard is a waterproof with 100 percentage, meaning that the water may stay on the carpet surface yet it will not leak underneath.
Thus, you can be able to have a higher pile that you may usually have due to the water leakage to draw water off the surface instead of underneath.
Tigressa H2O
Tigressa H2O has the same characteristics with Shaw LifeGuard. There is a unique backing that prevents water and all other liquids from passing through the carpet.
In this case, you can feel sure that moisture will never seep down your carpet padding.
Basement Moisture
Since you know that some certain types of carpet will be just alright to go with the water at which the moisture, the next thing to check out is the basement moisture.
In this case, there are some kinds of basement moisture ranging from the spectrum of woes.
When it comes to the cold climates, everything must be well managed including flooring in the basement. This is the time when the basement moisture become a hug problem.
Thus, before installing, track down the moisture in your basement so that you can specify the sources of moisture in your basement and include them in the categories as follows:
- Leaks
Crack in the wall foundation can actually cause the water to lees up to the cracks in the floor. And you cannot always get the active leaks in the process.
Though you can even dry it up, the leaks can still be recognized by the remnants like the calcium deposits as well as other trailing left behind.
- Moisture in the air
Moisture exists not only in the underground rooms but also in above grade rooms. In this case, basement has a big chance to be inhabited by the moisture-laden air.
- Moisture through the floor
Moisture through the floor can be usually due to the crack in the concrete floor, emitting the moisture. However, you might not have known that even a stable concrete floor can wick a moisture.
Read Also: Best Carpet for Bedrooms with Pros and Cons
Carpeting Issue
Even the best carpet for basement has been well selected, carpeting issue does there to make people wonder.
In this regards, people that are pro for carpeting say that it is just no wonder to install carpet in the basement. It is just like installing other flooring types such as laminate or engineered wood.
In case of water leaks, carpet is able to dry fast before the mold and mildew grow. However, installing carpet in the basement needs a professional to make sure the proper way of installation.
On the contrary, people who are anti-carpet will say that there are still so many other options available for basement flooring more than carpet.
The other options are also possibly more affordable and easy to maintain than the carpet.
In this case, straight concrete, ceramic or natural stone tile are more preferable and practically resistant to water leaks.
These people keep arguing that mold and mildew can develop in the carpeting material, causing the basement into an unsafe and even uncomfortable environment.
Now you have known more about carpeting in a basement, not only about the things to consider selecting the best carpeting but also the things that you should be aware if you finally select carpet for your basement flooring.
