How do I Lay Carpet Tack Board Padding?

Remove and discard the old carpet, tack board and padding. Check that all tacks or tiny nails left from the old tack board are removed. Sweep the room. Remove the doors from their hinges and remove them from the room. Wear the goggles, gloves and knee pads for protection.

Place the tack board along the walls, 1/4 inch away from the baseboards and trim, with the directional arrows pointing at the walls. Don't run the tack board along structures that leave holes in the walls, like doors or vents. Hammer a 2-inch nail into the first piece of tack board, two inches from the end. Hammer additional nails in the tack board every 12 inches.

Lay the carpet pad strips on the floor. Begin at the end of the room furthest from the entry. Cut off the padding if you have more than necessary when you reach the end of the room or a doorway. Begin the pad again where the next strip is needed. Tape or staple the sections of pad together to ensure it is secure and will not shift.

Carry the carpet roll into the room. Unroll the carpet across the room, shifting it to its final position as much as possible. If you have a large room and need to fit carpet pieces together, you must create a seam. Determine where the seam should be -- possibilities include the edge of a room away from a door, an area that will be covered with furniture, or a location that will not receive a lot of traffic. Create the seam by folding the edges of both pieces of carpet back about three feet. Trim off 1/2 to 1 inch of the carpet's edges with the seam cutter or utility knife. Discard the trimmed carpet. Leave 3 extra inches of carpet length on the baseboard side of the room.

Apply seam tape along the carpet's seams. Fit the carpet together like a puzzle. Plug the seam iron into an outlet in the room. Set it to "3." Run the seam iron along the seam to adhere the pieces of carpet together. Roll the steam roller or rolling pin along the seam to ensure it is secure and flat along the floor. Unplug the seam iron and allow it to cool in another room before putting it away.

Position the knee kicker on the floor with the "toothed" end facing a wall. Push the knee kicker toward the wall until it is about two or three inches away. Hit the knee kicker's soft end with your knee as forcefully as possible to stretch the carpet across the floor and attach it to the tack board.

Put the carpet stretcher down on the carpet. Place one end by the carpet you attached to the tack board and the other end by the wall on the other end of the room. Push the carpet stretcher's activation level. The carpet stretcher will attach the carpet to the tack board on the other side of the room. Repeat this process around the entire room until all the carpet has been stretched.

Trim the excess carpet around the the whole room. Discard the trimmings. Tuck the carpet down in between the tack board and baseboard or trim, using the stair tool. Position the stair tool's wedge into the gap under the baseboard or trim and strike the head with a hammer.

Place the door edge strip along the carpet where it meets other flooring under the door. Secure the strip with nails.