Berber carpet is a type of woven floor covering characterized by tightly looped fibers woven in parallel lines, creating a dense, low pile.
All Berber carpets have a loop pile (different carpet piles are explained here). The lower the loops, the more durable the carpet, and indeed most modern Berbers are made with short loops.
Low pile carpets, in contrast, feature shorter fibers with tighter fabric loops, such as berber and saxony carpets. Most residential and commercial carpets in apartment buildings, houses, and hotels are low pile carpets.
Berber is a type of loop pile carpet and is very popular in today's homes.
Berber carpet is unique! It consists of many small, thick loops instead of strands like many other types of carpet. Berber has thick, heavy yarn that is built into different sizes of tufts. It's also known as loop pile carpet during construction.
While some consider it outdated, berber is known for being one of the oldest and most durable kinds of carpet. Berber carpeting is typically found in low maintenance, high-traffic areas, like basements.
You can install Berber carpet on stairs, but it takes quite a few cuts and some finessing to get it to lay right and look beautiful; that is another reason to turn to a professional carpet installer.
While Berber is able to hide stains and dirt better than plush carpet, it doesn't mean you should take less care of it. You still need to frequently vacuum and occasionally shampoo and clean your carpet no matter which style you choose.
Berber carpets are often a great choice for the living room. Berber is known to be a very versatile and affordable way to carpet your living room. It comes in a variety of quality and can complement many types of décor. Berber is a looped style of carpet.
Durable- Berber carpets are very durable and do not get torn off easily even when exposed to heavy traffic. Once installed, you can be sure that they can last in your house for more than a decade.
I generally recommend a pile height of less than 3/4″ to help reduce the chance of matting and crushing of the pile. Why? A shorter Pile-Height makes for a much more durable carpet, it makes the carpet much easier to clean and makes the carpet more stain resistant and less prone to matting and crushing of the pile.
Low pile carpet has short fibers that look and feel flat and dense. This type of carpet is easy to clean and durable; it doesn't catch much dirt or debris, and it can stand up to a lot of foot traffic without losing its initial appearance.
If a carpet is called “high pile,” it means the fibers are taller and looser. Shag carpet, for example, is a well-known high pile option. Low pile carpeting, on the other hand, has shorter carpet fibers and tighter loops.
The loops found in Berber carpet can be easy to snag. Even worse, the snags can unravel and in some cases can ruin the entire carpet. Loops can become crushed over time, especially if there is a lot of foot traffic.
The term Berber generally refers to carpet that's overall light in color with flecks of darker colors (usually brown or gray) and woven with a distinctive loop pile that attaches to the backing and remains uncut.
Carpet fiber: The highest-quality (and priciest) Berber carpets are made from wool and nylon. Berber carpets can also be made from less-expensive olefin (polypropylene), polyester or a mix of fiber blends.
Berber Carpet Prices
As we mentioned, it is one of the more affordable options in the carpet world. It's also no longer considered “cheap” by many homeowners thanks to new styles and fibers, so you can find it installed throughout homes, not just high-traffic areas or finished basements.
Berber is still a popular choice. But unlike the plain Berbers of the early 1990s, today's versions have more texture and pattern.
Fortunately, your berber carpet can be cleaned periodically with a steam cleaner, but it does retain water more than some other types of carpet fiber, and the tight loops of berber can become damaged if the carpet is not cleaned with proper care.
Are Berber carpets the same as Loop carpets? In a nutshell: yes! The modern Berber refers to a style of carpet construction that involves looping the carpet fiber before fixing it onto the backing. Having said that, there are different types of loop carpeting, such as patterned loops and uneven loops.
The carpet is very easy to over-wet and excessive scrubbing will get the stain “trapped” deep into the fabric, making it impossible to clean. A professional grade carpet cleaner is a great way to maintain and clean your berber carpet throughout the years.
It is normal for carpeting to stretch 1-2% due to normal wear, but if it is stretched properly when it is installed then you will find that it will not be a big problem in most cases. Improper installation of these carpets will lead to unwantedly removing the Berber carpet and reinstalling them all over again.
Saxony carpet is a cut loop pile carpet. Its pile is designed to be incredibly dense, for a soft feeling underfoot. This makes it popular for bedrooms and living rooms. Sometimes Saxony carpets are called a plush carpet, based on the luxurious style and feel.
Loop pile refers to a carpet in which the loop fibers are NOT CUT (see diagram above). This type of carpet is left in it's woven form and consists of several loops of carpet fiber. A patterned loop carpet is formed when the loop fibers are at various heights. Loop piles rarely show footprints and vacuum lines.