This is an issue that requires some clarification, explanation and information. The tufted weight of any carpet is the weight of the material at the tufting machine or prior to any shearing being done of the pile surface. There are tolerances for face weight which have to be met that allow variance of between 5 and 7%, depending on the product and what guidelines it has to comply with, whether GSA or industry standard. All carpet has a published tufted weight however this issue is particularly critical in the commercial segment of the market. To explain further, the tufted weight is the weight of the carpet as it is set up to be produced. In other words, if a carpet is supposed to be 30 ounces a calculation is made as to how much yarn has to be used to achieve this weight.

To be taken into consideration are the pile height of the product – measured from the base of the tuft to the tip, the stitch rate-how many stitches or tufts per inch, and the gauge – how many tufts across the width determined by the number of needles per inch in the tufting machine being used to produce a particular product. Also influential is the ply of the yarn – how many twists per inch and the denier of the fiber – how thick each, individual fiber is. Tufted weight applies to cut pile, loop pile and cut and loop pile carpets. When producing a looped pile product everything has to be set up just right to achieve the desired or required tufted weight, and as mentioned, there are plus and minus tolerances. Once a loop pile carpet is tufted there’s not much of anything that can be done to it to alter the weight. Remember, this is a textile material that will always have some variation in the weight, which is why there are plus and minus tolerances. It is not a product made in a mold that is going to come out the same each time it is produced. That being said, the carpet does have to be pretty close to what is it supposed to be.

Cut pile, cut and loop and tip sheared carpets are a different subject when it comes to weight. For example, we have some commercial clients we have carpet produced for that has to meet particular physical characteristics because of the type of use it gets. Our clients come to us to insure they are getting exactly what they want and what they pay for in every aspect of the product. Weight is one of their concerns. For this reason we work with the manufacturer on the product. Very often they’ll tuft the product “heavy” to allow for what will be sheared off in finishing, which brings us to the finished weight issue. We then test the carpet to insure compliance of every characteristic specified. All cut pile type carpet is sheared to finish the surface, “clean it up” or give it a crisp appearance or the appearance it is supposed to have. Sometimes it’s necessary to re-shear a carpet if there is a slight blemish in the face, or it doesn’t have the “look” desired for that style. This process may take off slightly more fiber that will alter the tufted weight of the carpet. Understand that any shearing done will remove face weight and that this will always alter the tufted weight from the finished weight.

A problem may occur when someone takes issue with the weight of the product they receive versus the published weight of the product. If there is no specific statement that the published weight of a carpet product makes no distinction between tufted and finished weight then a claim may be made, and legal action brought, because the complainant believes they were cheated by not getting what they paid for. Tufted weight versus finished weight may be understood among manufacturers but it is not so well understood by everyone else. Therefore, to prevent arguments, there should be a distinction made and explanation supplied that will leave no question that the stated weight on a particular product is either before or after tufting.

This issue may be more critical at this time in history because of the escalating costs of oil, which is directly linked to the cost of new synthetic fibers. Upwards of 70% of the cost of a carpet is in the face fiber. If the end user gets shorted on what they think they should have and what they paid for, someone is going to hear about it. If the carpet is tested and the weight does not fall within tolerances, the manufacturer is going to be paying somebody something. In the state of California this is an even more critical issue because of the laws they have for weights and measures of products sold there.

The weight of a carpet product really doesn’t have that much impact on how well it will perform. Overall density is the key to performance, not weight. However, when someone paid for and is expecting the weight to be one thing and it’s another they’ll suspect cheating, which undermines trust, which always generates a very painful complaint.