Serious question, did carpet pad quality fall off a cliff in the last 3 years or is it just me?
I pulled up some pad from a 2019 build in Tempe last week and it still had bounce, like it was laid yesterday. Then I did a house built in 2023 two days later and the pad was flat as cardboard under the traffic lanes, already crumbling at the seams. Same 8 pound rebond label on both, so I called my supplier and he admitted most of it is coming in lighter and denser now to save on freight. I weigh the scraps on my scale when I get a chance, and the new stuff is running about 20 percent lighter for the same thickness. My knees can feel it by lunch, and I am getting way more callbacks on flattening and re-stretch. Anyone else tracking this, or am I just getting old and cranky?
The 20 percent lighter thing matches what I have been seeing too. I keep a few scraps from old jobs in the truck and the difference is wild when you hold them side by side, same label and everything. My knees are shot by 2pm on the new stuff and I have been telling customers the pad is where I would spend the upgrade money now, not the carpet itself. You are not old and cranky, you are just paying attention.