Grout lines can have a huge effect on the way the tile floor installation looks. There are no hard right or wrong answers for what size grout lines should be. However, there are some guidelines for the appropriate size grout joint for technical and aesthetic reasons. For example, when using tiles with imperfect edges larger grout lines should be used.

Recommended size grout lines
Natural stone: 1/16″ or 1/8″
Rectified (sharp) edge tile: 1/16 or 1/8″
Regular tile: 3/16″, 1/4″, up to 3/8″ or 1/2″
Saltillo or Mexican tile: 3/4″ or 1″

The size of grout line dictates the type of grout your installer (or if you’re DIY’ing it, you) will use. If your grout lines are 1/8″ or wider, use a sanded grout. As the name suggests, this grout has a fine sand added to it that prevent the grout from excessive shrinking while curing. Unsanded grout is only recommended for lines smaller 1/8″ wide.

Much thought and effort is put into choosing a carpet, deciding which fibres and colours are best. Even though you won’t see it after installation, carpet pad (or carpet cushion) is an important part of carpet installation that should not be neglected.

Why is carpet pad important?

• It will make carpet feel feel thicker, softer, and more comfortable underfoot
• Carpet will last longer because carpet pad relieves stress on carpet backing and fibers
• Noise is reduced and carpet feels warmer due to extra thermal insulation
• Installation of carpet pad is often a condition necessary for the manufacturers warranty of new carpets

How do I know what carpet pad is right for me?

The type and thickness of carpet pad needed will vary based on the traffic level and carpet. Areas with light traffic like a bedroom are best suited to thicker and softer carpet pad. Hallways, living rooms, and other heavy traffic areas require a thinner and firmer cushion.

As a general rule, the carpet and rug institute recommends a maximum thickness of 7/16″ for cut pile residential carpet. For a low carpet like Berber or commercial carpets, carpet pad should be 3/8″ or less. Full details about the best carpet padding system for your preferred carpet are best reviewed with a salesperson.

It’s not only humans that are affected by UV light – your hardwood floors are too. Avoiding the surprise of “bad tan lines” on your wood floors is a process as easy as buying sunscreen. It starts with understanding photosensitivity.

Wood is a natural material, and like fine wines, it ages. Instead of wrinkles, wood shows its age through gradual changes in colour. The amount of colour change a species of wood experiences depends on photosensitivity, also known as the reaction a material has to light.

The chart below shows the average photosensitivity of each species. Each species is rated from stable to 10, with stable species less likely to change colour and “10” species experiencing a more dramatic change in colour.

Always ask your sales representative about the photosensitivity of the specific hardwood you’re interested to get a complete understanding of the effects UV light will have on your floor.

If your dream floor is more photosensitive than you had hoped, don’t worry. Take the following steps to find out if photosensitivity will have an impact on the hardwood floor you’ve envisioned:

1. Plan for the colour change by finding out what your floor will look like once its colour has changed. Will it get darker or lighter, and more importantly, do you like that colour? If you do, onto step two.
2. Consider how much light the space will get. If the space doesn’t get much UV light, the colour will not change much.
3. If the space does get a lot of light, consider investing in blinds or window coverings and closing them during the day to minimize UV light.
4. Rearrange furniture, mats, and area rugs occasionally to ensure even colour change.

By understanding the photosensitivity of your hardwood floors you can take the appropriate steps to prevent unexpected colour changes.

Carpet is often not thought of as an eco friendly flooring choice but advances in carpet manufacturing and new fibre options available are changing that.

Wool carpets
Made from the cut hair of sheep and llamas, wool is a great renewable choice. It’s durable as well as fire and stain resistant. Wool carpets trap pollutants to keep them out of the air and are a less hospitable to dust mites.

They look and feel luxurious, like the area rug in the picture above from Unique Carpets. But the luxury of wool comes at a higher price than synthetic carpets. Consider purchasing wool carpets as an investment in your home and sustainability.

Plant fibres
The variety of natural plant fibres available presents more biodegrable and sustainable options. While some plant fibre carpets are available as wall to wall carpets, they are most often used for area rugs.

One popular choice is Sisal, made from the leaves of the agave plant. It’s a durable, easy to clean, and absorbent choice. As with many plant fibres, Sisal is known for being scratchy so make sure you feel a sample before choosing it.

Seagrass is a thicker plant fibre grown underwater. It’s known for being easy to care for. Its natural dark pigment is retained because is it unable to hold dye. This makes it good for hiding dirt tracked inside by kids and pets.

Carpet recycling
If planet fibres aren’t suitable for your space and wool is out of your budget, there are still some eco-friendly options available. We work with a 100% Canadian company to offer carpet recycling. After we remove your carpets from your home, they are sent to the carpet recycling plant. At the plant the carpets are sorted by fibre, sheared and converted into pure fibres. Depending on the fibre type, the fibres will be sent to manufacturing companies and can be used to create new carpet and other products that use nylon or polypropylene fibres as inputs. One example of these recycled carpets is the Anso Nylon carpet. This carpet is made from fibres of recycled nylon carpets and can be recycled again and again. Anso Nylon maintains good performance and continues to look stylish after each time the fibres are recycled.

Shaw’s environmentally friendly manufacturing focus extends beyond recycling carpet. The EcoLogix carpet cushion system is made from 91% post consumer recycled content from recycled plastic bottles.

Over time it is natural for carpet to experience wear and tear from every day living. We have some quick and easy solutions to common issues that will get your carpet looking like new again. Before trying any of the following solutions or any other carpet maintenance type, we suggest checking the carpet care instructions provided by your manufacturer to see what they recommend.

1. Snags: If a pet’s claw, a child toy, or any other sharp object hooks on the fibres and creates a small snag. Using a pair of scissors, clip the snag as close to the carpet base as possible.

2. Dents: Heavy pieces of furniture can cause dents or indentations in your carpet but they can be removed. Work the carpet pile back into place using your fingers tips or a spoon. Use a hair dryer to raise the tufts and gently pull up the tufts.

3. Shedding: Happens often with new cut pile carpets and can be removed by vacuuming. Shedding will gradually disappear within a few weeks or months, depending on how often you vacuum.

4. Pilling: It’s not just your sweaters that experience pilling. With certain carpets, heavy traffic can create little balls of tangled fibres and lints. To remove them, clip them with scissors.

5. Burns: If your carpet has a small burn, you can remove the darkened fibres using a pair of curved fingernail scissors. But if the burn is too extensive, you will have to consider patching or replacement.

6. Sprouts: With cut pile carpet, small tufts or sprouts rise up above the surface of the carpet. Please don’t pull the sprout out. Instead, cut it off with a pair of scissors.

7. Crushed Pile: When your carpet pile is crushed and matted, bring it back to life by vacuum with a beater bar vacuum or using a carpet rake.