10 Steps For Do-It-Yourself Carpet Installation
10 Steps For Do-It-Yourself Carpet Installation
In a previous article, we discussed the pros and cons of hiring a professional or an amateur to install new carpet in your home. While Raleigh Carpet Masters recommends having a professional do the job, there are circumstances where that option is not feasible.
In such situations, it would be helpful to have an easy guide to assist you during the carpet installation process.
Below you find the steps that you need to follow to assure that your carpet installation project has the best possible outcome.
Preparation
• Vacuum the old carpet to reduce clean up after it’s removed.
• After you’ve removed the old carpet, air out the room and sweep or vacuum the subfloor thoroughly.
• Take everything out of the room, including plants, window coverings, wall decorations, etc.
• Open all of the windows and doors to provide adequate ventilation.
• Make sure all repairs to walls and floor are complete before you begin to install the new carpet.
• Make sure the carpet is exactly the same as you ordered. Check the label and sales receipt.
• Inspect the carpet and backing for defects.
• Keep the label, receipt, warranty and a small scrap of carpet for your records.
Tools You Need To Buy, Or Have On Hand
Tape measure
Utility knife
Hammer
Heavy-duty stapler
Chalk
Duct tape
Gloves
Carpet seam tape
Safety goggles
Kneepads
Equipment You Can Rent For The Project
Knee kicker
Carpet stretcher
Seam cutter
Seaming iron
Seam roller
Wall trimmer
Strip cutter
Getting Started
1. Install new tackless strips along the perimeter of the room with teeth facing the wall. Be sure to leave a ½” space between the strip and the wall.
2. Starting at the farthest corner, lay the new underlay strips right next to one another, but don’t overlap them. Staple them down along the inner side of the tackless strip and then trim excess. Duct tape the seams.
3. Roll out the new carpet and fold one end over itself. Using chalk, mark the measurement of the longest wall plus 6” on both edges of the carpet. Position a piece of scrap lumber under the section of carpet you’re about to cut, and use a utility knife and straight edge to cut off the piece you’ve just marked.
4. Roll up the carpet section you have cut, and lay an edge of it on the tackless strip at the farthest side of the room. Slowly roll out the carpet to cover the rest of the room, being careful to keep the carpet straight.
5. If you are using smaller sections of carpet as opposed to one whole piece, overlap each section of carpet by 4” to 6”, and with the seam cutter, cut through both layers, making sure the edges match exactly. Place a strip of seaming tape on the floor beneath (adhesive side up). Pass the seaming iron over the tape to activate the adhesive and then replace the two carpet seams down onto it. Go over each seam with the carpet seam roller.
6. Set the toothed end of the knee kicker into the carpet about 3” from the wall and push your knee with as much strength as possible into the padded end of the kicker. The goal is to stretch the carpet over the tackless strip where the teeth of the strip will grip it, holding it securely in place.
7. Position one end of the carpet stretcher adjacent to the wall where you’ve affixed the carpet, with the other end of it about six inches from the opposite wall. Following the instructions of the carpet stretcher, stretch the carpet to fit tightly to the tackless strip on the opposite side of the room. As you continue to do this around the entire perimeter of the room, trim the excess carpet at the edges with a wall trimmer.
8. Using a stair tool and hammer, push down the carpet edges between the wall and the tackless strips. Carefully trim the carpet at the doorways and install door-edge strips.
9. Unless you need to replace baseboards, your carpet installation is complete.
10. Allow the room to aerate for a day or two before putting the furniture back in and using the room.
Written by larrylarr on May 29th, 2008 with
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