Carpet Novice Needs Help with Karastan SmartStrand Carpet Choice

15 years ago

Hi all--I originally posted this in Flooring, but haven't had many nibbles, so I thought I'd try here too. I'd appreciate your thoughts as I need to make this decision this week!

We are buying an under-construction spec home--so the builder has his own standard materials, but we are able to make changes if we like. The house will have a walkout-basement level that includes a guestroom, hallway and rec-room as well as stairs to be carpeted. The builder spec is a Stainmaster coir, but we would prefer a much softer carpet--we expect to lie on the floor to play games and watch movies, among other things. We have a 7 year old boy who will use the room for Wii and to play with friends in bad weather--and who tends to spill juice. We also hope to have a dog (most likely a big one if we run true to form) some time after we've been in the house for a few months, and very likely a kitten.

The flooring vender showed us a Karastan "Essential Living" sample today--which he described as a "frisee"--made with SmartStrand and we loved it and said, yes, yes, this is it. But on reflection, I realized we hadn't thought about the stairs. I'm not sure it's appropriate for stairs, and maybe not even safe. It's a longish, loosish pile, and Karastan describes it as a saxony, not a frieze (I'm learning).

A number of carpet glossaries suggest that saxony is prone to matting and is not a good choice for stairs, high traffic areas, or areas with active kids. True? True of THIS saxony? Wear or matting aside, is it a safety issue on stairs?

It looks like Karastan has two other cut pile rugs made with Smartstrand: Nature's Harmony and Woodland Pass. The vender didn't show us either of these, but it looks like Nature's Harmony is much less expensive (cheaper?). Anybody know anything about these carpets? Is either a frieze? Are they soft? Durable? Would either be a more appropriate choice than Essential Living for somebody with stairs, an active kid, probable pets and a desire for a soft, stain resistant carpet? We've always had wood floors before, so carpet is all new to me! Thanks for your help!

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Comments (6)

senko
15 years ago
This will not help with your carpet choice, but have you thought of upgrading your matting? We upgraded our carpets for our first home. Second home, we kept the carpet as offered, but upgraded the matting. We were much happier with the second home carpets.
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User
15 years ago
I don't know a lot about carpets, but wanted to offer that we have the frieze on our stairway and all of the second level, it's not been a problem at all on the stairs. I too read that the Saxony is a low traffic pile and may not be the best option for your situation. Based on what you describe your needs to be, I think the frieze would be an excellent choice. I love the way it feels when you walk on it. We have two elderly cats and it's also easy to clean when spotted.

In regards to senko's suggestion for upgrading the matting, I'd agree that would help for the living areas especially with a slab foundation, however, not on the stairs. The previous owners of my DD's house did that and those things are a nightmare to walk down because of the added padding.
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pmacbee
Original Author
15 years ago
Thank you both! We did upgrade the padding, but lukkiirish I think you make a great point about NOT doing it on the stairs. I hadn't thought of that, but I will now definitely ask them to use the thinner pad on the stairs. So glad to know that the frieze works on the stairs!
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jab65
15 years ago
Just wanted to let you know that we installed Smartstrand frieze through Home Depot about 1 1/2 years ago in a low traffic area, and it's like new. Guys there didn't even know they carried Smartstrand, but I'd done my research and hunted it out. They had perhaps 6 different types with many colors. Love it!
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User
15 years ago
Yeah, that's smart...the stairs are just too small for all the padding. Yes, you'll love the Frieze. Good luck!
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pmacbee
Original Author
15 years ago
Hi all,
Just wanted to circle back for the benefit of anyone in the future who looks at this question. We went back and compared the carpet we chose to the "true friezes" and "true saxonies" they had. This Essential Living is something Karastan calls a "textured saxony." Fiber is much, much thicker, and considerable looser than a real saxony. Unlike the saxony, you can't make lasting footprints (or draw smiley faces as my son did), in the Essential Living carpet. About the same texture as the friezes, just a teeny bit longer and a little bit looser, and a bit softer. It's not as long as I remember it, and carpet vendor says they've had lots of experience putting it on stairs with no wear or safety issues. With his guidance we did scale the padding on the stairs back to a dense, thinner, pretty unyielding felt that should reduce concerns about too much padding/curve on stair treads. Thanks so much for all your help!
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