At one time, carpet was a very popular flooring choice. Now, health concerns have discouraged many people from installing carpet in their homes. Some carpets may harbor dust mites and mold that even a good vacuuming may not prevent.

Keeping those considerations in mind, carpet can still be a good flooring choice. Of all the floor coverings, carpet provides the most comfort and warmth -- especially if you enjoy roaming the house barefoot. It can also help cut down on noise by absorbing sound.

Carpet Out-Gassing

Some carpet may give off vapors (called out-gassing) that are considered toxic. Known as volatile organic compounds, VOCs are often described as a strong "new smell" which may be discomforting or harmful to some people.

How much a carpet out-gasses varies according to the blend of chemicals used at the mill. Two identical types of carpet from the same manufacturer may out-gas different amounts.

Carpet adhesives may also out-gas. However, both carpets and adhesives that don't out-gas are available; you may just need to shop around, compare, and do your own tests to find them.

Consider doing a simple test to see how out-gassing may effect you. Ask for a small piece cut directly off the roll you want to buy. Seal it in a jar and set it in a sunny window sill for a day or two.

Open the jar and fan the opening with your hand. If the odor is strong -- resembling paint thinner or something worse -- or makes you feel ill, the potential for out-gassing may be a problem.

That's why we always recommend letting any carpet out-gas in a detached garage or well-ventilated area for a day or two before installation.

Types of Carpet & Pad

Carpet is available in a few different materials. Wool holds its shape, but is expensive and tends to fray or "pill," and is mildew/moisture prone.

Nylon is most popular. It's easy to clean, very strong, resists mildew, but may be pricy. Polyester and Olefin are also durable, resist staining/mildew, but tend to pill and compact, respectively.

Pile describes the weave a carpet has. Loop, twist, shag, and plush all refer to the way the carpet fibers are woven into the backing.

A carpet's quality is usually tied to pile thickness. Bend the carpet and see how much backing is exposed. The tighter pile, the more durability and quality it will provide.

There are also several grades of carpet padding. But one simple technique to judge padding is by pinching it. If the pad compacts more than half its thickness, the pad's probably not resilient enough to withstand much long-term wear and tear.

Fastening Tackless Strip & Pad

Tackless strip (also just called "tack" strip) holds the carpet in place. It's made of wood strips with angled tack points jutting up that grab the carpet's backing. The strips are fastened to the floor with nails already driven into the strip at intervals.

Lay out the tackless strip around the perimeter of the room with the points toward the wall or as indicated on the strip. Cut pieces to fit around radiators or other permanent fixtures (exclude small items like pipes and floor vents).

Once the strips are in place, hammer the fastening nails securely into the floor. Roll out and fit the pad along the tackless strip edges, trimming any excess with a utility knife.

Pick up all the scrap pieces of padding as you cut them so later they don't get trapped under the carpet. Staple down the pad with an electric stapler about every 8" so the pad isn't apt to shift or buckle/tear.

Cutting & Laying Carpet

A big carpet installation obstacle is just getting it into the room and rolling it out so it's manageable to cut and fit. If you're carpeting several rooms with one main roll of carpet, keep it in a pickup bed or separate room.

A 15' wide roll is standard, but lengths vary. Calculate the best way to utilize edges without making a seam or cut pieces so seams will lie in inconspicuous or low traffic areas.

Consider too, which way the pile will run. Stroke the carpet with your hand. The fibers will raise up or ruffle when going against the pile. Make sure to keep all pieces going in the same direction.

Roll out the proper length, adding a few inches of excess on each edge. Fold the piece and cut it from the back with a utility or carpet knife. Roll up the piece and transport it into the room.

CAUTION: Carpet knife blades are two-sided and much sharper than a standard utility knife. Handle them with extra respect.

Unroll the piece and square it to the longest wall. Walk the perimeter of the room to make sure enough excess will reach all the walls.

Fold back the carpet to expose the backing and trim the edges so an inch or so of excess remains on each wall.

Cut out for obstructions like radiators or cabinets. Fasten seams and pieces together with strips of hot-melt glue heated with a carpet iron.

CAUTION: The iron and glue get very hot and messy so use caution and always set the iron back on its tray when not in use.

Stretching, Kicking & Tucking Carpet

Even though a piece of carpet is cut to fit the room, it still has a lot of sag in the middle that needs to be taken up. Special, rentable tools with tiny teeth are used to grab the carpet and stretch it toward the walls.

Let's work on a basic four-corner room. Starting in one corner, use a knee kicker to pull the carpet toward the walls, hooking it onto the tackless strip.

Trim off the excess, leaving about 1/2" to 3/4" lip of extra carpet all along the walls. Tuck the lip down between the tackless strip and the baseboard with a putty knife.

Use a carpet stretcher to tack in the adjoining corners, then go back to the first corner and work down the wall with the knee kicker to each tacked corner.

Finish up the corners with the knee kicker if necessary. After completing those corners, use the carpet stretcher to take up slack along the remaining walls, working toward the last corner.

Again, use the knee kicker if needed and trim off the excess at the edges. Finish up by tucking the lip down between the tackless strip and baseboard.

Nail down a threshold strip between any carpet and solid flooring transition. Also, keep a couple scrap pieces of carpet available to use as patches for any future repairs that might arise.

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