How to tell the difference between BCF and staple fibers?
Filament fibers refer to fibers of long continuous lengths, while staple fibers refer to those of shorter lengths, which are about a few inches long. Most natural fibers, such as cotton and wool, are staple fibers. Synthetic fibers, such as nylon and polyester, are considered filament fibers.
Which is Better- Cotton vs polyester?
polyester:
- Production is generally more environmentally-friendly
- Cotton is biodegradable, so less harmful to the environment once used
- High breathability: leading to less sweatiness and discomfort
- It’s a natural fabric so doesn’t tend to irritate the skin
- Soft and comfortable, with a natural appearance.
What is BCF triexta carpet?
Triexta is a synthetic carpet fiber made from polytrimethylene terephthalate, which has some similarities to polyester. Quality and Durability Both nylon and triexta are available in carpets of many different qualities. Thus, carpets made with one fiber are not going to be unilaterally better than carpets made with the other fiber. Featured Video
What does BCF stand for in carpet?
Staple Fiber Carpeting
- BCF and Staple. BCF stands for "bulk continuous filament." As the name suggests, it is essentially one long continuous strand of fiber that is used to make a section of ...
- Types of Fiber. Wool is a natural staple fiber. ...
- Differences. ...
- Uses. ...
- Qualities. ...
- Appearance. ...
What is BCF fabric?
A kind of filamentous yarn with bulky filaments, the raw material is polypropylene. These types of yarns are in large bulk but not of springy in nature. They are substitute for acrylic and wool yarns in manufacturing machine woven carpets, carpet cover, and so on.
What does BCF carpet mean?
Bulked Continuous FilamentBulked Continuous Filament (BCF) refers to the construction and content of the yarn. The carpet yarn is made up of continuous fibers as opposed to random lengths twisted together (which is referred to as a staple yarn).
What is BCF carpet made of?
BCF is a fiber system that is one long filament that is plied together. The result is continuous bundles of carpeting fiber that doesn't shed loose filaments. Most BCF carpet is made from olefin or nylon and it has a higher resistance to pulling. BCF carpeting allows for many beautiful designs and patterns.
What is BCF solution dyed nylon?
Solution Dyed Nylon or SDN is a high-quality synthetic fibre created using BCF Nylon. It is made up of long continual filaments of fibres that are blended together to form a single continuous yarn.
What is BCF polypropylene?
Bulk Continuous Fibre” (BCF) Polypropylene or “Polypropylene” is used to make low-quality Rugs. Polypropylene rugs are thin, difficult to vacuum and sticky under-hand. Flat weave rugs (without pile) are made for both indoor and outdoor use and they are easier to keep clean.
Is BCF nylon good?
BCF nylon carpet Nylon is a very resilient fiber that stands up to foot traffic, and it can also have great stain resistance (some of this depends on the brand of nylon). The advantage of nylon being BCF is that it will not shed early on, but a staple fiber nylon will be just as durable.
Is polyester carpet bad?
Polyester as a carpet fiber has several advantages. Polyester carpeting is inherently stain resistant, and it definitely outperforms both nylon and wool in this regard. Additionally, polyester carpeting is very soft and also significantly less expensive than either nylon or wool.
Does polyester carpet shed?
Polyester fiber carpets can shed individual fibers. They may also be susceptible to pilling, in which loose fibers become entangled with each other and form little particles on the surface.
What is ANSO BCF nylon carpet?
What Is Anso Nylon? Anso Nylon is an enhanced synthetic fiber used to manufacture carpet. While Anso has been around for a while, new innovations such as the R2X treatment give even nylon carpet more durability and soil resistance than believed possible before.
What is BCF Triexta fiber?
Triexta is a carpet fiber that seems like it will end up being a great competitor to nylon, the current king of synthetic carpet fibers. Currently, it is a very durable and stain resistant carpet option that holds up well to whatever you might throw at it.
Is all polyester carpet solution dyed?
Polyester carpet is also typically solution dyed. Solution dyeing makes it quite stain resistant and also mostly non-absorbent. Polyester fibers are hydrophobic, meaning the fiber repels liquid on its own. It's typically further treated with stain resisting properties too.
What are the different kinds of carpet fibers?
There are 6 primary types of fibers used in rugs: acrylic, nylon, olefin blends of nylon & olefin, polyesters (new & recycled), and wools. Acrylic fiber is known as man-made wool because it is an artificial fiber that provides the look and feel of wool at a fraction of the cost.
What is a BCF?
BCF stands for "bulk continuous filament.". As the name suggests, it is essentially one long continuous strand of fiber that is used to make a section of carpet. Staple fibers are shorter lengths, usually only a few inches long.
Why use BCF in carpet?
Due to this, manufacturers will often use BCF in low-weight carpets, as the increased light reflection helps the product to appear bulkier. By contrast, staple has a more dull or matte finish, similar to wool. Read More.
Is staple better than other fibers?
Both types of fiber are available in various qualities, so one is not absolutely better than the other. It depends on the desired finished product.
Is staple fiber better than BCF?
Despite the drawback of shedding, staple fiber has certain advantages that make it preferable to BCF in some instances. For one, the staple is more uniform than BCF and is a good option for solid colors. By contrast, BCF is preferred in multicolor products and highly twisted friezes, which require less uniformity.
What is polyester carpet made of?
Some carpets are made with a blend of Polyester and Nylon fibers. Usually a small amount of nylon is added to the mix. They do this to try to make a polyester carpet a little bit more resilient and slightly more durable. While this may have a benefit to consumers in some situations, I personally do not believe it makes a worthwhile or more valuable product. It's like putting a Mercedes hood ornament on a Ford Fiesta. It doesn't make much sense to me. But carpet makers have long tried to come up with a way to make carpet made from Polyester more durable because it is so cheap to manufacture.
What is nylon carpet?
Nylon is a generic name or designation for a family of synthetic polymers first produced in 1935 by the DuPont Company. As far as fibers go, Nylon is the most durable and the most resilient of all carpet fibers. A resilient fiber is defined as having the ability to return to its original form or position after being bent, compressed, or stretched.
Is polyester a good synthetic?
Polyester is one of the least expensive synthetic fibers to manufacture. A thick polyester carpet may feel nice and soft, but it is not a resilient fiber, and it does not a make a long-lasting carpet. Polyester carpets mat down in a hurry, and that has always been the problem with carpets made from this fiber.
Is wool a synthetic fiber?
Wool is a natural fiber and should not be compared to a synthetic fiber. Some carpets are offered with a blend of nylon and wool in varying amounts. Usually I see 20% nylon and 80% wool. This gives wool some of the characteristics of nylon like increased resiliency and durability as well as lower cost. This can be a very good blend to consider having.
What is the best carpet fiber?
Polyester fiber provides exceptional softness and extravagant color choices. If you compare PET polyester carpet fiber against nylon carpet fiber, you’ll see that polyester has many more preferred benefits like: 1 Great for people with allergies 2 Color fade resistant carpets 3 Exceptional softness and luxurious style 4 Cost-efficient and practical 5 Environmental friendly 6 Perfect for bedrooms and formal rooms
Is polyester carpet good for a bedroom?
PET Polyester carpet is a great selection for any home. Like any carpeting, be mindful about how much foot traffic your home experiences to get the most life out of your floors. Polyester carpet is a fantastic flooring selection for the bedroom or a formal sitting room. PET fibers have more benefits than cons and account for 50% ...
Why is it important to select the right carpet fiber?
Although selecting the right carpet fiber is very important the construction of the carpeting is still more important as far as durability and life of the carpet. To get the premium branded fiber label on the back of a carpet sample manufacturers must meet certain carpet construction requirements set by the fiber manufacturer.
Is olefin a static or stain resistant material?
Olefin is inherently fade, static and stain resistant because the dyes have to be added before the liquid is extruded into solid filaments, which is referred to as “solution dyed”. Olefin is not as crush resistant as nylons and is used in loop pile constructions where it can still offer good performance. Olefin carpets have a lower melting point which can cause marks in the carpet if heavy objects are dragged across the surface of the carpeting.
What is the most versatile carpet fiber?
Nylon Carpet Fibers. The most versatile of all fibers, nylon provides excellent durability and flexibility. It is the most commonly used carpet fiber and can be found in a wide range of both cut pile and loop pile styles. Nylon also has great color flexibility and uniformity, and many yarn systems are exceptionally soft.
What is polypropylene carpet?
Polypropylene (Olefin) Carpet Fibers. Polypropylene is inherently stain and fade resistant. It is not as resilient as nylon or polyester and has limited styling. Polypropylene is normally used in loop pile construction in which there is less need for resiliency.
Is nylon carpet a good stain resistant material?
Nylon also has great color flexibility and uniformity, and many yarn systems are exceptionally soft. Though not inherently stain resistant, most Shaw Floors carpet made with nylon feature stain-resistant treatment for protection against household spills and stains.
New Names for the Same Old Fibers
All fibers can be modified in many ways to make them look or feel different. Some fibers are “bulked up” to make them look and feel thicker.
Nylon Carpet Fibers
Nylon is a generic name or designation for a family of synthetic polymers first produced in 1935 by the DuPont Company. How is nylon made?
What is Fiber Denier?
Denier is the measurement of the strand diameter. Fiber denier is easily understood for those who gone fishing and used a nylon filament fishing line.
What is your level of foot-traffic?
I created a free and simple Carpet Foot Traffic Test so homeowners would have some idea about where they stand and what grade of carpet to consider buying.
Carpet Fiber Blends
Some carpets are made with a blend of Polyester and Nylon fibers. Usually a small amount of nylon is added to the mix.
Olefin Carpet Fibers (aka Polypropylene)
Olefin is a very strong synthetic fiber. It is often used to make Berber carpets, commercial carpets and outdoor grass carpets.
Wool and Wool Blend Carpet Fibers
Wool is a natural fiber and should not be compared to a synthetic fiber. Some carpets are offered with a blend of nylon and wool in varying amounts.
What is the most stain resistant nylon?
The most stain resistant type of nylon is solution-dyed nylon, which locks the color in by adding it during the production of the fiber (rather than dyeing the 'greige' fiber after production). When the color is actually part of the fiber, it is permanent and fade-resistant, and spills are unable to attach themselves to ...
What was the first synthetic fiber?
Several years later, in 1959, DuPont introduced BCF (bulked continuo us filament) nylon. Nylon revolutionized the carpeting industry as the first truly synthetic fiber and quickly became the new benchmark in carpeting.
How does nylon resiliency work?
Resiliency. Nylon’s resiliency is due in large part to the hydrogen molecule that constitutes part of its structure. This molecule can be revived by the hot water extraction cleaning method ( steam cleaning ). The heat from the steam cleaner actually reactivates the hydrogen molecule, so that when the fibers have begun to flatten due ...
What type of nylon is used in carpeting?
There are two types of nylon used in carpeting: type 6 and type 6,6 (so-named for the double strands of carbon atoms it contains). While both are nylon, their molecular structure is different from one another. There has been much debate in the industry whether one type is preferable to the other. Many hail type 6,6 as the best option, due ...
Who makes nylon carpet?
There are many companies that produce nylon to sell to carpet manufacturers, such as Invista (producers of StainMaster fiber formerly produced by DuPont). Generally, nylons produced in-house will cost less than those purchased elsewhere. This is due to the elimination of the additional link in the supply chain and is not usually an indication ...
When was nylon first used?
Its first commercial use was in women’s stockings in 1939, but it was also being used in fishing line and toothbrush bristles. In the mid-1950s DuPont began producing nylon for carpeting, in the form of a staple fiber, after a successful six-year trial in the Hotel du Pont. Several years later, in 1959, DuPont introduced BCF (bulked continuous ...
Is nylon a stain resistant material?
Advances in stain treatment technologies mean that today’s nylons are more stain-resistant than ever before.
BCF and Staple
Types of Fiber
- Wool is a natural staple fiber. Nylon and polyester can be made in either BCF or staple form, depending on the desired end product. Both triexta (PTT) and olefin (polypropylene)are made in BCF only.
Differences
- The major difference between BCF and staple is that staple fibers shed initially after installation. The shedding period should be brief; it should last no more than two weeks. It is not an indication that the carpet is flawed or is of lower quality, and it will not affect the appearance or performance of the carpet. It is simply a natural result of the cutting process; shorter fibers will sometimes b…
Uses
- Despite the drawback of shedding, staple fiber has certain advantages that make it preferable to BCF in some instances. For one, the staple is more uniform than BCF and is a good option for solid colors. By contrast, BCF is preferred in multicolor products and highly twisted friezes, which require less uniformity. For another, the staple is often produced in-house (meaning at the manu…
Qualities
- Being a lower cost, however, doesn't necessarily mean that staple fiber is of lower quality than BCF. In fact, staple is preferred in many higher-end products due to its uniformity. Both types of fiber are available in various qualities, so one is not absolutely better than the other. It depends on the desired finished product. That being said, if you were comparing two products that were equ…
Appearance
- BCF has a higher luster than staple. Due to this, manufacturers will often use BCF in low-weight carpets, as the increased light reflection helps the product to appear bulkier. By contrast, staple has a more dull or matte finish, similar to wool.