What width wall to wall carpet needs the use of a power carpet stretcher at initial install.?????
I Had wall to wall carpet installed and got a call back that the carpet was “baggy’ – excess carpet- this was about 1 year later- just out ofthe 1 year warranty. As I remember the carpet installer did not use a power carpet stretcher-the room has a 12 ft wide piece and a 8 ft piece seamed onto that so its 20 ft wide. they just used the kick pads to tighten it up.
the carpet guy came back and at my expense, and used a power stretcher (simple ratcheting gtripper on a long pole) to restretch the carpet and cut about 1 inch out of one side which cured the saggy ness.
should the original installer have used a power stretcher or was there a carpet material problem that allowed it to “relax” as the installed said??
Replies
"should the original installer have used a power stretcher or was there a carpet material problem that allowed it to "relax" as the installed said??"
anything over "tiny" should get power stretched.
ask yourself this ... hos big is the head on a knee kicked?
how much does the installer weigh?
just how much carpet do ya think the knee of a 200lbs guy gonna move ... and how far? Carpet weighs alot ... so not much carpet is gonna move not to far.
carpet life is great increased when it's installed tight.
cleans alot better ... stays clean alot longer with vaccuuming ... and ... doesn't rustle and rub against itself with each step.
back when I was cleaning and installing carpet it would suprise me to get 4" of "extra" out of a room that size that wasn't stretched during installation.
for future use ... when steam cleaning ... if any carpets aren't tight as a drum ...
stretch first ... then clean.
Jeff
Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
I still have the original carpet in my LR, 24 ft long.
Installed myself with power stretcher back then, restretched at 10 years due to a bulge, and just a month ago needed to kick out a small bulge (at 33years old).
I agree with Jeff - anything bigger than a closet should be power stretched. Lazy, inexperienced, or bad installers will kick and go.
I'm an ex carpet installer and would stretch in anything over about 6 feet. Excessive kicking can damage your carpet and never trust an installer that sprays water over the carpet backing to kick it in.