Found a weird fact about carpet weight in an old library book

I was at the public library in Eugene looking for something else and picked up a carpet history book from 1978. It said the average wool carpet in the 1950s weighed over 4 pounds per square yard, which is way heavier than most stuff we install now. Makes you think about the guys hauling that stuff up stairs back then. Ever run into any old, super heavy carpet that was a beast to pull up?

2 comments

2 Comments

jamesmason1mo ago

That weight explains why so many old houses have those deep, permanent dents in the floorboards. The carpet basically crushed the wood over decades.

the_kelly1mo ago

Ever seen those old wool carpets? They were crazy thick and heavy, like walking on a wet dog. That much weight pressing down in the same spot for 50 years will absolutely warp the floor. It's not just dents, the wood fibers get compressed for good.