installing carpet

[ITE]

can anyone give me some insight and tips on installing carpet? what are the best tools to use? best techniques? Ive heard if you are doing smaller rooms, less than 25 ft long or wide you can get away with only using a kicker and not a stretcher. Is this true?

thank you,

[roger g]

I always thought a kicker was a stretcher.


roger

[Rich]

There is a kicker and a stretcher. Kickers short with a pad for your knee to "kick". The stretcher goes all the way back to a wall and is pretty long - no place to "kick".
In response to ITE - I wouldn't think you would need much more than a kicker - but honestly I have no idea.

[ccoffer]

There is no such thing as stretching carpet with a kicker. 1% in length and width is a minimum.

You can download the CRI 104 and CRI 105 in pdf format from the carpet and rug institute. No charge.

I have heard of diy folks installing their own carpet successfully ,but I am skeptical as to that being possible. You need a lot of specialty tools and the knowledge required to properly use them.

It ain't like throwin' out pinestraw.

I would be glad to answer any specific questions you have.

Yours in earnest,
Chuck.

p.s. Most of the folks out there installing carpet for a living are not very good at it. :lol:

[giddonah]

I did some carpet in an apartment about 6 years ago I guess. I really did a hatchet job on it (didn't use a kicker or anything), but aparently by some 6 year string of miracles it's holding up pretty good I hear. I'm not looking forward to doing it again though. I hear the guys that HD subs the carpet installs to in my area do a good job. I'm skeptical, but may go with them. I'd consider doing it again if the cost was too high though, it wasn't that bad, just time consuming. I would get a kicker for it though. Hmm.... Do I have enough to do already....?

[Cole]

Yup, tired doing it myself once also. I will never do it again. :D

[Dragon]

Yup, tired doing it myself once also. I will never do it again. :D

Amen.