Tools Needed to Install Carpet

Tape Measure

• Use a tape measure to find the dimensions of the room in which you will install the carpet. This way you will know how much carpet to purchase.

Masonry or Concrete Nails and Hammer

• Attaching the tack board to your floor requires nails that can penetrate your floor. Check on what your subfloor is made of and buy the appropriate nails. Purchase a hammer to get your nails into the floor.

Tack Strip

• Install tack strip around the perimeter of the room to hold the carpet down. Tack strip consists of flat strips of wood with small nails sticking out of the top that you push the carpet on.

Carpet Cushion and Glue

• Lay down a carpet cushion over the whole floor up to the tack strip so that when you install your new carpets they're not placed directly against the floor. Apply a generous amount of glue to the subfloor to hold the pad. Carpet padding makes the newly-carpeted floor feel soft.

Carpet Trimmers

• Lay out the new carpet over the carpet pad and cut it with carpet trimmers to fit snugly against the walls.

Power Stretcher

• Use a power stretcher to get the carpet tight. This machine pulls the edges of the carpet up over the tack strip and ensures that your carpet will not wrinkle or bunch up after installation.

Plastic Paddle or Putty Knife

• Use a paddle to push the carpet under the baseboards around the room. There should be no visible edges of carpet.

Seam Tape

• Apply seam tape to the bottom of the carpet if there are any sections that had to be connected. The tape served to connect the separate pieces of carpet into a seamless piece.