INSTALLING PADDING | Library builder

Padding, which is usually 6 ft. wide, should run perpendicular to the carpet to prevent padding and carpet seams from lining up. If the padding has a slippery side, face it up so carpet can slide over it as you position it. Once you’ve rough-cut the padding, carefully position the pieces so they butt to each other. Do not overlap padding sections, which could create a raised welt under the carpet; likewise, padding should not overlap tackless strips. Trim the padding so it butts to the edge of the strips. Then use duct tape, or something as strong, to tape the padding seams together so they can’t drift.

If there’s a plywood subfloor, staple the padding every 6 in. around the perimeter of the

Подпись: Tackless strips come in 4-ft. lengths, with nails suitable for the substrate. This strip has short, case-hardened masonry nails for attaching strips to a concrete slab. Wear goggles driving such nails down.

Подпись: When installing padding over a concrete floor (which is somewhat slippery) tape the padding edges to the edges of tackless strips to keep the padding from riding up onto the strips. Tape just the edges of the strips, so the tack points remain exposed.

You may wonder why strips with dozens of tack points sticking up are called tackless. In the old days, carpet installers had to hem (fold over) and tack down carpet edges every inch or so, which took thousands of tacks. When someone finally realized that it would be much quicker to hook carpeting onto strips containing slanted, inverted tacks, a generation of installers gave thanks. By and large, the strips did away with edge tacking, hence the name tackless strips.

Подпись: Adjust the row-runner blade so it cuts just through the carpet backing and not into the padding. Change blades often so they cut cleanly. Подпись: This row runner is cutting a looped-pile carpet. Note that the padding seams run perpendicular to the carpet seams, to prevent their ever lining up.

Подпись: Carpet Pile and Layout Most carpeting consists of yarn loops stitched through a backing material. The upper face of the carpet is called the pile. When those yarn loops are uncut, the carpeting is called loop pile. When the loops are cut, it is called cut pile. Sculpted pile usually is a mixture of looped and cut, which frequently creates a pattern. Because carpeting is stored and transported on a roll, its pile gets pressed down in a direction that it retains thereafter. By stroking a carpet's pile, you can determine its pile direction. When you look into the pile, the carpet color looks richer and when the pile direction points away from you, the carpet appears lighter. Thus when you install carpet, the main entryway of the room should look into the carpet pile, so that it appears as rich and luxuriant as possible. Also, where it's necessary to join two pieces of carpet, the pile of at least one piece should lean into the seam, thus overlapping and concealing it to some degree. Finally, if you have to use more than one piece of carpet in a room, all pile should point in the same direction. Otherwise, the sections will appear to have different hues.

floor, and every 12 in. in the field, using 18-in. staples. If the substrate is concrete, sprinkle a latex-based carpet adhesive such as Parabond® M-4259 Solv-Free around the perimeter of the room and spread it out with a notched trowel; it’s not necessary to adhere the entire padding. Finally, because concrete is slippery, tape the padding edges so they can’t ride up onto tackless strips.

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