Choosing a new carpet for your home is a decision that takes, style, longevity and affordability into account. Over recent years homeowners have also been incorporating the idea of sustainability into their big purchasing decisions. Because of this, home décor and interior designers are incorporating more sustainable and environmentally friendly elements in their projects; and this includes carpets.
In this article we’ll share why the properties of wool, make wool carpets a sustainable choice for domestic carpeting.
Where does wool come from?
Wool for carpets most commonly comes from sheep who are sheared yearly as part of their care. It can also come from llamas, goats, camels, and alpacas. All wools have some shared qualities but also each animal produces wool with their own unique properties.
Any carpet company who makes wool carpets should be able to tell you origin country of their carpet, but it is predominantly Britain and New Zealand. Sheep use natural sustainable resources such as grass, water and fresh air to live healthy lives. Due to this, and having their wool removed each year, these wonderful creatures are considered a 100% renewable resource.
What makes wool a sustainable material?
There are several properties of wool that make it sustainable. As a natural fibre it is 100% biodegradable. Contrary to the plastic/synthetic counterparts that take thousands of years to decompose in landfills. When biodegrading, the wool releases all its natural components back into the soil as nutrients.
A big part of carpet choices, and sustainability, is longevity. How long a product is effective helps balance the initial cost. A cheap product that must be replaced often, is not sustainable like a product that lasts a long time but costs more. Wool has a number of qualities that makes it long-lasting.
The way wool is structured, at a molecular level, gives it the ability to absorb dyes and keep the colour strong for a long time. Despite that ability to absorb colours well, wool is very resistant to dirt. The natural oils present in wool repel other oil-based grime.
On top of that, wool is extremely durable. It has a natural ‘crimp’ that helps the fibre bounce-back after pressure from people and furniture. Even after heavy furniture has laid on wool carpet for a long time, such as a sofa, wool retains a remarkably good structure compared to synthetic materials.
Is wool safe as a carpet material?
Fire safety and good air quality are two important health and safety bonuses wool provides. Wool is the most flame-resistant of the most common fibres used in interior designs such as nylon and polyester. It has a very low heat combustion level and a high Limiting Oxygen Index – meaning it releases heat at a low rate and is very difficult to ignite in the first place. In a house fire, nylon will melt at 252-292°C and polyester melts at 160-260°C. Wool, amazingly, does not melt. To even ignite, wool needs to reach a temperature of 570-600°C. When burning, wool forms an insulating char rather than melt or stick.
When it comes to air quality, wool is known to absorb Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) which are harmful but very tiny substances in our air. VOCs are released from many of the products in our homes such as cleaning chemicals. Alongside dust and moisture, wool binds VOCs leading to improved air quality.
Does wool carpet make good insulation?
Saving money on our energy bills is so important and many folks are looking for ways to ensure they lose as little heat as possible from their homes. Wool keeps sheep warm, and it keeps homes warm too. As a natural insulator, a thick wool carpet with good quality, thick underlay, according to a technical report from 2016, can save as much as 8-13% on heating bills.
When asking yourself if wool a sustainable choice for carpet, think of these qualities.
Wool carpet:
- is made from a renewable resource,
- is 100% biodegradable,
- is colour strong for long periods,
- repels dirt,
- has excellent ‘bounce-back’,
- is flame resistant,
- does not melt,
- improves air quality,
- keeps homes warm,
- and reduces energy bills.
As a sustainable choice, wool carpet ticks a lot of positive boxes for an interior designer, homeowner, or landlord to consider. For more information, come and visit our fantastic showroom in Market Harborough to see and touch the impressive range of wool carpets we stock.