Last week we looked at a few of the widthwise problems that manifest themselves on the face of the carpet and mar its appearance; such as bands in cross-over stitch carpet and crush marks on nylon and olefin. This week we will continue our discussion of some of the more common widthwise problems.

Stop marks, like crush marks also run widthwise. They are caused by the stopping and starting of the tufting machinery and created by the elongation of the stitch rate when the tufting machine jerks as it starts up. This creates a narrow band across the width of the carpet. It is most visible in loop pile straight row stitched constructions, but can also occur in cut pile goods.

Shearing marks are also a widthwise problem. Only visible in cut pile carpets, for obvious reasons, they can give a choppy effect to the pile surface that is generally uneven. Shearing marks can also be gouges in the carpet across the width if the carpet lifts for any reason while it is passing through the shearing machine. They can also be created by dull shearing blades.

Don't confuse a shear gouge with a crush mark. There will be a distinct textural change and feel with a shear gouge, and it won't steam out-ever. Whereas a crush mark will feel indented and will respond to steaming.

SHIFT MARKS

One of the newest problems we face with today's carpets, and one that seems to be appearing with increased frequency, is shift marks. This is only a problem with step-over stitched construction or any system which side shifts the needle bars.

What happens here is that the side pull action of the shifting needle bars puts a side or width tension on the yarn being tufted in the carpet, and pulls it down. When this happens, short little row lines appear in the face of the carpet. Most often the carpet has to be subjected to some traffic before these lines become obvious to the consumer. Again there is a good bit of expertise required to make the determination. Guess work and assumptions are out of the question.

OTHER PROBLEMS

There are, as I mentioned before, other problems which run widthwise in the carpet face. Bowing is one. It occurs when the pattern or carpet is bowed from side to side from uneven tension as the carpet passes through the tentor frame during the finishing process. Skewing can occur when only one side is pulled off during this same process. We could go on.

It is important to recognize a great many problems, but it is often difficult to explain them when a sample can't be seen. In my videos we try to overcome these problems of recognizing the different widthwise marks.

Claims are painful to both manufacturer and retailer alike. They are a negative cash flow and do nothing but create aggravation for the entire industry. But being able to better understand some of the problems that you'll be faced with will help ease the pain a little.

CARPET PATHOLOGIST

I'd like to clear up a question that I was asked recently; I do go out everyday, looking at carpet problems both large and small. It is one of the big ways in which I stay in touch with product performance. You might say that I'm the carpet problem expert, the carpet pathologist of the industry. I don't just sit in an office and dream up these columns. In fact, this is only a tiny part of what I do.

So for those of you who think I make this stuff up, I assure you that it all comes from actually working with these problems. I'll continue to share what I learn so you can get more pleasure and less pain out of the carpet business.