How to install carpet
Installing carpet can be easy to do with a little planning and know-how. However, it is physically demanding handling rolls of carpet. Making rough cuts in a garage or yard if possible can help to reduce the amount of weight you have to maneuver around corners, through doorways, or up/down stairs. Also, making a measure diagram with all your cuts listed out can help you to organize what will be needed where. One thing to remember is that because carpet is made from fibers it has a nap. That means that if at all possible try to keep carpet oriented in the same direction. If you do have to turn carpet try and do it in door ways that can be closed off.
Carpet can either be glued-down or stretched and attached with tack strip. Sometimes you may also have to seam two or more pieces of carpet together in order to cover an area. We will concentrate on installing carpet using tack strips. If you want to learn how to install carpet by gluing it down check out this link:.
This installation guide assumes you have a bare surface that you will be installing over. If you do not, please remove the old carpet or make sure whatever the carpet is being installed over is flat and secure.
- Cut the tack strips and install them around the perimeter of the room. If you have existing tack strip, inspect all pieces to make sure there is no damage and all tacks are still at an angle and not bent flat. If installing new tack strip use either concrete or wood tack strips depending on your subfloor. This will determine the type of nail used on the strip to nail it to the subfloor. Place the nail side of the strips towards the floors with the tacks facing upward. Make sure the tracks are facing towards the wall. This will allow the tacks to grip the carpet as its stretched. Nail the tack strip down away from the wall the width of the carpet. Do not put tack strips in doorways.
- Lay out and secure the padding. Padding usually comes in 6 ft widths. Try and lay out the padding so that the seams are perpendicular to those in the carpet if applicable. Tape the seams with at least 2 inch masking tape. Either staple the pad down every foot or use a pad glue to glue down padding. Work your way to the edges where the tack strip is and then staple the padding to the side of the tack strip. Use a razor knife to cut excess pad to make it even with top of tack strip.
- Cut rough carpet piece. Use a chalk line to mark the carpet with measurements that are around 6 inches longer than those needed. This will allow you to center the carpet and will allow for minor problems with square walls. Its always easier to cut some more off than to add some more later.
- Use power stretcher and knee kicker to stretch and attach carpet. Starting in the corner of the long wall use a knee kicker to stretch the carpet. As you are applying pressure use a tuck tool to tuck the carpet underneath the base molding and catch the back side of the carpet on the tacks from the tack strip. On the adjacent short side continue to attach carpet to the tack strip for at least 5 feet. Next, using a 2×4 on the tucked wall attach the power stretcher and stretch the carpet on the opposite end of the room. Tuck in half this side onto the tack strips. Using the knee kicker apply pressure on the rest of the walls and tuck in half of those walls. Continue moving in a clockwise fashion until only one wall remains.
- Attach carpet along the last wall.
- Trim carpet to 3/4″ above baseboard.
- Install transitions. Now you can install all your transitions and then trim your wastes.
Push it into the tack strip and tuck the last wall of carpet.
Tuck these edges underneath the molding piece.
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