[edit] Fixing Equipment

A staple gun (which can be cheaply hired) is most useful for fixing foam carpets and underlay (except on concrete floors) as the staples do not damage the carpet and are almost invisible, unlike carpet tacks.

For fitting unbacked carpets, you also need a quantity of tackless grippers. These are strips of plywood about 40mm wide through which nails stick out at an angle, at intervals. The grippers are nailed around the room's perimeter to invisibly hold the carpet in position. They should not be used on foam backed carpets as the nails will tear the backing. Threshold strips are metal strips which join carpets neatly in doorways. There are also special types which can be used to join a carpet to hard flooring in the next room. One further piece of essential equipment for trimming and cutting the carpet is a sharp handyman's knife. Keep a good supply of blades handy, as the knife will quickly become blunt.

[edit] Measuring up

Accuracy is essential when measuring a room for carpet. To make a really accurate plan, measure the room carefully and draw the shape to scale on graph paper. Take the measurements of the widest and longest parts of the room, (including bays and recesses) and check them carefully on each side of the room in case the walls are not parallel. Always measure at least one diagonal to ensure that the room is square. Ignore built-in units, you must buy enough carpet to fit the whole area and then cut round these later. Though it may seem wasteful, if you try to 'jigsaw' the carpet it will show in the end result. After you have written in all the measurements, work out which width of carpet is most suitable.

[edit] Carpet widths

Nowadays, the vast majority of carpets are made in a standard 4m width; a few are still available in the old imperial 12ft width. Both are known in the trade as broadloom. Narrower widths, known as body carpets and measuring up to 900mm wide, are used for carpeting stairs, landings and corridors. When estimating, allow about 20mm overlap all rounds so that the carpet can be fitted snugly to the line of the walls, and a further 35mm for any wall which incorporates a door.

[edit] Preparing the floor

Any floor to be carpeted must be flat and dry. On a wooden floor, loose boards or rough surfaces can cause rapid wear in the carpet. Hammer in any loose boards, remove any old loose floor coverings and then sand the floor where it is uneven. Remember that if a board has been cut, this may have been done for rewiring or plumb­ing. So try to keep carpet nails clear of such areas, or you may hit a pipe or cable. If the whole floor is very uneven, it needs to be covered with a layer of flooring grade hardboard or plywood. Use sheets of about 1 m to 1.5 m rather than very large pieces.

Hardboard needs to be dampened, using about one cup of water per sheet and left to dry for 24 hours before it is fitted. Apply the water to the back of the hardboard and stack the sheets face to face and back to back. Providing you buy good quality hardboard, this routine should ensure that you do not get undue shrinkage or buckling once the carpet is laid.

Fix the hard board in a 'staggered brick' pattern; so that you never get a point where four sheets meet, using 20mm nails positioned about 100-150 mm apart.

If a concrete floor is uneven, it can be levelled off with a self smoothing compound (sold either ready mixed or as a powder) that has to be combined with a latex liquid. When poured onto the floor, this finds its own level and sets rather like a thick rubber film. It should be left for at least 24 hours, or as the manufacturers instruct. All concrete floors should also be covered with a good quality carpet underlay.

[edit] Underlay

Underlay acts as sound proofing and keeps in warmth, gives a soft feel underfoot and overcomes any slight bumps in floor surfaces. Most import­ant of all, it extends the life of your carpet and helps to prevent wear on seams provided it does not correspond with the seams in a strip carpet. It is a false economy to buy a cheap underlay, as even the life of an inexpensive carpet is extended if it has a good quality underlay.

Thick brown or grey paper felt makes an extra smooth surface on which to lay foam backed carpets and underlay. This stops the foam from sticking to the floor and helps to prevent dark dust lines along the carpet when you vacuum. Available from most good carpet stores in 1m or 2m widths, paper felt is also useful for wooden floors where dust tends to rise between the floorboards.

Traditional hair and jute underlay should be used under narrow width carpets, it helps to bed in the seams and prevents premature wear. Synthetic felt is also popular as it is lighter and less difficult to cut and fit.

Rubber underlay (including the foam and sponge types) is especially good where you suspect that damp may be a problem, where floorboards are uneven, or where underfloor heating is fitted. Like felt, rubber underlay is normally sold in widths of up to 1.5m and should be laid so that the serrated rubber side faces the floor. On concrete floors, tape the seams together; on wooden floors, staple them with a staple gun if you prefer.

[edit] Laying the carpet

Before you start trying to lay a carpet, remove all furniture from the room and remove any doors which open into it. This will make it much easier to fit the carpet around the door frame. Carpet should always be laid with the pile sloping away from the window, so that tread marks and shading do not show. Unroll a little of the carpet to check on the direction of the pile and pattern. If necessary, turn it round and start laying from the other wall to save re-rolling the whole carpet.

[edit] Foam-backed carpets

Foam backed carpets of all types are especially easy to lay because they can be loose laid, they need only be cut into shape and laid in position. It is not absolutely necessary to secure foam backed carpets at the edges, though for an extra strong finish you may like to use double sided carpet tape or tacks. Another advantage is that the backing acts as a built in underlay, making them more economical than those which need a separate one.

[edit] Laying foam backed carpet

Roll the carpet out so that it is square to the walls and overlapping a little on all sides. Tread it out as you go. If the carpet starts to go out of line, re roll it and begin again. If a corner is way out of line, run the carpet up the wall slightly and trim it to fit later. Before cutting any carpet, check for faults and that the size is the one ordered. Once you have cut the carpet, manufacturers will not accept responsibility. When the carpet is almost in position, make cuts at the corners, not right down to the floor but just enough to lay the carpet really flat. To make a clean cut, press a ruler into the carpet between the tufts of pile and run a sharp knife along it in a continuous movement. After making a cut, the waste often remains attached to the main body of the carpet. By folding back the carpet slightly, you will usually be able to follow the cutting line to finish off the cut. When you are satisfied, fold back the carpet to halfway across its width and roll out the first length of the paper felt. Cut it so that the edges are almost touching the skirting board. Roll out the next sheet so that it overlaps the first by about 10mm and carry on in this way until you have covered about half the room. Afterwards, carefully replace the carpet, turn round and repeat the process for the other half of the room. Check that there are no bumps underneath and that the carpet overlaps the skirtings all round the room.

When you have cut one side, check that it fits perfectly and then secure it, if required, with carpet tacks (no larger than 15mm) or double sided tape. Hammer the tacks in at intervals of about 300mm, positioning them about 15mm in from the skirting. While you hammer, protect the skirting from accidental damage by shielding it with a piece of hardboard. If you use double sided carpet tape, roll back the carpet and stick the tape as near as possible to the skirting. Peel off the top protective covering, replace the carpet, and then press down firmly when you are sure it is in the correct position. Follow the same fitting procedure for the other side of the room. How ever, before fixing in position, the carpet may need stretching slightly to remove any wrinkles.

[edit] Stretching

Stretching a carpet is necessary both for a really tight fit and to keep the pile of the carpet upright so that it wears well. It is a skilled art for which the professionals always use a knee kicker (fig 1 below). These can be hired from hire shops and require careful use, it is very easy to damage both the carpet and your knee. However, when used properly they effectively remove any wrinkles from the carpet. To use a knee kicker, place the head a few centimetres from the skirting board and adjust the knob on the head so that the spikes penetrate only the carpet and its backing. They must not pass right through the carpet into the underlay or floor. Always hold the head down firmly with your hand to prevent it from slipping and tearing the carpet. Then hit the padding gently (square on) with your knee. It is much better to hit it gently a few times than bang it once really hard and risk tearing the carpet. The carpet will stretch a surprising amount, certainly enough to butt it right up against the skirting board if it is a few centimetres short and all carpets should eventually lie flat and taut across the floor.

[edit] Carpets with separate underlay

1 A knee kicker is used to stretch the carpet taut after laying. The knack is to keep one hand on the head of the kicker and to nudge the padded cushion gently several times with your knee until the carpet has been stretched sufficiently

2 Hardboard protects the skirting board while hammering and gives the correct distance for the prenailed gripper of unbacked carpets.

3 Roll out the underlay and cut so it is a small distance from the gripper to allow for movement when the stretcher is being used.

4 Subsequent strips of underlay should be butted up against each other and the seams joined with single sided tape.

5 Crease the carpet down behind the gripper with a bolster to make a clear and accurate line by which the carpet can be cut.

6 It is easier to cut unbacked carpets from the reverse side. Use a straight edge on the crease for a really accurate line.

7 When the carpet is taut, force any overlapping carpet firmly down behind the gripper using a builder’s brick bolster.

8 Make vertical cuts around doors of sufficient depth to enable the carpet to be pushed down, creased and trimmed to size.

9 When a larger area of carpet has to be cut, mark the position with chalked line. Allow at least 25mm extra for fitting.

10 Carefully cut out the main area paying particular attention to ensure that the vertical line is not made too deep.

11 Nail the threshold strip into place and cut the carpet to fit under its lip. Bang it into place when both carpets have been laid.

12 Use double sided tape to join a carpet in the middle of a room. Tack one side of the carpet out of the way and mark the tape’s position.

Prenailed gripper strips must first be nailed around the perimeter of the room, making sure that the teeth face towards the skirting board. Use a piece of hardboard both to protect the skirting and to help you get the gripper the correct distance from the skirting board (see fig. 2). When it is fixed the gripper should be butted tightly to the hardboard.

If it is too far from the skirting, it will not hold the carpet in place. You can now roll out the underlay, backing side up, and cut it so that it is about 10mm from the gripper (fig. 3). This allows for movement when the stretcher is used. Butt the next piece of underlay up against the first and join the seam with single-sided tape (fig. 4). When the whole floor is covered, continue cutting the carpet to shape. You need to make doubly sure with unbacked carpets that the carpet is creased right down behind the gripper, cut at a slightly shallower angle to allow enough carpet to tuck behind it (fig. 5).

You may find it easier to cut from the back of unbacked carpets, following one of the strings which, make up the weave (fig.6). The stretcher is used in the same way, except that you will need to use it on the first, as well as the second, skirting. Instead of using tacks or tape, simply press the carpet down on to the pins in the gripper, remembering to keep a firm hand on the head of the knee kicker at all times.

When you have finished one side, force the cut edge of the carpet down between the skirting and the gripper, using a builder's brick bolster (fig. 7). You may find you need to use slightly more force on the knee kicker than with foam backed carpets, though be careful not to overdo it. After about four weeks, an unbacked carpet may stretch. If this is the case, trim the carpet and use the knee kicker to make it taut again.

For complicated areas such as doorways and alcoves, make vertical cuts, just enough to enable the carpet to be pushed down at each change in direction (fig. 8). Then, using a large screwdriver or similar tool, crease the carpet firmly into the angle made by the floor and the skirting board.

Holding the carpet down with a straight edge, run a sharp handyman's knife along this crease line. If a large area of any type of carpet has to be cut, mark the line with chalk (fig. 9) allowing 25mm extra. Cut out the main area, lay the carpet back in position and trim off the excess (fig. 10).

Remove the excess scrap carpet and examine the accuracy of the cut. If the carpet is too far from the edge, move the whole carpet down a fraction and on your next cut adjust the angle of the knife to suit. Reverse this process if you have not cut enough.

Joining carpets

There are two kinds of threshold strips for joining or finishing off carpets at doorways. One is a cove strip of metal which is nailed into the floor and has recesses on either side. The edges of the carpets are fitted into these and pressed on to prongs inside.

The tops are then hammered (using a hammer and a block of wood) so that they close over both edges of carpet (fig. 11). The second type of threshold strip is a simple metal strip which is placed on top of the carpet edges and screwed into place. When fixing either type makes sure that there is enough space for the door to open and close. If not, sand or plane and rehang the door until it just clears the carpet. If you have to join a carpet in the middle of the room, first make sure that both pieces are in exactly the right position and that the pile is running in the same direction, then curl back one of the pieces, using a few tacks to hold it out of the way.

Mark a line on the floor at a distance half the double sided tape's width from the edge of the piece of carpet still in position (fig. 12). Next, roll back the second piece of carpet and cut off the correct length of tape. Stick the tape down along the line so that it will be under the second piece of carpet which you rolled back. Replace both sides of the carpet (one at a time) and press firmly into position.

Finally, push both sides towards each other to make a small peak and apply a thin bead of latex adhesive along both carpet edges. Flatten out the carpet again and remove any excess adhesive with a damp cloth. The seam should be left to set for one hour. A new carpet should not be vacuumed for a week or so after it has been laid. If it 'moults' and leaves deposits of fluff in the first few days, remove this by gentle hand brushing.