Carpet Question

[Capt. Tobb]

The "plastic" carpet is known as(and made out of) Olefin. The fibers are colored plastic not dyed, other materials like nylon and polyester are white then dyed later. The problem is when that drunk girl spills her two buck chuck on nylon or poly it gets dyed again, with Olefin it is not an issue (other than alcohol abuse). There are two basic styles of carpet, looped pile (berber, commercial)and cut pile (plush) or a combination of the two. In a boat I would not use a cut pile olefin, they are more likely to get wear patterns because in tight spaces we tend to step in the same places all of the time. I would recommend a looped pile olefin for better wear and wider veriety of colors and patterns.
The PO put looped pile nylon in mine and it works well and has a lot of colors to hide stains. If you find a nylon or poly that you really like I wouldnt rule it out, the newer stuff is pretty good unless you go with a solid light color. Oh yea, one thing to keep in mind about Olefin, it is tiny strands of plastic, anything that eats plastic will eat it.
As far as the labor, grab your ankles......its gonna hurt! Your best bet would be to ask around and see who has done other boats and that the owners are happy. Better yet, I would go to a well known mom and pop type retail carpet store and get them to do the labor and material. If you buy the carpet then get someone else to put it in or you do it yourself, one wrong cut and it is back to the store for another order of carpet. Whereas the store (a good one)that does the whole job will give you a price and if they screw up it is on them.
Another thing to consider is to put that blue tape on outside corners and door jambs, the backing most commonly used is like 80 grit sand paper. In tight spots it can screw up some trim.


PS, I almost forgot the most important thing to remember about carpet......FUZZY SIDE UP!....lol

Tobb